Five Year Native Tree Challenge: Gabler’s Loblolly Pine

[Gabler]

I’m optimistic this will make a decent bonsai someday, but I doubt this will prove to be a viable project for the Native Tree Challenge.

 

[ERClover]

I’m optimistic this will make a decent bonsai someday, but I doubt this will prove to be a viable project for the Native Tree Challenge.

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How’s it doing these days?

 

[Gabler]

How’s it doing these days?

I've been dealing with an infestation of what appears to be needle tip blight. It killed several yard trees and then moved to my bonsai. I've been heavily applying copper fungicide, and that seems to have arrested the problem, so I haven't lost any trees just yet. This one has put on a fair amount of growth, but others have clearly been weakened.

 

[ERClover]

I've been dealing with an infestation of what appears to be needle tip blight. It killed several yard trees and then moved to my bonsai. I've been heavily applying copper fungicide, and that seems to have arrested the problem, so I haven't lost any trees just yet. This one has put on a fair amount of growth, but others have clearly been weakened.

Sorry to hear, hopefully everything pulls through. Scary to think so much time and effort can be snatched away by the many pests and diseases out there.

 

[August44]

Not to offend but wondering, what made you decide to use a Loblolly for this project?

 

[Gabler]

Not to offend but wondering, what made you decide to use a Loblolly for this project?

It's the Native Tree Challenge.

 

[Gabler]

Since the tree did well last year, I pruned off the middle branches to get more sun to the lower branches, and I left a single long leader to heal the chop wound.