JBP Development Thread?

milehigh_7 said:

Don't know about wiring just yet as one of the branches that are less than 1" from the soil will be the new leader.

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when a pine is this young your wiring just the trunk branches are way later in the progression.

Ok I did this one different. I just thinned out the needles. Looking at it there are several options to run with on this one. It is starting to get some bark and even some surface roots.


Here is before:

Here is the after

I guess I missed what your goal was. I'm stunned that after several suggestions that I thought were correct technique, to not pull needles, you pulled most of the needles. Your trees are too young and too small for the work you are subjecting them too.

We'll see how much growth you get this summer. You might get by. Feed the heck out of them and lots of sun for the summer.

My many failures with JBP when I was in my earlier learning curve about JBP is that I did not understand or have a good concept of what a healthy vigorous JBP looked like. For years I thought a couple weak candles and mediocre, lack luster growth were "good growth and good vigor". I would then work on my weak tree and over the course of a couple years would work them to death. I killed a dozen or more JBP this way. Then I visited some "real" experts at growing JBP (Jack Douthitt for one), and visited them before de-candling time. Wow, what a difference. If you don't have big, bushy fox tail like candles everywhere, your pine is not vigorous. When a JBP is in development you got to keep them bushy to keep them vigorous. For a tree in development you don't pull needles, and you don't necessarily decandle them. If you have enough branches, then there is no need to force more branching by decandling, so don't decandle if inducing back budding is not an issue. Decandling is a stress, it should not be done unless it is needed. If you want a trunk as thick as a soda can in less than 15 years, you need to keep all the needles you can.

The lack of response by others is likely stunned silence.

Thanks Leo! I had already done the work before Adair jumped in. So correction is what I was looking for. So when I said, " what should I have done differently?" That's pretty much what I meant.

Perhaps a misunderstanding of the instructions here? http://bonsainut.com/forums/showthread.php?3665-Early-Pine-Bud-Treatment-Question&highlight=Leader

So, specifically Leo, what would you do with trees at this stage? When would you start the work that Gary seemed to be describing (that it seems I misunderstood)?

I doubt this crowd is stunned into silence about much. ;-)

Rob,
Per your request, here is what I would do with your two black pines from this point. I've posted about identifying sacrifice branches and final branches; you'll need to do this with yours...the tricky part is remembering which is which for a while until it becomes obvious which is which.

You can see a few examples of this in these threads:
http://bonsainut.com/forums/showthread.php?16778-Getting-to-a-big-trunk-quickly-JBP
http://bonsainut.com/forums/showthread.php?16953-Little-JBP&p=227596#post227596


And a description of how I handle final branches vs. sacrifice branches here:
https://nebaribonsai.wordpress.com/2013/03/02/sacrifice-branches-black-pine/

Let the sacrifice branches grow hard all year, candle-cut final branches in June. Simple as that for now.

Yep, pretty much what Brian Said. Really study the photoshop images and the links he posted. Most of the information you need is there. My suggestions would be quite similar. I won't repeat his effort.

Also I really would read and re-read Brent Walston's articles on Evergreen Garden Works website. His 2 articles on Japanese Black Pine are priceless, because they are orientated to young trees. You don't use "finished" techniques until the tree is really just about exhibit ready. Often that is not until the tree is approaching 20 years old. You need a trunk, and to look like an old tree it needs to have at least 3 or 4 inches in diameter. Only way to get this is let branches escape to thicken the trunk. You don't do this with the tree growing in little bonsai pots. Keep them in big grow pots, nursery pots, large colanders or grow boxes. I more or less was forced to start over with JBP about 6 years ago, and I am glad I finally "got it". Don't have much to show, but in a decade or so I will. I have 6 or 7 different young, grafted, cork bark JBP cultivars, eventually I'll have something to show.

Links wont load for me

Rick

RickMartin said:

Links wont load for me

Rick

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Retarded computers!

Retarded cell phone.

Rick