There are a few idiosynchrocies with Hemlock. Repotting is one. It is important to take special care of the finer roots that develop near the surface. Working your way down slowly is important. On collected trees i usually wait till the second year before excavating. Then i do so about 1/2 inch every three or four months during the growing season.This spring I plan on wrapping and pulling the sacrifice down in order to put the apex in place. I’d like to also undo the guy wires and put several inches of fresh soil in the bottom of the pot so that I can slowly uncover the top to see what roots are hiding under there. I really wish I had taken pictures during collection as I remember a wagon wheel of roots down there, but there may have been two hubs and i’m not sure that I want to tear through the top roots to get to the bottom ones. That’s why I was thinking a slow erosion and see what gets uncovered. I’m not crazy about the current neberi though so I think it is worth exploring my options.
Then redo the guy wires and let it grow. Depending on how vigorous it is I may take off much of the new growth to try and boost the ramification around mid spring.
There are a few idiosynchrocies with Hemlock. Repotting is one. It is important to take special care of the finer roots that develop near the surface. Working your way down slowly is important. On collected trees i usually wait till the second year before excavating. Then i do so about 1/2 inch every three or four months during the growing season.
Also with wiring, the branches take a long time to set. Using wire on the branch works better than guy wires. This is due to the fact that shaping the branch with wire creates stress cracks that when they heal set the branches position. It is important to start wiring hemlock branches early for this reason. Here is an example of one collected in 2012, the before and current.
Thanks for the advice; there isn’t a lot of “institutional” knowledge with the species. It has been three years since the last repot, and I believe 5 years since I collected it, so based on your guidelines, I am well with in the time frame to start exposing the surface roots. I think that, artistically, the rootage is really weak on this tree at this point, so I don't have a lot to lose by digging down a bit. I think post #24 has the best view of the surface roots. Here is a question though, do you know if they have any tendency to ground-layer, or might they with the aid of some rooting hormone?
I might save this the next stage for a workshop or two and try to take cuttings / plant seeds so that I can gather more experience with the species without risking the closest tree that I have to a "yamadori." I will say that I am tempted to really dig down there to see if I can find the wagon wheel that I remember lopping of when I originally collected the tree (kicking self for not taking pictures). During it's first (and only) repot I was pretty cautious about digging around in there, but it has only responded to my insults with vigor at this point, so it is tempting to get a little more insulting. I will likely go slow as you recommend, but I am also tempted to remove some of the redundant or awkward roots from the top as I move the tree higher out of the pot. I'll need to take another picture focused on the base.. the decent roots in front in post #24 might be a stick sitting on top.
I would tend to disagree with that as it really depends on where they're growing....deep wooded shade...maybe. In my yard (more sun) 10-12 years. In a pot - mine is 6-8 and starting to fissure nicely.Eastern hemlock grows well in lower elevations, and just about anywhere with winter cold enough to have snow, east of the Mississippi. It's bark tends to be smooth for the first 50 years.
It is true that Tsuga Mertensis is usually found in the native locations above 4,000 feet. They have an excellent survival rate if handled properly and given a climate with sufficient dormancy. I have found that the key is providing partial shade not direct sun. As well the repotting method used is important. The finer roots on the surface must be protected and the tree must be adjusted with staged root work over time rather than aggressive repotting. My elevation is 600 feet, zone 7b. The collection zone is higher elevations as noted and the temperatures much colder with a longer dormancy period. They have not done well in California Zone 10. Too warm and not enough dormancy.I believe @Riversedgebonsai us working with mountain hemlock, Tsuga mertensis, where as David, @MrFancyPlants is working with eastern hemlock Tsuga canadaensis. They are somewhat different species. For whatever reason, mountain hemlock seems to have a poor survival rate, east of the Pacific Northwest or at elevations below 4000 feet. Mountain hemlock do develop a nice rough bark fairly young, less than 25 years.
Eastern hemlock grows well in lower elevations, and just about anywhere with winter cold enough to have snow, east of the Mississippi. It's bark tends to be smooth for the first 50 years.
The hemlock adelgid, can be controlled by any pesticide that works well for mealy bugs. Mealy bugs are related to, or are members of the Adelgid family of insects. It is a problem in "the wild" because you can not do wide scale spraying of whole forests, it is not practical for a number of reasons.
You just use partial shade after collection, correct? I had my eastern in partial shade for the first year (collected late spring) until it started to show signs of growth following year. Then I move it to as much full sun that I had in my yard.It is true that Tsuga Mertensis is usually found in the native locations above 4,000 feet. They have an excellent survival rate if handled properly and given a climate with sufficient dormancy. I have found that the key is providing partial shade not direct sun. As well the repotting method used is important. The finer roots on the surface must be protected and the tree must be adjusted with staged root work over time rather than aggressive repotting. My elevation is 600 feet, zone 7b. The collection zone is higher elevations as noted and the temperatures much colder with a longer dormancy period. They have not done well in California Zone 10. Too warm and not enough dormancy.