Cheapo Box Store Spruce

W3rk

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Totally not anything I was looking for, but I am primarily interested in smaller trees and have been keeping an eye out for smaller evergreen/conifer options. Saw a bunch of these the other day and checked these out for decent/interesting trunks. Found this one with a really nice bend in the trunk (partly obscured). The trunk was completely caked in muck and the soil line was higher, brushed it off and dug down a bit to find a really nice base. It was even better than I expected.

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Partial before/clean up in progress:

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WNC Bonsai

Omono
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Not a bad trunk, all too often there is reverse taper below the soil line. I think you need to open up the structure a bit to let some light in. Peter Chan just posted a video on his Heron’s Bonsai YouTube channel showing how he develops small bonsai from material like that. In this one he did a juniper, mugo, rhody, and hinoki. Well worth the 39 mins.
 

W3rk

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Not a bad trunk, all too often there is reverse taper below the soil line. I think you need to open up the structure a bit to let some light in. Peter Chan just posted a video on his Heron’s Bonsai YouTube channel showing how he develops small bonsai from material like that. In this one he did a juniper, mugo, rhody, and hinoki. Well worth the 39 mins.
I agree, it is very dense and needs to be opened up some, I'll be looking to do that later this spring. Right now I'm mostly focused on other more time sensitive things like re-potting and maybe some work on my Larch with their buds about to open. I really enjoy Peters' videos, thanks for the recommendation.
 

Adair M

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Is that a “Bird’s nest spruce”? If so, be careful about “opening it up”. They like to stay rather dense, and if you remove too much, the interior will get shocked, sunburnt and die.

So, take it slow.
 

W3rk

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Is that a “Bird’s nest spruce”? If so, be careful about “opening it up”. They like to stay rather dense, and if you remove too much, the interior will get shocked, sunburnt and die.

So, take it slow.
Good catch, thank you Adair. My bad, I should have listed the variety, it is a bird's nest/"densiflora" something? But I appreciate your feedback and will take that into account and go really slow as I investigate the interior.
 

W3rk

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Minor update and correction, it's a Bird's Nest Spruce/Picea abies 'Nidiformis'
No work done other than a little more minor clean up (and the initial re-pot). Photo that shows the main trunkline/under the canopy a bit better ... and a boatload of buds swelling and about to open.
IMG_20190409_123146066_HDR.jpg
 

bwaynef

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Is that a “Bird’s nest spruce”? If so, be careful about “opening it up”. They like to stay rather dense, and if you remove too much, the interior will get shocked, sunburnt and die.

So, take it slow.

Without knowing any better, I removed at least 1/3 of the foliage of a Birdsnest Spruce last year. It sat for most of the rest of the year. I've (hbr) repotted it this spring into Lavadamice™ and it seems to be (back) budding well. It didn't seem to have any sunburn or death. I can't say if I shocked it or not as it didn't grow a lot more the rest of the year ...but that could be how they grow.
 

GSCarlson

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I cut mine back a couple weeks ago, before buds started breaking, lots of strong growth now.
 

sorce

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I had a couple nice ones that succumbed to exactly what @Adair M said....I didn't know, opened the F out of em....both went extra crispy.

What about water?

I have been thinking about this....

And how "a cut tree needs less water" is a belief that rolls in with this BS...

I think that's why these dry up.

Or for many other reasons....

But not straight burning up.

I think that is ridiculous.
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Sorce
 
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