GGB
Masterpiece
Quick background, very familiar with pines and maples. Fairly knowledgeable about a handful of other genus, and completely clueless about some others. Juniper had never done anything for me, I won't name all the reasons because it doesn't matter. But I've recently been working on some ancient twisted up old junipers with really skilled artists. Imagine Todd Schlafer asking me what branch should be removed on a 500 year old RMJ while I carve too deeply into a live vein. If you're cringing, imagine how I felt. But Todd, that same day, gave me a piece of advice I already knew to be true. "If something intimidates you, you should probably do it". That was probably the third or fourth time I worked with a juniper that was older than my grandfather and I still didn't feel like I had picked up much about the genus. Usually I research a genus or species I love very extensively. So I started diving in, at my last workshop I subbed out my comfortable spruce for a shimpaku juniper at the last second. My very first juniper, I purchased it after styling it at the class. It's just a young upright feminine put-you-to-sleep kind of tree. But after spending the day with it, and staring at it for the next few days, I finally get it. The foliage couldn't be more perfect for creating the illusion of a small tree. Something those old RMJ weren't giving me, plus they smell like cat piss IMO. I feel like I want to sell all my maples and pines and only work with juniper from here out. Being hyperbolic of course. But googling isn't giving me much on the subject I feel like. So my questions are....
BESIDES shimpaku what are your 4 favorite species to work with? Just want personal opinions, I'm excited to try procumbens next.
Is it possible to keep my crabapple? Or is that just a stupid idea? I have a very small yard and they will be within 20 feet of each other at best.
Is there a juniper specific book I should buy?
Can one grow a respectable juniper out in the field (15" to 22" finished height) or is it a fools errand?
Is there an artist or two that specialize in juniper? I'm aware of Kimura but he works with trees I'll never see in my garden, and ryan neil is handy with natives, but same problem. . ..sort of.. maybe I'm over complicating that
Just feel like I'm struggling to find information, almost definitely because I don't know where to look. Thank you for any links or suggestions. Really am interested to hear what species you guys enjoy working with.
BESIDES shimpaku what are your 4 favorite species to work with? Just want personal opinions, I'm excited to try procumbens next.
Is it possible to keep my crabapple? Or is that just a stupid idea? I have a very small yard and they will be within 20 feet of each other at best.
Is there a juniper specific book I should buy?
Can one grow a respectable juniper out in the field (15" to 22" finished height) or is it a fools errand?
Is there an artist or two that specialize in juniper? I'm aware of Kimura but he works with trees I'll never see in my garden, and ryan neil is handy with natives, but same problem. . ..sort of.. maybe I'm over complicating that
Just feel like I'm struggling to find information, almost definitely because I don't know where to look. Thank you for any links or suggestions. Really am interested to hear what species you guys enjoy working with.