Hi from up north

[Salcomine]

Hi, I am new to bonsai. I have always loved trees but am running out of room to plant them so the idea of small trees in pots is super appealing. I have always thought of bonsai as Japanese maples in pots but since I am up in zone 3, where they are annuals, I hadn't given it much thought. Wandering the Internet I came to Peter Tea's blog and discovered Japanese black pines as bonsai, so cool. Have been reading as much as I can about bonsai since.
Being part of a botanical society up here I have a bunch of plant in pots all over the place and went wandering the yard to see if I could find anything suitable for starting out. I came up with lots of sticks in pots now . a couple of junipers, a Scots pine, Austrian black pine and some lodgepole sticks, nothing spectacular but I was (am still) pretty stoked. I have been reading alot and absorbing a little about the timing of doing stuff, but have no idea what stuff I should do. Anyway I am of to look up how to post pictures directly to the site cause I need some help with my ugly sticks.

Thanks
Robyn

 

[Salcomine]

Ugly lodgepole sticks
Scots pine, kinda survived the winter
Austrian black pine nursery stick
Junipers blue Ridge something something

 

[sorce]

Peter Tea's blog is a great place to read.

But you will get real answers here...
If you Don't Mind The Crazy!

Welcome to it!

Sorce

 

[f1pt4]

Before attempting anything. Read. Read. Read. Read. There's lots of info about all of them here.

I'm no expert in pines, so I can't tell you what to do. From what I gather most pine work across the board should be done after Canada Day. I'm probably wrong on this, so someone correct me.

Also don't repot and work the roots, the same year as you prune and bend the foliage. Too much stress on the tree. Alternate years. Better be safe then sorry.

Like the juni and Austrian!

 

[Salcomine]

Peter Tea's blog is a great place to read.

But you will get real answers here...
If you Don't Mind The Crazy!

Welcome to it!

Sorce

Peter's blog is very inspiring but not super relevant to anything I am likely to encounter. The species of trees he deals with would, I think, for the most part die up here.
Crazy is good, I have to be a little crazy to keep trees in pots where I am, middle of may and it's still gets down around 3 Celsius (37 Fahrenheit) at night.

Before attempting anything. Read. Read. Read. Read. There's lots of info about all of them here.

I'm no expert in pines, so I can't tell you what to do. From what I gather most pine work across the board should be done after Canada Day. I'm probably wrong on this, so someone correct me.

Also don't repot and work the roots, the same year as you prune and bend the foliage. Too much stress on the tree. Alternate years. Better be safe then sorry.

Like the juni and Austrian!

I have and will continue to read as much as possible, the closest bonsai club is 6 hours away, so reading is really my only source of information.
I think for this year it will be mostly be repot/ into the ground with my Trees, they are pretty weedy. Maybe the Mugo will get a little trim later this summer.

Here is another picture of the juniper, the trunk twins off about 6" up. Also a pic of my other juniper.
The Austrian will probably get chunked down at some point this year, no idea when. The new growth is so slow to come compared to the native pines. The candles on my contorta pines are 6-8" already and the Austrian are <1"



I also have this cedar plus 5 western red cedars I have been growing in a raised bed for 3 years, they are still super twiggy.
Thanks
Robyn

 

[f1pt4]

Peter's blog is very inspiring but not super relevant to anything I am likely to encounter. The species of trees he deals with would, I think, for the most part die up here.
Crazy is good, I have to be a little crazy to keep trees in pots where I am, middle of may and it's still gets down around 3 Celsius (37 Fahrenheit) at night.


I have and will continue toured as much as possible, the closest bonsai club is 6 hours away, so reading is really my only source of information.
I think for this year it will be mostly be repot/ into the ground with my Trees, they are pretty weedy. Maybe the Mugo will get a little trim later this summer.

Here is another picture of the juniper, the trunk twins off about 6" up. Also a pic of my other juniper.
The Austrian will probably get chunked down at some point this year, no idea when. The new growth is so slow to come compared to the native pines. The candles on my contorta pines are 6-8" already and the Austrian are <1"

Thanks
Robyn

There's a plethora of mugo wisdom on this forum. The grand mugo wizard, Vance Wood resides here.

It's 2c here tonight as well! It even snowed during the day! Twice!

 

[Alain]

Maybe the Mugo will get a little trim later this summer.

Hello and welcome!
You have a lot of trees I don't know so I won't speak of them but for the mugo i can tell you that you will be able to do a lot on it as soon as this summer (around July being the best).

For all the details about mugo look this thread:
http://www.bonsainut.com/threads/all-aboard-the-mugo-train.19019/page-36#post-355140
Or even better: look the thread and jump on the train, your tree look like a perfectly legit ticket to me
At least I can already tell you that you will have to re-pot your tree in a colander with good soil, cut 1/3 approx of the roots and do the structural pruning (see all the details and techniques in the post and video from @Vance Wood )


PS: and don't worry with the weather, BC will be fine for a lot of possibilities of trees

 

[sorce]

http://www.bonsainut.com/resources/compiled-vance-wood-on-mugo-pines.23/

Cedar like Eastern Red? J. Virginia?
AKA J.Crack?

Nice..I love em!

Looks like yours has adult foliage so if you trim it easy over a long time, you may be able to keep it.
Any big hacks will revert it to juvenile foliage.

You got some nice material.

Sorce

 

[Alain]

You got some nice material.

Sorce

Agreed

 

[eferguson1974]

Looks like a great start! Remember one rule: one insult per year. Up there its probably more important with the short season. If you repot/root prune, thats it for the year. Pruning and wiring also count. The folks with more experiance can elaborate, but Ive read that advice many times. Before I learned it, I killed trees doing to much at once. Welcome to the forum and your new journey in learning as well as your new addiction! Your starting out very well.

 

[Leo in N E Illinois]

Hi, Robyn
welcome to a crazy passionate hobby.

My advise, reading is good, but at least once every 2 years or so, make the weekend pilgramige to see a full blown bonsai show. It is a 3D hobby, and 2D media just doesn't transmit everything you need to know, even with eloquent captions.

Second piece of advice, ignore horticulture suggestions from people like me or anyone in zone 5 or warmer. Few of us have a good grasp of how a very short growing season will affect the trees. Always check the location of the person offering horticultural advise, and then adjust in your mind to the dates that make sense in your climate. For us ''southerners'', we have long enough seasons, we can do multiple things to a tree, and have time for the tree to recover. You don't. So best tactic may be to plan 2 years for what most of us do in one year. Make note of your average first frost date, count 6 weeks before that date. For most bonsai techniques you need to leave the tree a minimum of 6 to 8 weeks before first frost for roots to recover, branches to mature and harden off and otherwise for your tree to be prepared for winter. Count back 6 & 8 weeks from first frost date and jot those dates down, that is the date you quit most bonsai techniques and move to preparation for winter. Advise from us might be good ''summertime'' advice, but we won't know when your summer ends. Your autumn will be a month earlier than most of ours.

Last piece of advice. As much as possible, choose native species to work with. I'm glad you are working with lodgepole pine & your local cedars. Also check out your local shrubs and trees. Any local oaks? They have their quirks but can make great bonsai with time. Little shrub species are good too. Potentilla is quite hardy. I have fought for years keeping trees that are not quite hardy, and it is always a battle. Winter care of natives is usually easy. Under a bench, or into a spot sheltered from the wind, and mulch them in, you are set.

So welcome aboard

 

[Leo in N E Illinois]

Lodgepole pine does make beautiful bonsai. Not commonly used, but has been used to good effect. Check ''Bonsai Mirai'' website, and google Dan Robbinson and Elandan Gardens, for examples.

 

[M. Frary]

Second piece of advice, ignore horticulture suggestions from people like me or anyone in zone 5 or warmer

Yeah! Zone 4 really rocks.

 

[Salcomine]

http://www.bonsainut.com/resources/compiled-vance-wood-on-mugo-pines.23/

Cedar like Eastern Red? J. Virginia?
AKA J.Crack?

Nice..I love em!

Looks like yours has adult foliage so if you trim it easy over a long time, you may be able to keep it.
Any big hacks will revert it to juvenile foliage.

You got some nice material.

Sorce

The fat cedar I have was labeled as thuja occidentalis ie eastern white cedar and the 5 wee one are probably thuja placata, not sure I got them a couple years ago as donations from a forestry company.

Looks like a great start! Remember one rule: one insult per year. Up there its probably more important with the short season. If you repot/root prune, thats it for the year. Pruning and wiring also count. The folks with more experiance can elaborate, but Ive read that advice many times. Before I learned it, I killed trees doing to much at once. Welcome to the forum and your new journey in learning as well as your new addiction! Your starting out very well.

Hi, Robyn
welcome to a crazy passionate hobby.

My advise, reading is good, but at least once every 2 years or so, make the weekend pilgramige to see a full blown bonsai show. It is a 3D hobby, and 2D media just doesn't transmit everything you need to know, even with eloquent captions.

Second piece of advice, ignore horticulture suggestions from people like me or anyone in zone 5 or warmer. Few of us have a good grasp of how a very short growing season will affect the trees. Always check the location of the person offering horticultural advise, and then adjust in your mind to the dates that make sense in your climate. For us ''southerners'', we have long enough seasons, we can do multiple things to a tree, and have time for the tree to recover. You don't. So best tactic may be to plan 2 years for what most of us do in one year. Make note of your average first frost date, count 6 weeks before that date. For most bonsai techniques you need to leave the tree a minimum of 6 to 8 weeks before first frost for roots to recover, branches to mature and harden off and otherwise for your tree to be prepared for winter. Count back 6 & 8 weeks from first frost date and jot those dates down, that is the date you quit most bonsai techniques and move to preparation for winter. Advise from us might be good ''summertime'' advice, but we won't know when your summer ends. Your autumn will be a month earlier than most of ours.

Last piece of advice. As much as possible, choose native species to work with. I'm glad you are working with lodgepole pine & your local cedars. Also check out your local shrubs and trees. Any local oaks? They have their quirks but can make great bonsai with time. Little shrub species are good too. Potentilla is quite hardy. I have fought for years keeping trees that are not quite hardy, and it is always a battle. Winter care of natives is usually easy. Under a bench, or into a spot sheltered from the wind, and mulch them in, you are set.

So welcome aboard

Most of my stuff has been repotted this spring so other than cleaning the dead off not much on the books for them. The junipers, mugo and fat cedar I am thinking about wiring and trimming.

Everything I have so far is either native or spent last year in a pot in my garden.

Lodgepole pine does make beautiful bonsai. Not commonly used, but has been used to good effect. Check ''Bonsai Mirai'' website, and google Dan Robbinson and Elandan Gardens, for examples.

Will check that out, I do have this other lodgepole. Some brute dug it up a week ago it's still potted in the soil it was growing in which was 100% sand. It was right in the middle of a dirtbike track and looks to have been run over a couple times.

Yeah! Zone 4 really rocks.

Zone 3 not so much, here's the new lodgepole by my ginko. It's a zone 4 and you can see it prunes itself every year by having all the tips die back. It's been there for about 5 years, maybe grown a foot.

 

[Salcomine]

Being in a botanical society may not be as good as a bonsai club but it has some perks. I was going to post about maples later but a lady just dropped off a half flat of Amur maples so it's relevant I guess. There are a few maples that will grow up here like the Manitoba maple( acer negundo) which seems I'll suited cause it grows 4'-5' a year, big leaves and has huge interludes. The first picture is one of mine that's been allowed to grow free for about 3 years. There is also the Canadian sugar maple which has smaller internodes but bigger leaves. Last 2 pictures are my 3, about 10 years old, the front two are getting "moved" this year. Finally the last maple I have is the Amur maple, third and fourth picture. Small internodes and leaves and kinda hardy up here seems the best bet for bonsai.
My Amur got chewed on and knocked over by a moose about 10 years ago. So we chopped it off at the base and the suckers came back. Have been growing it as a bush ever since cause the moose come back in the winter for a snack.

 

[sorce]

by a moose

That's badass!

Sorce

 

[Potawatomi13]

At least I can already tell you that you will have to re-pot your tree in a colander

No one HAS to. Many do not and think for selves. Have never seen one anywhere at Ryans place or anyone in local club.

 

[sorce]

No one HAS to.

But everyone must.

Sorce

 

[M. Frary]

moose come back

Not if you eat them.

 

[Salcomine]

Not if you eat them.

Haha funny that's what hap
pened. So the moose(s) didn't come back for about 3 years cause homeless people ate one. The local RCMP (royal Canadian mounted police) got called out cause them moose were running amok elsewhere in town and they went to use a bear banger to scare them into the bush. A bear banger is like a flare gun except with an explosive shell. So instead of shooting it up over their heads as per operating instructions the RCMP officer hit one of the calfs in the butt. Unfortunately for the calf it got lodged in before it exploded and killed the calf. It was the least the RCMP could do to take the calf to the butchers and donate the meat to a local homeless shelter. So yeah homeless people ate the moose that was eating my maple.