I wonder why Thuja gets a bad rap....

[mattspinniken]

Some great trees there! That workshop turned out some really nice afters. Canada definitely has some great yamadori Cedars. That last one is one of the beastliest Cedars I've ever seen.

 

[ghues]

Holy crap, that 40 dollar one is a steal! The weird thing is out here in the west, no other than Dan and his students really use Western Red or Alaska Yellow cedars as far as I know. I wish they were as abundant in bonsai form as the white cedars are.

@Ryan Huston
You need to travel north of the border in your description of "west" young man, as there are many of us that have them in our collection.....many of Dans trees came from Vancouver Island.

 

[Ry2Tree2]

@Ryan Huston
You need to travel north of the border in your description of "west" young man, as there are many of us that have them in our collection.....many of Dans trees came from Vancouver Island.

You're right of course. I have never been to Canada yet despite living in Seattle for 3 years now, but Dan said that Vancouver Island was the most productive area for quality yamadori he ever found. I was hoping to take a collecting trip there at the end of the month, but it's up in the air right now.

 

[Wilson]

Here's some under $10 hedgemadori.
One has a split trunk, the other sports à hefty trunk. I have seedlings as well, they actually develop super fast. Even when they are young, they have nice bark.

 

[defra]

This thuja is also a garden center tree
I use it as training material made a shari in spring and now im putting wire on to train my wireing skills

I must say the branches are quite flexible!
Only the green branches are knocked off prety fast!

 

[Bonsai Nut]

Just to mess with your minds... Thuja is a cypress, and isn't actually a cedar at all

It is somewhat related to Hinoki cypress, and Hinoki cypress branches can be grafted successfully onto Thuja!

 

[Yosemite Goat]

Just to mess with your minds... Thuja is a cypress, and isn't actually a cedar at all

It is somewhat related to Hinoki cypress, and Hinoki cypress branches can be grafted successfully onto Thuja!

Really?? Do they graft onto Calocedrus decurrens?

 

[PaulH]

Do they graft onto Calocedrus decurrens?

I've heard they do, and I've considerd trying it with this one, but I like it pretty well with natural foliage too.

 

[Yosemite Goat]

I've heard they do, and I've considerd trying it with this one, but I like it pretty well with natural foliage too.

View attachment 160634

Nice!

 

[M. Frary]

Hinoki cypress branches can be grafted successfully onto Thuja

Once I learn to graft successfully I'll be trying this. I happen to know where to look for trunks for sure. Saw some last weekend scouting tamaracks for spring. .

 

[clevetromba]

I cut it down to roughly four feet in late May (Terrible timing, I know now but didn't then). did it in the wrong month,

When is the right time to cut back a Thuja? I would have thought late May to be a perfect time...

 

[defra]

Just to mess with your minds... Thuja is a cypress, and isn't actually a cedar at all

It is somewhat related to Hinoki cypress, and Hinoki cypress branches can be grafted successfully onto Thuja!

Cool good to know i can try that on my training tree i like the base allot but i dislike the foliage and i have never grafted before

What would be the best time to graft in spring?

 

[Josh Barg]

I just picked this one up at my club auction this past weekend. I've never worked on one, but figured it was a good tree to practice wiring since I got a good deal on it.

 

[defra]

I just picked this one up at my club auction this past weekend. I've never worked on one, but figured it was a good tree to practice wiring since I got a good deal on it.View attachment 162037

I use my thuja for wireing practice too be carefull with the green stuff tough it breaks off easily

 

[Tentakelaertje]

How do you guys keep your thujas compact? Mine grows like bamboo in an empty pandabear zoo. Can't get the thing to go grow a little finer growth...

 

[Ry2Tree2]

How do you guys keep your thujas compact? Mine grows like bamboo in an empty pandabear zoo. Can't get the thing to go grow a little finer growth...

Prune harshly, and don't give them too much excess root space are my observations. Every tiny green scale has the potential to put out buds. Every tiny frond can become a new branch if we let them.

 

[treebeard55]

Here's a picture of Paul Weishaar's Thuja occidentalis, winner of the award for Best MABA-Indigenous Bonsai at this summer's MABA 2017 convention in Indianapolis. I think Paul did a good job of working with the species' strengths.

 

[Josiana]

I just purchased one a couple days ago for 49kr ($5?).. It was an absolute mess! A large portion of the branches were broken, very little soil (and most that was mud not topsoil), quite a bit of dead foliage, and I think it had not been watered in at least a week. I have cleaned it up a bit, and slip potted it since the pot was broken. I have not trimmed too much, as I do not want to stress it too much. Hoping for the best for it! I think it has quite a bit of potential.

 

[Stormwater]

Any updates?

I just purchased one a couple days ago for 49kr ($5?).. It was an absolute mess! A large portion of the branches were broken, very little soil (and most that was mud not topsoil), quite a bit of dead foliage, and I think it had not been watered in at least a week. I have cleaned it up a bit, and slip potted it since the pot was broken. I have not trimmed too much, as I do not want to stress it too

much. Hoping for the best for it! I think it has quite a bit of potential.

View attachment 165880

 

[Josiana]

It unfortunately is pretty well dead.. It had quite a few problems, like spider mites, and they apparently sprayed it with insecticide to kill the spider mites, along with bad soil, a broken pot, et c.. I've not given up on it yet, but I think it is not going to live much longer.