And although that article doesn't say anything about removing the leader the first year, I'd seriously consider it. Although there were low buds on the trees I had, when the top grew unfettered it only took about one season for them to weaken considerably.
Hi Chris,
I visited Mr. Matsuo in Japan (he from the Bonsai Today / Pine book article who popularized the technique of growing shohin black pines from seeds in colanders in a relatively short amount of time) and have been using his technique for a few years now. Here is a photo of the two of us in Japan - this was in 05 and he was a bit frail at that time.
For black pines you must leave a leader to thicken the trunk. However, you need to reduce it's vigor a bit so that buds stay strong on the bottom. I will post some photo's tonight when I get home of one of my shohin black pines in a colander after 5 years.
john romano[/QUOTE]
Please do. I'll wait in anticipation.