Pinus sylvestris 'Glauca nana' project

[parhamr]

Yesterday I did some pruning and today I did some wiring. It's starting to look less like a landscaping shrub.



lol it is too big for my backdrop.

I started wiring from the bottom up. I'm about 1/4 of the way done. This will keep me busy for a while. I'm flattening and laying out the branches.

There is decent ramification but the first several internodes are all way too large. I've seen great backbudding this growing season so I'm optimistic for what's to come.

I think I finally have all of the branching down to twos.



Today I made some nicely concave cuts where jins had been. This tree has such vigorous sap flow and wound healing that I'm planning to use to smooth up sections of the main trunk so they're less "pointy."

I'm tempted to remove the upper trunk on our right side in the above photo.

 

[parhamr]

Progress on detailed wiring. Branch pads are starting to form.



Sadly, I've knocked off some delicate new buds that were in great locations.

I think I'm around half done with it all.

 

[sdavis]

This tree has probably been around the block a couple of times and probably started out it's nursery life as a balled in burlap nursery tree as suggested by the clay core. B&B trees are planted in clay to make the soil ball adhere together.

Actually, the dense clay around the roots probably means it was grown in the ground in the Willamette Valley of Oregon, then dug up and burlapped. The clay soils are the result of massive floods thousands of years ago. Parhamr has done the right thing by removing it one step at a time.

 

[parhamr]

@sdavis knows his clay Valley soils

 

[parhamr]

Wiring continues… (my job is getting in the way!) and I think I’m 2/3rds done.

The branches are almost looking like pads

 

[just.wing.it]

Yeah, I can see some pads forming there!
Looking good!

 

[parhamr]

It has been growing well!


Things were busy within the box.

There was a fairly big cluster of ants, but seemingly not a nest. I’m suspicious about whatever has colonized the soil. It looks like it could be symbiotic mycorrhizae but it seems to knit together the soil rather than attaching to the roots. I suspect it’s root aphids. I’ve seen some around the yard and this container would make sense as a nest.

I uncovered around 3" of trunk, removed girdling roots, and completed the second half of a half bare root. (The first was April 2017)

I’ll be able to get some really good wiring done this fall. Tomorrow I’ll get a photo. It’s in an 18" rectangular mica training pot.

 

[parhamr]

It’s 29" tall from the top of the pot.

 

[parhamr]

It adjusted nicely to the latest potting. The strength of the branching is balancing out a little more, but it’s clearly still apically dominant in genetics. I cleaned up three witches’ brooms.

Here it is in the surgical center parking lot while I waited for my mom to have carpal tunnel surgery done.


I did cleanup there to get it ready for late season wiring. Mom’s recovery is going smoothly so I’ve had some focused time to wire it up.

Here it is after 8 pretty casual hours of listening to podcasts and applying wire to primary and secondary branching. About the bottom 2/3 of the tree is done:

(front… ish)


(back)

There’s definitely more wiring to do this season. Otherwise that’s about it for this tree this year. I’ll be sure to fertilize it moderately well through the season to get it ready for next year.

I think next winter I will finally be ready to perform some interior grafting to bring foliage closer to the trunk. Hopefully.

 

[DirkvanDreven]

Nice progress. Good tree. Hope to follow it's further development!

 

[parhamr]

I removed a frontal, lower branch to open it up. At least one more thick lower branch needs to go, but for now it’s good grafting stock.



The pink tags are marking grafting material.

It needs another full wiring.