Is My Sand Pine Dying???

Stevo2989

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Collected what I believe to be 3 Florida Sand Pines about 1.5 years ago. I planted the very small (finger length) trees in a pot and basically watered them randomly but I took a very hands off approach to care. Fast forward to today, the trees are about 12" tall, with one looking pretty healthy (new shoots healthy top) although the bottom is starting to show brown/ and the other 2 looking DEAD (they have hard brown pines).

The soil seems moist, there is a hole at the bottom to drain, they reside outside all year in direct sun/rain etc. I really don't pay much attention to them. Can someone assess my images and let me know what they think and what I should do going forward? THANKS GUYS!
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sorce

Nonsense Rascal
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Welcome to Crazy!

Look like Juniperus Virginian.

Sorce
 

BonsaiNaga13

Chumono
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Those are Eastern Red Cedar. Not really good for bonsai and they're a bit invasive so finding 2 replacements shouldn't be hard if you still wanted to.
 

Brad in GR

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Agree, ERC. Roadside mangled versions can be decent for collecting but the prevailing wisdom here says not ideal for bonsai. I like the foliage personally!
 

GGB

Masterpiece
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definitely a juniperus, (aka red cedar to be confusing) the biggest one is alive still
 

Leo in N E Illinois

The Professor
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Sand Pines, Pinus clausa, have needles in bundles of 2, they only have single needles briefly as juvenile foliage, usually gone by the 2nd or 3rd year. Needles are long and slender, usually 2 to 4 inches long.

The tree in the images, have awl shaped needles, very much like junipers. Not like a pine. Juniper seedlings will sprout anywhere, even under more mature P. clausa, Sand pines. Just because the seedlings were in close proximity to the sand pines does not make them sand pines.

You have 2 dead and one not quite dead Junipers, probably Juniperus virginiana. A species not known to be easy to make good bonsai with.

I think your seedlings are suffering from compacted soil that does not breathe. You are likely living in Florida, while not an ideal time, it is probably safe to repot your Juniper seedling. First acquire better potting media. A pumice based bonsai mix would be ideal. Then do the repot. You might be able to save your juniper.
 

HorseloverFat

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...I think your seedlings are suffering from compacted soil that does not breathe. You are likely living in Florida, while not an ideal time, it is probably safe to repot your Juniper seedling. First acquire better potting media. A pumice based bonsai mix would be ideal. Then do the repot. You might be able to save your juniper.

...yes. That information.

I’m also curious as to the collection itself. Questions always arise (to me) when speculating health or attempting diagnosis... Simple questions about the time collected vs. ideal time (if different), about handling during collection and general root mass and health, and, of course, about strength and prominence of foliage existing (not relevant here, I know)... these are always some basic questions I tend to ask myself when assessing the health of my collected specimens..... that’s just how I personally roll. I could have it bass-ackwards and not even know it! :)
 

JoeH

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absolutely ERC I get seedlings all the time at work near where they are planted. I have collected a few to see what I can do with them. and a stunted one that was planted years ago that may work down the road.
 
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