Just bought a Japanese Black Pine

junmilo

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Hi all,

I just bought an 80 dollar Japanese Black pine(last one) in a bonsai pot from a local nursery here in Toronto, Ontario. It's between -2C to 5C here in Toronto.

I took a chance to buy it, I do see that it's kinda not in a healthy condition. I see a lot of candles still on the tips and no new needles grow out. I looked stressed out as well. I will try to post some pictures in about an hour or two...any input on if i should cut those candles? or leave them be? then again i can be wrong...kinda new to the hobby.

Can you guys also help me to confirm that it is a Japanese Black Pine? or some sort of other pine?

Sincerely,

Jun

Picture to follow.
 
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Dan W.

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Jun,

Definitely don't do anything until you post pictures. There are several members here who are quite accomplished with black pine... They should be able to help you out. :)
 

Dan W.

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lol... you got the pics up just as I was responding.

Those just look like strong buds for next year to me. I'd leave it alone.

But wait and take the advice of others with JBP experience. Look for Brian Van Fleet's posts on Japanese Black Pine.
 

junmilo

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SO is it infact a jap black pine? how do you tell? i'm still trying to figure out.
 

Dan W.

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I don't really know. From the pic's it looks similar but I don't have much experience with them. JBP don't do well here in WY because it's so dry and cold. (That said I just have a few seedlings to experiment with keeping them in my greenhouse/cold frame.)

Some of the others may be able to identify from the pictures.
 

tmmason10

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I could be wrong here, but it doesn't look like a black pine to me. If it isn't, it looks like a mugo pine to me. Either way it looks healthy enough with those buds I would just leave it alone until next year.
 

davetree

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It looks like Japanese black pine to me - two needles per fascicle.
 

Klytus

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I dunno,my limited exposure to what is sought has more rounded turgid needles and white/grey buds.

The images look like flattened and flaccid needles with ochre/umber buds.
 

Brian Van Fleet

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First, welcome.

The tree shown does not look like JBP, it could be the photos, but the buds look too dark (JBP buds are stark white when dry), and the needles don't look right...shape, color. Yes, it's a 2-needle pine, but many pines are 2-needle pines. See what types of pines grow in your area to get a better sense. It could be a mugo, pumillo, or an Austrian Black pine. Do some homework and try to figure it out.

You mentioned it's not healthy. It does look a bit pale, so it could be lacking some iron. It could be the photo, but iron won't hurt.

Do not remove anything now if you are worried about health or unsure of technique. Stand back, enjoy the tree and read all you can get your hands on.

Also, it is in a relatively deep pot that is covered with weeds. Get rid of the weeds, moss, and ground cover, so the soil stands a chance of drying out. That may help the health and slow down any needle loss around the buds.

Here are a couple of my JBP growing in the ground to give you something to compare with.
 

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Dan W.

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I was almost going to say that it looks a bit like J. Red pine to me...lol

but I hesitated...because obviously it's not the easiest thing to identify a specific pine from pics... :)
 

junmilo

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Thank you for the information. it does seem that mine is not a JBP. The photos were taken after i misted it. I will pull the weed out from the pot.

i have attached picture of the needle i pulled from that pine. please see below.
Pic6.jpg

I have attached a picture of my 5' tall Japanese White Pine...any input on what i should do with it?
whitepine.jpg
Sincerely,

Jun
 

Vance Wood

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I'm with Tom on this one. The needles don't look long enough to be JBP. I vote either Mugo or Scots pine, both being two needled pines.

After the mention that this tree may not be JBP I went back and took a look at the pictures again. I think it is most definitely Mugo, and Pumilio is a good bet after looking at the bark. The buds lack the white fascicles common in JBP, the needles are too corpulant for JRP, but the bark and the twist sure look a lot like Mugo even though Scots is still an outside possibility, even though the needles do not look as sharp as Scots or--- as blue. I again took a close look and it seems as though you have the beginning of a serious infestation of Pine scale. This is common with Mugos, whereas JBP or Scots are no where as near as suseptable to this disease as the Mugos. All of the signs I can see suggest that it is indeed Mugo.
 

Attila Soos

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It could also be a Japanese red pine, they sometimes turn yellowish in the winter. And the buds are not unlike the red pine.
But I don't disagree with the possibility of Mugo, since I don't know enough about those.
It's definitely not a black pine...black pines have white buds, as Brian has shown in his post.
 

Vance Wood

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If it indeed is suffering from scale you HAVE TO address this problem sometime before the end of spring next year. Another year with this unresolved could be disastrous----and it could spread to other trees.
 

Brian Van Fleet

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Couldn't see any scale, maybe some reflections on wet needles from the flash. The dead (black) buds seemed to have some dried resin crusted around the bases, is that what you're referring to Vance? The few times I've had scale, aside from seeing the bugs themselves, it's the honeydew and/or black sooty residue that has been the leading indicator.

Junmilo, it is not necessary to mist pines at this time of year.
 
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Lodgepole or Mugo,
FYI some people consider shorteneing of the word Japanese in the manner you have to be offensive.
 
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