Any luck recovering black locust from shock?

[HoneyHornet]

Yesterday i took a buddy out on a bonsai hunt as he is interested and new to the hobby and he knows im always out there

I found sweet black locust ,which is hard to find good bones as they tend to be skinny as hell when they are "small"..anyway it was really hot and by the time we were done it was limp and looking like shitt

I had roots covered in soil in a damp bag ..ill post a pic when i get home but it was on my mind now at work lol..youll see what i saw in it but youll also see it struggle

I read allot of them having issues and difficult to work with so im not entirely surprised but would be nice to know if it may have a chance to lift its foliage back up all proud-like

Its got a real sturdy build..i really should of waited til a day i wasnt going to be out so long but one thing led to another and we were in the field a while

 

[RKatzin]

I'm going to say this as nicely as I can. Black Locust, just say no! Walk away and don't look back. From several years of trying to make something out of these that's my best advice.

 

[HoneyHornet]

I'm going to say this as nicely as I can. Black Locust, just say no! Walk away and don't look back. From several years of trying to make something out of these that's my best advice.

Lol its not about being nice it is what it is..if i was going to attempt i needed to plant immediately to even have a fighting chance..full size just look so nice i had to try and learn the hard way lol

 

[Forsoothe!]

One of my favorite local trees because of the wonderful flowers and rugged, ragged profile in nature. A Sleepy Hollow character. They grow in dry areas, too, so sounds good for bonsai, no? No. Long internodes and brittle, so wiring is problematic, and not long lived. Bona Fortuna.

 

[RKatzin]

I once lived with several large Black Locust in the yard. Consequently I had seedlings popping up everywhere and of course I had to play. I tried to work them everywhich way I could. I found them to be very resistant to bonsai techniques. Poor response to root work. The compound leaves and internodal spacing are unmanageable. Very frustrating tree, often failing after two or three years of development. Even after being away from them for several years I still have them popping up in my pots!

 

[Leo in N E Illinois]

I have found everything @RKatzin said to be true.

I tried many times to get one going and keep it going. Best results were from volunteer seedlings, where I had the whole root system developing in a pot. Don't have any left alive anymore. They are a disappointment. That said, they are beautiful and have wonderful flowers.

@PiñonJ has a black locust, perhaps he'll weigh in.

 

[HoneyHornet]

I have found everything @RKatzin said to be true.

I tried many times to get one going and keep it going. Best results were from volunteer seedlings, where I had the whole root system developing in a pot. Don't have any left alive anymore. They are a disappointment. That said, they are beautiful and have wonderful flowers.

@PiñonJ has a black locust, perhaps he'll weigh in.

Ive seen pics of his , very nice

 

[PiñonJ]

Yesterday i took a buddy out on a bonsai hunt as he is interested and new to the hobby and he knows im always out there

I found sweet black locust ,which is hard to find good bones as they tend to be skinny as hell when they are "small"..anyway it was really hot and by the time we were done it was limp and looking like shitt

I had roots covered in soil in a damp bag ..ill post a pic when i get home but it was on my mind now at work lol..youll see what i saw in it but youll also see it struggle

I read allot of them having issues and difficult to work with so im not entirely surprised but would be nice to know if it may have a chance to lift its foliage back up all proud-like

Its got a real sturdy build..i really should of waited til a day i wasnt going to be out so long but one thing led to another and we were in the field a while

Were the leaves long and hardened off? If so, your chances are better. I collected mine prior to bud break and chopped the trunk at the same time. You mentioned posting photos?

 

[MrFancyPlants]

I collected a couple nice thick trunked locust in the last month. The trick I found is that they like lots of air, for about two years. And try to remove as much bark as you can. In a couple years of full sun it will be primo..








Firewood

 

[HoneyHornet]

Were the leaves long and hardened off? If so, your chances are better. I collected mine prior to bud break and chopped the trunk at the same time. You mentioned posting photos?

I wish i took one when it was in the ground first

All i have is this mess lol

 

[PiñonJ]

I wish i took one when it was in the ground first

All i have is this mess lol

If you got roots, I wouldn’t be surprised if it sacrifices the leaves and puts out a second flush later.

 

[HoneyHornet]

If you got roots, I wouldn’t be surprised if it sacrifices the leaves and puts out a second flush later.

Thatd be cool, ive justbbeen watering with the rest of my trees in hopes that maybe thats so

If not , no harm done as i plucked it from a parking lot

 

[PiñonJ]

Thatd be cool, ive justbbeen watering with the rest of my trees in hopes that maybe thats so

If not , no harm done as i plucked it from a parking lot

I’d go easy on the watering until you see signs that it’s moving water. Check the soil carefully and don’t water until it’s starting to dry out.

 

[RKatzin]

Did you reduce the roots when you put it into a bonsai container or did you take a propagated stem cutting with its roots in tact and plant it? Because I have one of my property and I’m thinking about trying to get into a bonsai

I was growing and working with seedlings and I was working on a cluster of root suckers, training it into a forest and planning to eventually remove and plant the section of root. I never could get the leaves to reduce or the internodes to shorten. After a few years of training and repeated die back the whole cluster died back to the main root.
You know it's been several years since I've been anywhere near black locust trees and I still have sprouts popping up in a few containers that I haven't repotted since then!

 

[RKatzin]

I never got any to small pots, just regular nursery pots. Regardless of the pot the main failure is that the internodes do not work back to acceptable structure and new growth continues to come back in long straight pieces with no internodes to prune back to. The leaves are massive compound and do not reduce in size, with normal pruning tactics causing the whole branch to die back to the trunk.
A very uncooperative tree and if you have any other trees to work with I would focus on those and leave this one to the birds.

 

[RKatzin]

Cryptomeria, now there's a tree worthy of your time and dedication! I have a C. 'Spiralis' about ten years now and I just love that tree. I've always done root work and repotting in spring time. The Tansu is very similar in appearance and growth, both are dwarf varieties. I have five Tansu I got this summer and I'm waiting until spring to do anything with them. Probably do a five tree group planting with them. Your weather is quite different on LI than here in S. Oregon. Mostly very humid there and arid here in the summer, so you may not need to water as much, but they are coastal trees in Japan so I would think they'd do very well for you in NY.

 

[PiñonJ]

The leaves are massive compound and do not reduce in size, with normal pruning tactics causing the whole branch to die back to the trunk.

That’s certainly not true with my locust. I did a partial defoliation last year, cutting compound leaves back to two to four leaflets. The tree responded as expected with smaller leaves in the next flush. I didn’t bother this year, because it’s had an acceptable shape and I’ve been working on other stuff.

 

[RKatzin]

Sounds like solid advice. Not a lot of difference between late winter and early spring, but I like to wait until we're not freezing anymore before I do my repots. I'm up high in the mountains so that's a bit later than many places and my summer temps are a lot milder so I have a bit more recovery time before the heat comes on, allowing me to wait a little longer to do my work. You may be better with late winter as I know your sping can be quite hot and I think it's an important factor in when to do your work.

 

[PiñonJ]

Do you have a photo that we could see if possible thanks

Here’s one that I posted earlier this year, when it was in bloom. The tree has its own thread.

 

[PiñonJ]

Looking really good! which locust species is it? I have a black locust. And as you know, they grow fast but I’m wondering how fast or how long did it take you to get up to where it is now in that picture. Any tips on propagation? Thanks

It’s a Black Locust, Robinia pseudoacacia. If you click on the word “thread” in my last post, it’ll take you to the progression thread. I collected it in 2015.