Collected Cherry (I think)

[Balbs]

Collected this big stump in March. I should have cut it lower but this was the first time doing this. I thought it was a birch because the bark is whitish, but after it budded out I think it's some native cherry. Sorry the picture is terrible.



So here is is today, and it's been growing really well. I was just going to let it recover all year but these shoots are probably five feet long and I'd like it to take up less space in my garage this winter. Should I prune it back now? Is it too late in the season? Open to any and all advice on this one.

 

[RJG2]

Yep, definitely looks like a cherry. Could be prunus serotina, but I'm not sure.

I know @rockm is not a fan, but has some experience.

 

[rockm]

Definitely a cherry. probably a black cherry (prunus serotina). A possibility it could also be an escaped non-native ornamental cherry. Pics of blooms would tell that. I had a collected black cherry as a bonsai for a very long time, like 15 years or more. They're fun, but frustrating. I ultimately gave up on mine--it became too much of a chore to take care of.

Don't prune anything now. If it's a black cherry, hard pruning can induce the tree to drop an entire branch. Black cherries are pretty easy to keep, but they're odd and can turn into bug magnets (borers, ants, tent caterpillars, scale, you name it, it will show up eventually). It also drops branching (as in kill off entire years-old branches) just because. That means a decades worth of work on a branch can simply be abandon if you prune too hard.

They tend to grow like weeds. You can defoliate and get smaller leaves. Black cherries blossoms area small and come on stalks that hold multiple flowers. Cherries produced are small and sour.

Additionally, these can bleed thick mucilage-like sap when they're chopped. They're also VERY vigorous growers, as you can see. Dropped branches are replace (mostly) with new shoots, so there's that.

One last thing, over the years, mine developed an extremely weird root mass. The entire root mass became extremely fibrous, with small tiny roots. Great, right? Not so much, those roots became dense mats and at repotting time, entire chunks would fall off because those roots very brittle. Don't know why the tree did that, yours might not, but something to be aware of.

 

[Balbs]

Definitely a cherry. probably a black cherry (prunus serotina). A possibility it could also be an escaped non-native ornamental cherry. Pics of blooms would tell that. I had a collected black cherry as a bonsai for a very long time, like 15 years or more. They're fun, but frustrating. I ultimately gave up on mine--it became too much of a chore to take care of.

Don't prune anything now. If it's a black cherry, hard pruning can induce the tree to drop an entire branch. Black cherries are pretty easy to keep, but they're odd and can turn into bug magnets (borers, ants, tent caterpillars, scale, you name it, it will show up eventually). It also drops branching (as in kill off entire years-old branches) just because. That means a decades worth of work on a branch can simply be abandon if you prune too hard.

They tend to grow like weeds. You can defoliate and get smaller leaves. Black cherries blossoms area small and come on stalks that hold multiple flowers. Cherries produced are small and sour.

Additionally, these can bleed thick mucilage-like sap when they're chopped. They're also VERY vigorous growers, as you can see. Dropped branches are replace (mostly) with new shoots, so there's that.

One last thing, over the years, mine developed an extremely weird root mass. The entire root mass became extremely fibrous, with small tiny roots. Great, right? Not so much, those roots became dense mats and at repotting time, entire chunks would fall off because those roots very brittle. Don't know why the tree did that, yours might not, but something to be aware of.

Thanks for the info! Was there a certain time in the year when you noticed the branch drop after pruning? What time of year do you recommend hard cutbacks?

 

[rockm]

Thanks for the info! Was there a certain time in the year when you noticed the branch drop after pruning? What time of year do you recommend hard cutbacks?

Early spring is best for hard cuts. Once extension growth begins, things can get dicey. Branch drop is random. Couldn't figure really figure it out, might have to do with pinching new growth back. Prunus Serotina is a "pioneer" species that grows in areas that are disturbed and established trees have been removed. It's opportunistic and grows fast, quickly abandoning growth that is questionable or in a bad situation, in favor of pushing new growth that is left untouched--pinching new growth can tell the plant that area isn't the best to devote resources to, better push new growth elsewhere. That can happen with entire trunks, as well, with the tree abandoning all upper growth in favor of sucker growth from the root crown.

 

[BrightsideB]

thank you for posting @Balbs! The one you dug looks interesting! I dug one up in spring because it was either kill or keep. So I figured keep until I know more about them. Haven’t got to it yet but they definitely grow suckers like crazy! Thank you @rockm for the information and explanation of your experience. They do grow like an opportunistic specie. That’s how I ended up with one lol.

 

[Balbs]

Early spring is best for hard cuts. Once extension growth begins, things can get dicey. Branch drop is random. Couldn't figure really figure it out, might have to do with pinching new growth back. Prunus Serotina is a "pioneer" species that grows in areas that are disturbed and established trees have been removed. It's opportunistic and grows fast, quickly abandoning growth that is questionable or in a bad situation, in favor of pushing new growth that is left untouched--pinching new growth can tell the plant that area isn't the best to devote resources to, better push new growth elsewhere. That can happen with entire trunks, as well, with the tree abandoning all upper growth in favor of sucker growth from the root crown.

Thanks @rockm . I was listening to Bonsai Wire the other day and there was discussion of birch, and how pruning at a certain time seems to reduce the likelihood of branch drop. I don’t remember the specifics but I wonder if this, also being a pioneer species, should be treated the same. I’ll have to relisten.

 

[rockm]

Thanks @rockm . I was listening to Bonsai Wire the other day and there was discussion of birch, and how pruning at a certain time seems to reduce the likelihood of branch drop. I don’t remember the specifics but I wonder if this, also being a pioneer species, should be treated the same. I’ll have to relisten.

Probably will work with black cherry.