Hawthorne Care and Tips Zone 7B

[Beng]

Happy new year everyone! Springs just around the corner.

I won an Old Hawthorne at a club auction out in Portland this fall, beautiful tree will post pictures in the spring once I've picked up a digital camera. I'm not sure the subspecies, has oval shaped smooth bright red fruits that are a bit glossy. The bark on the old wood reminds me of the flaky bark on a old japanese black pine yet not as thick. It's now with me where I live in brooklyn and overwintering in my cold house.

I have many fruiting and flowering trees so i'm familiar with general care, but have never worked with hawthorne. I heard never let them dry out, go easy with root work, and protect from summer sun. Any other tips or tricks you can share when caring for Hawthorne? Pruning techniques, timing, soil and so on? It's already in a bonsai pot but 'll be repotting it to refresh the soil this spring.

Thanks
Ben

 

[Brian Van Fleet]

Congrats, you should find years of enjoyment from it...they're fairly easy to work with in my experience.

repotting: I do not hold back on root pruning. They grow massive quantities of roots, they are active very early in the spring, and I reduce them by 60-75% every other year.

soil: they are thirsty, and I use 2:1 akadama and lava. Usually they need water daily, and misting in the afternoon.

sun: mine sits in all day full sun next to my black pines.

pruning: any time, but they are slow to heal over pruning cuts.

pinching: since mine is fairly developed, I try to let it grow until mid-April, then pinch it back to 1-2 nodes. I usually show it at our club's show in mid-May, and on this schedule, pinching in April means is ready to pinch again and show by then.

wiring: introduce exaggerated movement early; as they tend to grow straight shoots. Wire stays on for a year or more, since shoots are slow to thicken. Keep a good eye on it though, because I have mild wire scars that are still visible after 12 years.

pests: aphids love th new growth, probably because its one of the first things growing in the spring. They don't do any damage, but I spray when I see them.

disease: somewhat prone to cedar-apple, black spot, but it's easily controlled.

blooming: my first one was in bloom when I collected it, but hasn't bloomed since. Maybe one day...

 

[Beng]

This ones really developed as well so your advice sounds perfect thanks! What month do they usually become active on the east coast? Usually the first tree I repot is one of my Umes in early or late January after it finishes flowering. But most of my deciduous trees are repotted in late march, each years a little different.

 

[Zach Smith]

Happy new year everyone! Springs just around the corner.

I won an Old Hawthorne at a club auction out in Portland this fall, beautiful tree will post pictures in the spring once I've picked up a digital camera. I'm not sure the subspecies, has oval shaped smooth bright red fruits that are a bit glossy. The bark on the old wood reminds me of the flaky bark on a old japanese black pine yet not as thick. It's now with me where I live in brooklyn and overwintering in my cold house.

I have many fruiting and flowering trees so i'm familiar with general care, but have never worked with hawthorne. I heard never let them dry out, go easy with root work, and protect from summer sun. Any other tips or tricks you can share when caring for Hawthorne? Pruning techniques, timing, soil and so on? It's already in a bonsai pot but 'll be repotting it to refresh the soil this spring.

Thanks
Ben

What Brian said. I can add that I collect local hawthorns from areas that get a lot of rainfall, as well as drier spots. They can stand to have their feet wet, but in container culture they should get plenty though not excessive water. Use a fast-draining soil; if in doubt, err toward more inorganic. The wood is tough and durable, takes well to carving. They backbud very well, though I do encounter some tough cases here and there. Shoots come on straight, so as Brian said wire when young. Once they stiffen, you'll be hard-pressed to wire movement in without cracking them.

As for blooming, I've had a similar experience to Brian's. In fact, I collected a larger older hawthorn in 2001, planted it in the ground for landscape purposes, and it just bloomed the first time for me in 2011.

For reasons I can't explain, some of the hawthorns I've collected have grown root like bandits while others have just plodded along. Even for those more reticent to root, they seem to do fine. Those that root well don't seem to mind anything you do to the roots.

Hawthorns should always get full sun. I live in the Deep South, and they come through our blazing hot and humid summers just fine.

Good luck!

Zach

 

[Brian Van Fleet]

This ones really developed as well so your advice sounds perfect thanks! What month do they usually become active on the east coast? Usually the first tree I repot is one of my Umes in early or late January after it finishes flowering. But most of my deciduous trees are repotted in late march, each years a little different.

Definitely not as early as the umes, but probably will be the earliest deciduous ready to repot. I've repotted as early as buds just shiny red and swelling, and as late as leaves opening, no ill effects.

 

[ABCarve]

pruning: any time, but they are slow to heal over pruning cuts.

I have this old, old wound on my hawthorne and I read somewhere to irritate it to force the healing. As you can see, it did start to heal a bit. My question is, do you irritate it yearly to continue the process or wait to see what happens?

 

[Brian Van Fleet]

I have this old, old wound on my hawthorne and I read somewhere to irritate it to force the healing. As you can see, it did start to heal a bit. My question is, do you irritate it yearly to continue the process or wait to see what happens?

Definitely, use a razor and trim the callus in the spring to keep it rolling, like this:
http://nebaribonsai.wordpress.com/2012/05/04/more-spring-cleaning-2/

 

[ABCarve]

Do you put cut paste on it after the trim?