5 Year Native Tree Challenge: FreshAirSunshine's Deciduous Azalea

[FreshAirSunshine]

I’m excited to join in – not really so interested in the contest itself but it’s a reason for me to keep up on documenting what I do with my tree. This is my deciduous azalea “Golden Lights” that I’ve been most excited to work with of the four bonsai trees I’m starting this hobby with (another deciduous azalea, an evergreen, and a natal plum).

This was acquired in a maybe 2 gallon or so burlap bag in late July. The leaves were scorched at the time and it needed to be planted as it was significantly exposed to the elements in the bag. I didn’t take pictures at the time unfortunately but I cut back some very long branches and bare-rooted then transferred into a plastic training pot with 30/70 Yamagoke/Kanuma blend.

This was around where it sat in early August. It seemed to do alright until around mid-September when I realized it had small infestation of Azalea lacebugs. 3 rounds of insecticidal soap later they were cleared up but even though I kept the plant in the shade during treatment the leaves did have some additional damage done.

 

[FreshAirSunshine]

It has, however, had some back-budding where I had cutback in August and I’m prepping for overwintering in a cold frame.



Not sure what the red versus green buds are – flowers versus vegetative?

 

[FreshAirSunshine]

For Spring, I’m thinking I’ll let it grow out until it blooms as I haven’t seen the flowers and would like to know what this particular plant looks like. Immediately afterwards I was thinking of cutting back all long-internode branches and many of the small branches to generate something like a multi-trunk/clump. I’m sure I need to remove a few of the bigger branches to really see much of a trunk structure at all. Right now it vaguely has “3-ish” main trunks and some additional branches I need to decide what to do with. Most branches are going backwards and I’d like to train them to spread more evenly or even sweep forward a bit to not have a windswept look at all. I want a main thick trunk with several smaller trunks/clumps coming out. In this case, it looks like some sort of 3-fold symmetric spread might work. There’s a forward leaning branch that may be useful and I need to figure out what to do with a whole cluster of branches on one side. Not sure if they can be made a feature or if I should remove every other one or what:

 

[FreshAirSunshine]

Backbudding well to my cuts. Looks like in the spring I can bring down the whole level with reasonable expectation of budding out rather than dieback. I’ll save a couple good looking buds to see what the flowers look like.

 

[HorseloverFat]

Looking good!

The problem here, for me, attempting to calculate/compare options, is there's a lot of depth and dimensions (present AND future) that have to be analyzed when planning your next move.

This analysis is difficult to make from pictures. PLUS, I feel design decisions are best kept a personal matter, decided upon by time spent, pondering your tree.

So MY advice is, WHEN next able/going to prune.... Some of those trunks need to go, this is obvious, so (WHEN pruning) slowly remove one at a time, and consider.

Try to get down to an odd number of differently sized trunks (if multiple) that accompany each other well. This is broad advice.... But the rest is YOUR artistic expression.

 

[FreshAirSunshine]

Absolutely - the pictures have been hard to get proper orientations for. I figure once the leaves fall I can take better ones. Right now I mostly know I expect I won’t need new trunks so will likely cut back the woody shoots and the woody long internodes. I have some idea of which branches I find interesting and more trunk like but will verify those after leaf fall. I totally agree. There’s a fair bit going on so I’ll only be taking action on things I’m certain of in the spring initially then go slow with any additional selections.

 

[FreshAirSunshine]

Backbudded very well to all cuts I made but has grown those right through the beginning of leaf drop elsewhere. Granted many of the dropped leaves were damaged during the summer. Hoping things harden off before any freeze but good to see the vigor.

 

[FreshAirSunshine]

The new leaves hadn’t hardened and dropped before the cold front came through this weekend - lots of damaged leaves on new growth. Not sure if there’s anything to do now but see how things go over the winter.

 

[Fonz]

Good luck, let us know what happens in spring.

 

[FreshAirSunshine]

Cutback several branches this week and decided to expose several of the barked-over roots for something more neagari-like, although wonky since it wasn’t by design. Hadn’t really liked having one side with no roots and the other with two large hooks so I felt it may be better to just expose the wildness I knew was right beneath the moss. Pictures include branch cutback and then later on my exposing of the gnarly roots. Unfortunately, the branch I was saving to see flower broke so I decided I might as well cut back rather than wait till the flowering season would have ended

 

[FreshAirSunshine]

Seems to be waking up fine. Maybe there will be some dieback on some branches but for the stage of development it’s in that’d be fine and I’m not sure there will be yet. Glad to transition from cutting it back all last year to beginning to grow things out this year.

 

[Glaucus]

That is a pretty impressive trunk. Would be cool if somehow eventually you are also able to remove some of those branches on the left, in the last picture.
Then, you need to figure out how the more sparse upright habit can be combined with that trunk to create a complete gradual design.

 

[FreshAirSunshine]

Yeah I still don’t know what I want to do with the left trunks. I’m trying to figure out if they can be a feature or need to be removed. Top down the structure is split into two trunks on the other side and those three on the near side - the middle is somewhat vacant. When I got this at a nursery I kept wandering away and returning to it because I really had intended to get an evergreen azalea, but the trunk called to me. For the $70 or so it cost me I felt it was worth playing with. No regrets.

 

[FreshAirSunshine]

We’ll see what I can do. For now I’m going to let it grow, identify any dieback, and see what I can make of it.

 

[FreshAirSunshine]

This newbie has left “stick in pot” territory

 

[Glaucus]

They seem so close, they will fuse. You need to take it slow, but eventually it seems like at least 2 out of those 4 (or 5) need to go.

As for overall design? What about actually leveraging the strong contrast between the trunk and the much thinner branches, lacking intermediate taper?
It is not something that is going to be resolved any time soon. So making this 'flaw' the key feature may be the right way forward.
The growth habit will always be longer sparse upright shoots that are bald in autumn, winter and early spring.

 

[FreshAirSunshine]

Yeah for sure. I’ll post a picture later of one “trunk” that is more along the feel I want to aim for. Most of the cuts back were due to long singular branches with little to no splitting.

 

[FreshAirSunshine]

Made some decisions.

 

[FreshAirSunshine]

Not much to say about it. Hanging out for the winter (broke two new branches wrapping it up :/) Hoping to get a lot more branches in the spring and finish pushing back towards the trunk. this year is mostly pushed new shoots from the trunk - we'll see if that's standard. Still haven't seen any flowers and don't see flower buds set so meh. Will look forward to that after I get more structure built.

 

[FreshAirSunshine]

Sadly this tree is very likely dead. Late summer last year it was left to be watered by someone over a long weekend trip hiking during a heat wave. Unfortunately it wasn’t watered, and shortly after that weekend it lost all its partially desiccated leaves and never regrew more from August. Was hoping it might spring back, but it’s not green under the bark when I checked. At least said person now knows how critical watering can be…