Juniper #4

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Shohin
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Picked this up Skimpaku from Don Blackmond in early March (thanks, Don!).

Spent time cleaning up deadwood, peeling off flaking bark, getting rid of mites (Iowa mites, not Michigan mites), and getting some wire applied. Worked with Todd Schlafer last weekend, too. He taught me so much, and he's so patient with novices.

Looking pretty good this summer.

I'm really looking forward to further editing and refining the pads and both the the upper and lower apices.


IMG_1243_Received.JPGAfter wiring summer 2018.JPG
 

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Appreciate the compliment. And Iowa mites have talons on the ends of their legs.

Really I was just trying to make it clear that the tree did not arrive with mites when I got it from Don, who lives in Michigan.
 

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I forgot that I started this thread... I started a couple of others, as I've come to realize the progressive pictures and regular updates can serve as a useful time capsule of sorts.

Well, nothing really done to the tree since it was wired out in the summer of 2018. Mostly continued to battle spider mites all of 2019. A lot of the wire was starting to bite in, so I cut that off in spring 2019, too.

I did manage to re-pot (1:1:1) into an unglazed, 17.25" wide oval Yamaaki this spring 2020. I also did some thinning and prepped it for wiring this spring, but never got around to actually applying wire. I really should have been better... but viral chaos this spring, as many of you may remember. Just never became a priority. Definitely will apply wire in late winter or spring 2021.

Finally did defeat the spider mites (I hope). Forbid, which is apparently the "nuclear option," seems to have worked wonders.

On the bench in March 2020:
Spring 2020.JPG

Up close of the neglected shari:
Shari 2020.JPG

And shot of it in June 2020 after some additional thinning (and about 8 hrs of berry removal). Still need to thin the right secondary canopy a bit more, but overall seems to have responded to the repot just fine:
June 14 2020.JPG
 

Japonicus

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That's dope man. Nebari, married trunk and shari all working together. Super nice.

When in the Spring this year did you repot?

I've never heard of Forbid insecticide, but have had great results with Malathion and Insecticidal Soap on all my conifers.
Glad you're free of them now. I take a preventative maintenance approach to keeping them at bay. Time for a Summer application now for me.
 

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Thanks, Japonicus, but I take no credit (thus far). When I got this split-trunk Itoigawa in 2018 from Don it was like a candelabra... which the picture above shows pretty well, and Todd Schlafer helped be wire it out and get it back on track. Still some filling out and wiring and lots of work to do.

Don suggested it was imported from Japan in 2010 and is approximately 50-55 years old.

I re-potted in March 29th. Which was a little bit early. Our last freeze here in Iowa this year was May 8, with an extended period of sub freezing weather in early April, so I was shuffling this tree, and 30 others, into and out of my garage each night. Madness.

Anyway, I didn't get it potted deep enough when I moved it from the mica round into its new home, the Yamaaki oval... I am forever worried about removing too many roots on junipers (and pines, especially). So, the nebari should be set deeper and more of it covered. I'll get that sort on the next re-pot.

I also really need to get some lime sulfur on the shari to limit its current fast rate of degradation. Need to preserve these features as best as I can, because they make the tree interesting. Might need to drive a screw here an there to prevent further splitting of the already split trunk (causes it will destroy the shari)

Noah

Nebari (potted too high)

Shari 2 June 2020.JPG

Back side:

Shari 3 June 2020.JPG
 

Japonicus

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Don suggested it was imported from Japan in 2010 and is approximately 50-55 years old.

I re-potted in March 29th. Which was a little bit early.
I would be so paranoid repotting a tree this old and nice. Potting up brings out the worst in paranoia for me.
I had my share of shuffling trees this year as well with warm March cold April, and actually has less worries
potting pines than juniper.
I lost a year of growth potting up my cascade procumbens March of 2018 to recovery, but had thinned it late Summer 2017.
At least it has made a strong come back 2019 and is needing thinning again now.

I see what you're saying about the nebari depth, get that Irish moss tweezed out before it blooms any more while it's manageable.
Must be a pretty big tree if that's a 17" pot :)
 

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Worked the moss out today, japonicus, so back under control there.

the tree(s) are about 35” wide and 28” tall... I writes “trees” because it’s basically two independent trees now that the Shari that forms the split goes all the way to soil level.

I’ll update again when and if something interesting happens. Hopefully that only means full wiring in the spring.
 

IABonsai

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Curious what my fellow eastern Iowaner does about overwintering Junipers. Cold frame? Garage? Boarding somewhere?
 

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An attached garage, which is painful because it often stays too warm. I have long considered a cold frame, but I would need to get rid of several trees in order to make them all to fit in a structure that was not also the size of a garage.

Are you offering to board my trees? Ha! That would be great if someone out this way had a facility and offered such a service.
 

IABonsai

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An attached garage, which is painful because it often stays too warm. I have long considered a cold frame, but I would need to get rid of several trees in order to make them all to fit in a structure that was not also the size of a garage.

Are you offering to board my trees? Ha! That would be great if someone out this way had a facility and offered such a service.

Nope but I see you are in the same quandry lol. I have been using my attached garage but was also looking into a cold frame. But I feel like I’d just have the same problem at the other end of the temperature spectrum.

Really seems like it’s just a gamble now with Iowa having a Summer Fall and Sprinter season.
 

Japonicus

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I wiped out most all of my collection to a cold frame about 20 years ago. Lost some nice junipers.
3 years ago it hit -18º F here (short lived) and I didn't lose anything to the cold I can remember.
Key to the cold frame is to open it and water the trees. I used opaque plastic over a 2x4 frame
and the few that lived were smaller and fit between the slats of pallets I used for the floor, and rain that
through the bottom helped make up for the transpiration. I still have 1 or 2 of those junipers that were
small enough to fit between the slats. Had they all lived...I would have some good ~25 year old junipers now.

A dozen or less plants, easy enough to heal into the ground, mulch and spray. Rarely needs watering that way too.
More than that, I have at least 3 dozen, I put mine under my sunroom on the ground mid December, and mulch if
Winter looks rough. This year I didn't even mulch them. Most do fine on the ground mulched in a protected area.
Try going with plants that are Winter hardy 1 grow zone below yours, and let the snow insulate them.
 

IABonsai

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I wiped out most all of my collection to a cold frame about 20 years ago. Lost some nice junipers.
3 years ago it hit -18º F here (short lived) and I didn't lose anything to the cold I can remember.
Key to the cold frame is to open it and water the trees. I used opaque plastic over a 2x4 frame
and the few that lived were smaller and fit between the slats of pallets I used for the floor, and rain that
through the bottom helped make up for the transpiration. I still have 1 or 2 of those junipers that were
small enough to fit between the slats. Had they all lived...I would have some good ~25 year old junipers now.

A dozen or less plants, easy enough to heal into the ground, mulch and spray. Rarely needs watering that way too.
More than that, I have at least 3 dozen, I put mine under my sunroom on the ground mid December, and mulch if
Winter looks rough. This year I didn't even mulch them. Most do fine on the ground mulched in a protected area.
Try going with plants that are Winter hardy 1 grow zone below yours, and let the snow insulate them.

The only problem there is that it would put us in Zone 4. If I stuck to plants designated to zone 4 I'd no longer be able to cultivate any tree I am actually interested in.
 

Japonicus

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If I stuck to plants designated to zone 4 I'd no longer be able to cultivate any tree I am actually interested in
At least try incorporating Mugo pine and Canadian (Eastern) Hemlock into your mix, and the earlier the better for development sake.
Either should fair well with some wind protection when the Jet Stream brings the Arctic blasts through.
If you keep snow on the ground for periods of time, you may not need any protection at all, though I would still mulch.
 

IABonsai

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Honestly like OP I'm more worried about the random 50 degree days we get in the middle of winter
 

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Did some thinning and detail wiring on this tree this weekend. No heavy bending, so should respond fine. Still need to wire some branches and shoots in the upper canopy and apex, but I hit the wall this weekend. Junipers are a lot of work.

Before (front only) and after (from all fours sides).
 

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Some substantial editing on this one over the weekend. Still needs more work to compact left side and reduce height and eliminate the much too pointed apex on the mother tree and refine the daughter on the right.

Before front:
Shimpaku 4 front before June 2021.jpg
After front:
Shimpaku 4 front after June 2021.jpg
Before back:
Shimpaku 4 back before June 2021.jpg
After back:
Shimpaku 4 back after June 2021.jpg
 

PeaceLoveBonsai

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Nice tree. Wonder if a slight change (left or right) of the front would eliminate the “sling-shot” appearance of the trunk?
 

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Yes, it's sort of a fundamentally flawed mess... but I've grown attached.

I've actually considered the left side as a new front (with some suggestions from @Brian Van Fleet)... but I was waiting for the daughter to either weaken substantially or croak before committing.

Shimpaku 4 left after June 2021.jpg
 
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