Japanese Red Pine - Pinus Densiflora question

LeoMame

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Hello Bonsai people!

One question for you, I'd like to understand if in your knowledge you could understand if this JRP I just purchased is grafted (possibly on JBP) or not? In my opinion, I have no elements to say it is, but I'd also like to know from your experience. The "knob" at the base -the first direction change- is I believe the result of a pruning which is healing.

Here's some photos. The fact I'm asking you after purchasing it, shows how little I care about the possibility it's grafted, but for the sake of all the information about the tree I wanted to survey the forum!

Thank you as usual!

PS. I didn't post a whole photo of the front, sorry, but my interest was towards the grafting hypothesis... if interested I can set up a little photo shoot!
 

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LeoMame

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Is there something that makes you believe it’s grafted?

Mmh not really, perhaps the first movement of the trunk which has a bit of a bulge (but then again, it looks like it's the knob resulting from pruning a big branch).

I'm also a bit inexperienced with grafted specimens, so I was also curious to have this as a case study to gather opinions :)
 

Shibui

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Not every change of direction is a graft. Same changes of direction occur from pruning to a lower branch and that's a common strategy when growing pines.

Bark is consistent above and below the bend so I think it is unlikely this is a graft.

Not all grafts are bad for bonsai, just bad grafts. Bad pruning can be equally unsightly but this one is OK I think.
 

Brian Van Fleet

Pretty Fly for a Bonsai Guy
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It does not look like a graft to me. The first change in direction looks like the place where several shoots were reduced to one. Nice bark on that tree. Careful wiring branches, JRP is surprisingly brittle.
 

LeoMame

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This is the tree. Healthy but not 100%, I will spend some time understanding it and gathering ideas on the next steps; but surely will remove the wire which is biting some of the branches here and there.

Thanks to all for the chime in!

Leo
 

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D

Deleted member 32750

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The movement of your red pine reminds me of this red pine exhibited at the Shinryokufu Exhibition in Japan earlier this spring. You have a nice tree and I think it would look amazing in a nanban pot.

Screen Shot 2021-06-14 at 9.56.05 AM.png
 

sorce

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Is it me or are all the pictures on this page blowing up to inviewable?

Sucks cuz that's a dope ass tree!

Sorce
 

Wires_Guy_wires

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From my own observation, compared to JRP, JBP have weaker root systems.
So grafting anything on JBP rootstock wouldn't make sense to me.
 

Adair M

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Why ANYONE thinks such crap looking pots help ANY trees looks beyond my wildest nightmares?
Wow! I would never have expected this statement coming from you. Nanban pots are not really pots at all! At least, not originally. They are repurposed Antique Chinese ceramic jar lids for shipping and storing tea, grains, and seeds. Since they originally were lids and not intended to be used as pots, holes were drilled to allow water to drain out.

The pots are rustic but strong. The pots became popular for bonsai, so bonsai potters began to make “nanban” style pots. These, naturally, will not be drilled since they were intended to be bonsai pots.
 
D

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Nanban containers looks great for Bunjiin style trees! Especially bunjin pines. You can't say a container like this wouldn't pair excellently with with rugged bark and slender trunk on your pine!
17663005272_f67c9b4612_z.jpg
 

LeoMame

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Nanban containers looks great for Bunjiin style trees! Especially bunjin pines. You can't say a container like this wouldn't pair excellently with with rugged bark and slender trunk on your pine!
View attachment 380728

It's a classic for bunjin trees, very very nice. Now my pine sits in an oval container because its former owner had to slip pot it because the round tokoname one in which it was in before was broken when the tree fell off the bench. So it is a temporary solution until next spring!

Thanks for the suggestion, I knew nanban pots and I've seen in Bjorn's video on Prunus mume, so fascinating. Never seen one in person tho.
 
D

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I've seen one true Nanban in person at the Bonsai Learning Center in NC. Like Adair said it was a lid on an old barrel or something that had holes drilled into it to turn it into a bonsai pot. very old and very cool.
 
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