Loblolly #1

[Potawatomi13]

It’s all about needle length. If done too early needles will be too long and if done too late not only will the needles be too short for the over all aesthetics but can weaken the tree.

Er, Eventually that late growth shorter needles is what is desired is it not? Better than weakening by yanking off perfectly healthy needles.

 

[Elihatt]

@NorthTXacer do you know any details about how this was collected by your friend? Why time of year, what situation it was collected from, or about after care? Loblolly is on my short list for collection next year in western Arkansas but everything I’ve read online makes it out to be a highly unproductive/unreliable endeavor. Your friend obviously successfully collected two wonderful and pretty mature trees and I was hoping you would have some insight. Also.. really looking forward to those slides! Thank you

 

[SantaFeBonsai]

Early spring, broken sandstone, it wasn’t that old when it was collected based on the pic from 81.

This tree is requiring three waterings a day since June. At first I was watering with low Ph RO but now I’ve been treating just like my black pines, heavy biogold until first round of decandle time in just a few days.

 

[SantaFeBonsai]

Text book multiflush pine reaction to decandling. This is going to be so much fun seeing the needles shrink over the next few years.

 

[Potawatomi13]

Curves and development of avatar most pleasing.

 

[roberthu]

This is awesome! I am so glad there are someone else working on LL. I have ton of these growing in the back yard and I have thought about collecting some but never did due to the needle length. I will walk around this fall and see if there is anything interesting and worth digging!

 

[SantaFeBonsai]

Another update. As you can tell the response to multiflush pine technique has been spectacular. Needle length is slightly less than half of last years needles and remember I have been heavily fertilizing all year.




Here’s the big clue that we’re going to shorten these needles in the future,,, back budding! Hundreds of new back buds are forming, even in old bark.




The anticipation of repotting into an even smaller pot, (a very nice Shuzan!) doubling the amount of useable buds and stopping fertilizer after next summers decandling has me salivating at this trees potential.

Considering the USDA hardiness zone recommendation of 6b-9b would you feel comfortable with winterizing on the ground protected from north winds with just heavy mulch in a 6a zone? Or take it a step further and winterize in a greenhouse that doesn’t get below 28deg?

 

[roberthu]

Another update. As you can tell the response to multiflush pine technique has been spectacular. Needle length is slightly less than half of last years needles and remember I have been heavily fertilizing all year.

View attachment 329414


Here’s the big clue that we’re going to shorten these needles in the future,,, back budding! Hundreds of new back buds are forming, even in old bark.

View attachment 329415


The anticipation of repotting into an even smaller pot, (a very nice Shuzan!) doubling the amount of useable buds and stopping fertilizer after next summers decandling has me salivating at this trees potential.

Considering the USDA hardiness zone recommendation of 6b-9b would you feel comfortable with winterizing on the ground protected from north winds with just heavy mulch in a 6a zone? Or take it a step further and winterize in a greenhouse that doesn’t get below 28deg?

I would probably keep it in an in heated garage just because it is in a container now.
Thank you for the update! The tree looks super healthy! And the back budding is just too awesome!

 

[Tbrshou]

@northdo you think this is worth a shot to attempt to train?

 

[Bonsai_Bentley]

@northdo you think this is worth a shot to attempt to train?

I'd be more concerned about collection. Any loblolly I've tried to collect that was any bigger than a little 6" sapling has failed. I've spoken to a few others that have found the same issue. The issue being that the roots required for a successful collection are on really long runners. Gotta get some white rootage which doesn't seem to appear anywhere near the base.

 

[SantaFeBonsai]

After late fall shoot reduction and needle thinning a new pot was in order.

 

[Leo in N E Illinois]

I love the color of the new pot. I don't like the shape. The oval ends up looking a bit like a "bathtub". I wish you had found this color pot in a rectangle. That is an exquisitely burnished pot with an unfortunate shape. Sorry to be blunt.

The tree is beautiful, and worthy of a more good pot.

 

[Forsoothe!]

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. This is a remarkable tree, and I like the pot. Along with every tree is an opportunity to display a nice pot. This is a two-fer.

 

[Potawatomi13]

Lovely pot but why feminine for reasonably masculine tree? Seems(?)unstable tippy toe on cloud feet.

 

[SantaFeBonsai]

I love experimenting with pots, nothing is permanent.

I don’t really think of this tree as masculine. It’s tall, thin, graceful, great curves, an old southern matriarch. I like the current pot but it’s not perfect. When I can reduce the trees width I think it will do nicely in this Syuzan although the shallow Gyozan directly below it was really close to being used but I decided on the deeper pot for health until I know how well it will do in our new location at 7,800’ outside of Santa Fe NM.

 

[SantaFeBonsai]

This tree keeps responding to jbp techniques better than jbp

 

[Brian Van Fleet]

Wow! @garywood you seeing this?

 

[Bonsai_Bentley]

I'd be more concerned about collection. Any loblolly I've tried to collect that was any bigger than a little 6" sapling has failed. I've spoken to a few others that have found the same issue. The issue being that the roots required for a successful collection are on really long runners. Gotta get some white rootage which doesn't seem to appear anywhere near the base.

I experienced and heard the same exact thing.

 

[SantaFeBonsai]

After bud selection and removing last years needles the progress from just two shorts years is amazing. So proud of this tree.

 

[Perrywinkle]

Awesome tree! Never seen one in bonsai before. They grow like absolute weeds here, nice to see one thriving in the desert. Three waterings a day is definitely a labor of love, keep up the good work.