Jbp new growth lighter green

[spunog]

I have a couple of JBP and I noticed that the new growth this year is a much paler green than the older needles. Is his normal or should they be darker ? I can’t remember from previous years .

I also have a JRP and it’s new growth is as dark as the old needles. This is the last photo .

See attached

 

[penumbra]

New growth always comes in lighter. It will darken as it ages.

 

[Brian Van Fleet]

New growth always comes in lighter. It will darken as it ages.

No, something is wrong here.
Could be too much water or a nutrient deficiency. Add some micronutrients and watch the water.

 

[Dav4]

I agree with Brian. My first thought is too much water... and it appears your soil is heavy in peat and very moisture retentive.

 

[spunog]

Yes they are I’m large containers in sand and compost. I’ll repot them into bark chips now I think. That’s what the Red pine is in and it’s thriving .

 

[spunog]

Interestingly there was no mycorrhizae in the box during repot.

 

[Wires_Guy_wires]

Please keep in mind that red pines have a different natural range, and can withstand way more variation in soil.
All of my red pines look lush, yet my black pines are pale and yellow in the same type of soil with the same watering habit. The seem to like it fairly dry.

 

[Shibui]

When my pines go yellow it is a sign of malnutrition. Feed and the colour changes to green in a few weeks. Sand and compost does not sound like adequate potting mix and nutrients leach quickly with regular watering so feeding every few weeks is important to maintain healthy trees.
The problem is usually worse in trees that have not been repotted for a few years. Root bound makes it harder for adequate fert to penetrate the soil when watering.
Chlorosis can also occur when there is not enough iron in the mix, especially when water is alkaline. Commercial potting mix always has extra fe added to counteract that problem but home made mixes often don't have enough.

 

[spunog]

Just a quick follow up on this. I had taken a JBP from the same batch two years ago and planted in the ground. I had an opportunity to visit it at the weekend and its new growth is a beautiful deep green. So the light green is definitely not just from being new growth. They are repotted now so hopefully will darken in the coming weeks.

 

[cheap_walmart_art]

Mine were doing this earlier in the year and it seemed to be due to excessive water from heavy spring/early summer rain. Once I let them dry out a bit and applied some nutrients they greened right up over a few weeks. Here is a link to the thread if you want to take a look. https://www.bonsainut.com/threads/low-vigor-japanese-black-pine.38108/

 

[spunog]

I repotted These pines into bark and they have darkened considerably. Some branches appear very brown so they might be toast. Overall I think it was right thing to do.

 

[cheap_walmart_art]

I repotted These pines into bark and they have darkened considerably. Some branches appear very brown so they might be toast. Overall I think it was right thing to do.

Like straight up bark? Don't pines like a more aggregate substrate that doesn't hold as much water as pure bark would? The JBP in the original post of mine is potted in what looks like straight turface, when I repot this Spring I'll be putting it in a mix of DE/Pumice/Lava.

 

[spunog]

Yep 100% bark.

 

[cheap_walmart_art]

Let us know how it goes! Also, apologies if my earlier message was confusing - I posted a similar thread on almost the same topic and I thought we were commenting on mine. Thats what I get for posting before coffee.