A Walk Through The Mountains

[daygan]

[img2=right]http://bonsainut.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=21268&d=1330431018[/img2]I went walking through the mountains today and I decided I'd take some photos of some of the trees that I come across in this area.

I seem to find a lot of Quercus, I believe Fabri, and they often have very squat or gnarly bases with well developed bark and young 2-3 year old branches shooting up out of the bases.
I've worked out that the locals probably chop back some of the trees every year to use for firewood, but leave enough that new shoots can continually grow, so they always have a natural supply of firewood.
[img2=right]http://bonsainut.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=21271&d=1330432443[/img2]

[img2=right]http://bonsainut.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=21270&d=1330432439[/img2]
[img2=right]http://bonsainut.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=21269&d=1330432430[/img2]

 

[daygan]

[img2=right][/img2]Here's a photo of an oak that was chopped somewhat higher. This one is really big, actually, and while it's size is a bit intimidating, the more I think about it, the more I'm tempted to try to take it home..

 

[daygan]

There is also a long stretch of cliff that trees are practically hanging off of sometimes. Sometimes I think they're just asking to be pulled down and placed in a nice, safe pot somewhere..

 

[daygan]

[img2=right]http://bonsainut.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=21279&d=1330435394[/img2]This tree actually did fall off of its clifftop perch, probably after a hard rain, and I discovered it this past December. What you see here is half of the tree. I cut the other half off (essentially only attached at the root - or maybe they were two with roots tangled), took it home and potted it. When weather warms up more and buds start extending, depending on whether it survived Winter, I may take this one home as well.

 

[daygan]

And here are some more pictures of oaks..

 

[Brian Van Fleet]

Thanks for sharing, it's always interesting to see what's going on elsewhere in the world. In some ways, very familiar, in others, very different. FWIW, I think you should go for that big corky oak!

 

[daygan]

Thanks, Brian... Yes, I'm thinking about getting the big oak.. it should be a few weeks or a month before oaks' buds start extending here, so I have a little time..

 

[daygan]

I went out and took a look at that big oak the other day, intending to start trenching around the base to promote root growth close to the surface. I realized after hacking at what was below the surface with a small axe for about 30 minutes that in fact, what we see is "just the tip of the iceberg". Its tap root seems to be as thick or thicker than the base, and probably reaches down pretty far. If I'm going to collect this, I might eventually need a chainsaw! The base is about 9 or 10 inches in diameter... I'll have to take a tape measure next time and get a more accurate measurement. Given the difficulty of collecting, I may decide to pass this one up, unless anyone has any helpful tips on how to make collecting go a bit more smoothly.