Chamaecyparis help ...

[Nelson bc bondude]

Hey I got this tree 2 years ago and I was to bonsai the thing has lots of potential.

I am unfamiliar with this species tho . Trying to get the pads the develop but it just keeps pushing out and not back budding. Branches are starting to look funny

 

[Colorado]

I don’t know anything about this species, but looks like you have some fairly low branches that you could chop back to. But again, I have no idea about this particular species.

 

[coachspinks]

Hinoki Cypress, a tree I like a lot. Great tree for bonsai but they can get "leggy" like yours. Here is a thread that I think can help you
https://www.bonsainut.com/threads/chamaecyparis-obtusa.36836/

 

[Sn0W]

Very unlikely to back bud

 

[WNC Bonsai]

Hinokis do not back bud on old wood, only on green wood so what you have is what you have. When selecting hinokis the first thing to check for is whether they are leggy and have no foliage close in to the trunk. One work around is to bend the branches down and around in a process known as foreshortening. It cosmetically covers up some of the leggy structure.

 

[bwaynef]

How sharp is your grafting knife?

 

[Leo in N E Illinois]

Chamaecyparis obtusa, commonly called Hinoki cypress or Hinoki false cypress.

Very reluctant to back bud on old wood. Leaves two choices, grow it out enough larger that the distance from trunk to green seems in balance. Or learn to graft foliage in close to the trunk or on the trunk.

Hate to bear bad news, but that's it.

 

[Nelson bc bondude]

Never bad news

always opportunities to learn. maybe ill make it into a grafting project

Thanks all for your input very much appreciated.

 

[WNC Bonsai]

One thing to consider is that not all varieties of hinoki are small compact plants. I have one in my yard that looks just like yours and it is meant to grow that way. C. obtusa nana and nana gracilis are the best candidates for compact bonsai.

 

[Nelson bc bondude]

yeah i picked this one up end season on the cheap. It was mostly to learn with . Ill try a few grafting efforts

 

[Nelson bc bondude]

should a graft have little foliage on it? or can i literally take 5" out of a full branch and graft it back?

 

[Leo in N E Illinois]

The scion needs to have sap flowing through the understock, because it is not fused initially enough to pull sap from the tree on it's own. So if you graft a shoot to a branch, you must keep green out at the end of the branch, or above the scion if grafting to a trunk to keep sap flowing past the scion. Once the scion takes, the branch or trunk can be shortened.

Note, grafts don't fuse immediately, some may take 3 years before it is safe to remove growth past the scion. Some fuse quick and one year is enough, takes experience and observation to know. It is safe to give more time, no need to rush removal of the understock's growth past the scion.