Help me identify this, please!

martibab

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Hi, this is my first post and it's rather a naive one. I have a conifer in a pot as in the photos. It's about 2ft/60cm tall. The mug on the bench is simply there to give an idea of scale. IMG_20200617_151113202.jpgIMG_20200617_151436945.jpgIMG_20200706_193509990.jpgIMG_20200617_151113202.jpgIMG_20200617_151436945.jpgIMG_20200706_193509990.jpgI first thought of Arborvitae/Thuja, then maybe a cypress of some kind, but the leaves don't look like any of the pictures I've seen.
Any ideas? Thanks very much
 

martibab

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Having looked at some pics of chamaecyparis (lawsonia) ellwoodii, I think you're probably right. I've transplanted it into a slightly bigger pot, now. Do you think it has any bonsai potential? Is it destined to point to the stars forever?

Thanks, guys
Brian
 

penumbra

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Just my opinion but I think it has almost no bonsai potential in the traditional sense.
But it would make a very nice landscape plant assuming your climate is right for it. Of course I can only surmise it is because I have no idea what your climate is. On the one hand, you could be in the Pacific Northwest, in which case it would flourish, or you could be any number of places where it would not.
Best of luck and welcome to the site.
 

martibab

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Hi and thanks for your thoughts. I should have said that I'm in the UK Midlands (Birmingham). Yes, it does tolerate the climate. It's been in that pot, outside in the shade, for a few years! :)
 

Wires_Guy_wires

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I think it has as much bonsai potential as thuja and hinoki cypress; don't try to make it look like a juniper, but make it look like what it is and it'll probably work alright.

It also has just one type of foliage, which makes it way easier to deal with than a juniper.

If I had one, I'd give it a try at least.
 

Wires_Guy_wires

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It actually doesn't though. It is a lot like comparing a eastern red cedar to most other junipers.

I see other needle type chamaecyparis being styled pretty nice though.

tumblr_o7upu0GAW61u0bvrqo1_500.jpg

This one is from Chicago. Same growth habit.

74611905_120986362688076_7768434051095413878_n.jpg

Another needle type.

It might be more challenging, but to say it doesn't have any potential would be a lie.
 

penumbra

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It might be more challenging, but to say it doesn't have any potential would be a lie.
This is what I actually said, "Just my opinion but I think it has almost no bonsai potential in the traditional sense." Lie is pretty strong use of wording considering my reply. But so be it, I have been called worse.
I have looked at a few pictures of Chamaecyparis lawsoniana, so I know that anything is possible, but this would be the most difficult of the Chamaecyparis. Your pictures show psifera, and they are used a bit for bonsai.
I would not want to go down the lawsoniana path and I will try almost anything. I definitely would not want to lead a noob down that path.
This is only an opinion.
 

HorseloverFat

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Nice tree, traveller! I see you have already been welcomed properly, so I will say no more to that than, “Glad you’re here.” :)

I think the real question here is... do you enjoy this tree/plant?

Does it bring you happiness?

Would you LIKE to perform “work” to it?

If (this is hypothetical) it had ABSOLUTELY no potential for “bonsai“.... would you love it any less?

Bonsai/penzai/penjing/TinyTree stuff is great... but so are most plants... for MOST reasons. ;)

If (once again, hypothetical) it was my tree.. i’d still try to “train” something out of it. Maybe in vain, maybe not..

Conversely, if (if) I had a decent location to put it in my landscape to position it.. I might do that, also.

Pleasure to make your acquaintance.
 

Forsoothe!

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Its only utility to a novice is to make it a ~6" tall clump. It will give OP some busy time keeping the foliage from the 4 or 5 trunks in balance without killing any trunks. The foliage is unlikely to evolve to mature until hell freezes over.
 

martibab

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As you've guessed, I'm a novice; truth be told, I've not tried to trim anything yet (except fruit trees and bushes, which I prune for fruit and also for shape (the latter according to my wife's preferences!). I decided to try to start growing some trees as a hobby during lockdown. So far, I have a few cotoneaster seedlings, about 4" tall, a sambucus, now about a foot tall, which I am realising might not be much good for bonsai purposes, a hawthorn, about 9" now, and 10 acer cuttings of various kinds. I've already lost some oak, conifer, hawthorn, whitebeam and hornbeam cuttings, so you can see I'm on a steep learning curve here! The conifer I started this thread with is one my wife gave me to play with, having had it a few years. I do like it and would not want to destroy it mindlessly, though if I could start to practice training it without killing it I would like to have a go. So any good advice would be very welcome here!

After a season or two when my trial plants have either succeeded or capitulated, I'll probably post pics and ask for more advice.
 

penumbra

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one my wife gave me to play with, having had it a few years. I do like it and would not want to destroy it mindlessly
It seems to me that the plant might be better suited working into your landscape where you can enjoy it until you're dust. I have dozens and dozens of plants in my yard I would never consider treating in any other way than to let them be.
Only my opinion.
 

martibab

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Wow, what a detailed plan! That's the kind of thing I was hoping for. As it's only an inch out so thick at the base, should I leave it to thicken a bit, or is this specimen likely to be too slow growing for anything much to happen for a few years? It's only grown 6" or so in height in a few years, and I confess I have never looked closely at the trunk before now.
 

Forsoothe!

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Bonsai is any size. Don't worry about growth. Your job is to learn how to refine the appearance to make it bonsai-like. In time you will learn to bonsai any size you happen to have. If you want to make something bigger, that's a horse of a different color.
 

Forsoothe!

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Click on your Icon in the upper right corner and fill in your location so people can better advise you on climate matters.
 
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