Something new - Ribes alpinum

[Cosmos]

Found this buddy in a countryside nursery. Didn't know a thing about the species (it is apparently used for hedges), had to google it on the spot, but all indicators look good (hardy, easy pruning, very adaptable). Also, it was 15 bucks. They had about 8 of them, 3-4 were interesting but this one was the clear winner. Maybe I should have bought a few more?

So I'm thinking something shohin-size with a base like this. Styling ideas? I have a window to do major pruning in the coming weeks.

Oh, and what should I use to remove the moss growing on the trunk? Toothbrush and water/vinegar solution?

 

[Wilson]

These are tasty little fruit bearers. I have a gooseberry plant in the garden, it has crazy spikes! I would just be mindful of die back if you prune hard.

 

[queenofsheba52]

That trunk!

 

[Cosmos]

That trunk!

Not bad, uh?

These are tasty little fruit bearers. I have a gooseberry plant in the garden, it has crazy spikes! I would just be mindful of die back if you prune hard.

Thanks for the tip. I have been looking at the tree, and it has obviously spent several years at this rather remote nursery. There are a few pruning scars, and the cuts seem to have been made pretty much flush:

And no signs of dieback on any of those branches. So I'll be moderately cautious while pruning this one; I might not prune super close to existing buds, just to be sure.

 

[sorce]

Big fan!

Was just eyeing some landscape ones.

Mine.
https://www.bonsainut.com/threads/shrub-id.23280/

Whenever I pruned the peen off...stuck it in the ground and it rooted.

Love dem.

Sorce

 

[Cosmos]

Big fan!

Was just eyeing some landscape ones.

Mine.
https://www.bonsainut.com/threads/shrub-id.23280/

Whenever I pruned the peen off...stuck it in the ground and it rooted.

Love dem.

Sorce

Are they dirt cheap in your area too? In USD, mine was about 12 bucks, ridiculous price, I am tempted to go back.

You should go pick a few up and we can compare results this growing season.

 

[sorce]

Are they dirt cheap in your area too? In USD, mine was about 12 bucks, ridiculous price, I am tempted to go back.

You should go pick a few up and we can compare results this growing season.

I've never seem em for sale.
All the planted ones are bunches of straight sticks...

Never seen a trunk like that!

Sorce

 

[Cosmos]

I've never seem em for sale.
All the planted ones are bunches of straight sticks...

Never seen a trunk like that!

Sorry, I misread your post, I thought to meant landscaping ones for sale.

Here it is after I removed the obvious first 5-6 branches. I'll see how well it backbuds and maybe do another round of pruning in 2 weeks or so.

 

[Leo in N E Illinois]

All the currents and gooseberries, genus Ribes, have decent bonsai potential, mainly medium to small size bonsai. The varieties raised for fruit production are good too. In North America, there are dozens of native species. All have edible fruit some more tasty than others, R alpinum is noted by several authors for being the least flavorful, the culinary Ribes tend to have the most flavor and sweetness. R alpinum does have attractive flowers.

The N. A. west coast native Ribes sanguineana has very attractive pink to red flowers, and pretty good fruit.

 

[Leo in N E Illinois]

In the past it was feared that Ribes served as intermediate host for White Pine Blister Rust, a fungal infection of white pines that does serious damage to commercial timber stands. Recent research showed that limiting plantings of Ribes has no effect in controlling the disease, as there are other alternate hosts and native Ribes are ubiquitous. So most states have lifted their ban on planting Ribes.

If purchasing Ribes, rather than collecting local native species, it is worth seeking cultivars resistant to the White pine blister rust and resistant to powdery & downy mildew. Both diseases make the Ribes unattractive when weather is disease favorable, though the diseases rarely kill Ribes

 

[AlainK]

Very interesting project.

I didn't know this species, apparently the flowers are not very attractive, but the berries are.

I made an attempt with a cutting from Ribes sanguineum many years ago, but the plant died before it could flower and I've never tried again. I still have the mother plant in the garden though, the flowers smell really good

 

[Cosmos]

Very interesting project.

I didn't know this species, apparently the flowers are not very attractive, but the berries are.

I made an attempt with a cutting from Ribes sanguineum many years ago, but the plant died before it could flower and I've never tried again. I still have the mother plant in the garden though, the flowers smell really good

You can see the flowers in the pictures, a little dried up but still hanging there. They are very unassuming. The fruits though, I am curious to see them.

I planted two cuttings alongside my tomato plants... I'll see if they root.

 

[Cosmos]

I went ahead with the major reduction. Very curious to see how well it rebounds. I also applied one light round of fertilizer, that's going to be the only one before the end of summer.

I need to monitor the lighter spots on the leaves (middle of the picture), could be powdery mildew, although it shouldn't normally develop on my (very windy) balcony.

 

[Cosmos]

Looking good. Latent buds waking up low on the trunks.