Ginkgo Biloba

Jerry Harder

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I am Crazy interested in Ginkgos and currently have 18 different varieties. There doesn't seem to be a section for them under the "TREE" section so I though I would try and start one here. Please help me figure this forum system out if I am doing this all wrong.

Ginkgos Do not heal over scar tissue, or wire marks well. I believe I have most of that figured out as well as restraining a long shoot from growing further without the typical grow and chop back which looks really ugly. I am trying to find a way to trigger a specific short shoot into growing as a long shoot. Anyone know anything?
 

Brian Van Fleet

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Really? Mine heals just fine; dime size cuts close in a year, and better under cut paste. It also does pretty well having only been grown by "clip and grow" for 18 years. It's never had an inch of wire on its branches, and it's not too ugly.
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Jerry Harder

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Very nice! Is it species or one of the cultivars?
Did you do anything special to develop and the first y shape branches and the chi chis?
 
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Jerry Harder

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“Not too ugly” Ha! That's one of the nicest I have ever seen!

I would love to see a year by year play of any photos you might have. It would be nice to ponder the development of such a great tree.



I have repeatedly read otherwise in the healing issue but can't argue with your results. It is suggested sealing wounds helps with ginkgo and the claim is that the cuts dry out causing unpredictable die back. Have you experienced this? Perhaps some sort of sealant is a serious necessity for ginkgo bonsai. General (scientific) thought seems to be that trees in general don't need sealing and it's mostly a sales gimmick. (That is to say for normal trees) But then there is bonsai where everything seems to help, hinder, or matter in some way. Another method is to clip leaving an inch or so and remove it later after it has dried.

I have two other methods. One is to clip only the very tip of the bud (like about 1/64 inch or less) I use a fingernail clipper and you don't have to remove much at all. The bud will leaf out and be a short bud -even a leader. If you do it right it doesn't even effect the shape of the leaves. It might start growing again end of season and especially the next spring so stay on top of it. I use this for a branch that is already the length I want and want to restrain it from getting bigger but still have a healthy set of leaves. The second is to plan ahead and clip the green shoots leaving one inch or so past the last node you want to keep. Often the bud will not be pointed in the direction you might like so I wire it (Very) loosely and bend the protruding stick to reorient the bud. (All while the branch is still green) The wire needs to be removed in about a month or it will make marks even if still mostly loose. If I still want the branch bent more, I wrap the wire again but in the opposite direction.

All of this is prefaced in that your growing the tree into the shape and size you want and maintaining it there rather than letting it grow and clipping it back.

Lastly I read a university experiment where they defoliated 2 growing (actively elongating) long shoots about half way then periodically the rest of the leaves at various intervals. (they didn't give specifics on the periodic removal of the second half of the leaves) The 2 defoliated branches grew 47% and 52% compared to the un-defoliated shoot which grew 317%. I am thinking that a branch that was completely defoliated would stop elongating and simply reestablish buds at the base of the removed leaves. -at least for the season, no branch clipping required, no marks, and no places to heal. Just the leaf stems which fall off in the fall.



What I don't have and really want is a way to make a particular bud grow as a long shoot, rather than a short bud.
 

Cadillactaste

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New with the species...love the character of the chi-chi. Mine has a large scar on the back from a heavy chop. I see no results from die back on the tree. Was trained and grew by another though.

The bark on these are amazing!
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In is growing out stage. Wire on a few gently to encourage the branches to train into the flame style it is known for.
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Jerry Harder

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New with the species...love the character of the chi-chi. Mine has a large scar on the back from a heavy chop. I see no results from die back on the tree. Was trained and grew by another though.

The bark on these are amazing!
View attachment 155905


In is growing out stage. Wire on a few gently to encourage the branches to train into the flame style it is known for.
View attachment 155906
Looks good. Perhaps the scar could get carved into an interesting feature.
 

Cadillactaste

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Looks good. Perhaps the scar could get carved into an interesting feature.

It really is the back...doesn't bother me in the least. Its rolling over slowly to heal. But again the back...had it been the front I might adress it. But...it doesn't bother me in the least.

That chop scar helped develop my tree into the character the front offers.
 

sorce

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Welcome to Crazy!

Sorce
 

Cadillactaste

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Was just a thought.
Hey your gerbil was spinning. Appreciate the thought. But see no need with it being the back. I am curious to see how long it takea to close up. Which it is doing...I see many years...but I've got the time...maybe. lol again,it doesn't bother me.
 

gallina1594

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I am Crazy interested in Ginkgos and currently have 18 different varieties. There doesn't seem to be a section for them under the "TREE" section so I though I would try and start one here. Please help me figure this forum system out if I am doing this all wrong.

Ginkgos Do not heal over scar tissue, or wire marks well. I believe I have most of that figured out as well as restraining a long shoot from growing further without the typical grow and chop back which looks really ugly. I am trying to find a way to trigger a specific short shoot into growing as a long shoot. Anyone know anything?
Fun fact: Ginkos are the only living species in the division Ginkgophyta, all others have gone extinct
 

defra

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I got a small one too
I like the leaves and fall collor
But mine is far from anything its basicly a stick in a pot so got to let it grow for a couple of years
 

Jerry Harder

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I got a small one too
I like the leaves and fall collor
But mine is far from anything its basicly a stick in a pot so got to let it grow for a couple of years
If you plan ahead and know how big you want it to be let it get about that tall, then start cutting the tip of the leading bud (-I use a toenail clippers) -just the last 1/32 in or so. (I'm planning on my ginkgo bonsai being in that transition area between the 2-4 hand bonsai so for me that's around 25-30 in.) The bud will open it's leaves like a short shoot and then develop a new bud. This forces the energy elsewhere in the tree for most of the season. The new bud will likely grow a long shoot so keep an eye on it and clip again if necessary. It will look much less choppy. Also why waist energy in a developing tree growing long shoots where you don't want them and chopping them off? I don't know of a way to make a specific bud on ginkgo turn to a long shoot though. You have to hope the one you want takes off. My current trees are still first year sticks too, so I don't remove any buds. If the wrong ones take off then I remove it in spring to try to root it as a cutting. Smallest wound with most possible benafit.
 

Jerry Harder

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I am Crazy interested in Ginkgos and currently have 18 different varieties. There doesn't seem to be a section for them under the "TREE" section so I though I would try and start one here. Please help me figure this forum system out if I am doing this all wrong.

Ginkgos Do not heal over scar tissue, or wire marks well. I believe I have most of that figured out as well as restraining a long shoot from growing further without the typical grow and chop back which looks really ugly. I am trying to find a way to trigger a specific short shoot into growing as a long shoot. Anyone know anything?
If you are planing on buying a Ginkgo tree from a nursery, I have some suggestions.( I currently have 18 varietals.) They usally come as a 1-2 year graft so you will probably want to air layer off the root stock to get rid of the ugly graft. (It takes longer but I use tourniquet style) The best varietals in my opinion are: 'Folkerts Select', 'Chase Manhattan', 'Munchkin' (also called 'Chris's Dwarf'), and lastly 'Mariken'. The first three all have leaves about the size of a quarter and of them 'Folkerts Select' is my favorite because goes head to head with the others for smallest leaves and it branches about every 120 deg. 'Chase Manhattan' has very similar leaves but is branching more right then left/180 deg. My Munchkin is very small and was mostly a grafted bud. It has some very small nickle size leaves but many of the first leaves on new growth are larger and differently shaped. 'Mariken' has larger leaves (about 2 inch wide and smaller) but not as big as species. It's special feature is that it's trunk and stems are thicker-almost twice as thick as the others, so if thick trucks is your thing this might be a great choice for you. There are many varieties that are witches brooms with descriptions that say "dense and compact" but these descriptions are not very good when it comes to specifics for comparison purposes for bonsai. especially for things like leaf size. Does anyone else have cultivars of ginkgo biloba that they would like to tell us about and give a better description that those in the adds?
 

petegreg

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If you are planing on buying a Ginkgo tree from a nursery, I have some suggestions.( I currently have 18 varietals.) They usally come as a 1-2 year graft so you will probably want to air layer off the root stock to get rid of the ugly graft. (It takes longer but I use tourniquet style) The best varietals in my opinion are: 'Folkerts Select', 'Chase Manhattan', 'Munchkin' (also called 'Chris's Dwarf'), and lastly 'Mariken'. The first three all have leaves about the size of a quarter and of them 'Folkerts Select' is my favorite because goes head to head with the others for smallest leaves and it branches about every 120 deg. 'Chase Manhattan' has very similar leaves but is branching more right then left/180 deg. My Munchkin is very small and was mostly a grafted bud. It has some very small nickle size leaves but many of the first leaves on new growth are larger and differently shaped. 'Mariken' has larger leaves (about 2 inch wide and smaller) but not as big as species. It's special feature is that it's trunk and stems are thicker-almost twice as thick as the others, so if thick trucks is your thing this might be a great choice for you. There are many varieties that are witches brooms with descriptions that say "dense and compact" but these descriptions are not very good when it comes to specifics for comparison purposes for bonsai. especially for things like leaf size. Does anyone else have cultivars of ginkgo biloba that they would like to tell us about and give a better description that those in the adds?

Yeah, and I wanted to ask you for more detailed info on cultivars. Thank you for posting this.
 

KiwiPlantGuy

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I have a few questions about this amazing tree species. ( and their root system)
Ginkgo ( non- grafted) doesn't grow well on its own roots?? True or False?
If the answer to the first question is TRUE, then do I purchase a grafted dwarf cultivar ( princess?? ) for $50 and the air-layer the top. I am a bit confused. ( if it doesn't grow it's own roots that well etc ).
Also I propagated 6 inch semi - hardwood cuttings last year which did root but root system was a bit shaky for a few months after prop etc.
Looking forward to some answers please and thanks, Charles.
 

defra

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Theyl be fine on their own roots i guess with the propper care and soil etc i think any species will do fine on their own roots if not mother nature created a tree that cant live on its own roots .... sounds kinda weird right?
 
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