PeriwinkleBlueTick's "this is not a contest" - 3 Nana's

[PeriwinkleBlueTick]

So I've been really hesitant to do any cutting on the mugo I purchased a few weeks ago, so I decided I would join in the fun and submit a trio of Nana's that I bought Saturday. Two of the three have similar shaping and the third will probably be a semi-cascade unless I can be convinced otherwise They are all no more than 1inch in diameter and in a 1 gallon pot containing an organic mix from the nursery. I've linked some pics below of the three bushes and I'm going to apologize for the potato quality/large format. I am going to post this for now and add some updates later b/c I need to be up super early in the morning .

This is just what was pruned from each tree that was growing downward on the limbs. I probably removed too little but I chose caution as opposed to hacking away in hopes they would survive. I am definitely reading up on how to care for these trees outside of basic feeding and watering but haven't gotten the guts to lop anything off yet.

Nana #1

I am really excited about the movement in this tree.

Nana #2
The two limbs at the bottom of the bush need to go b/c of their height of the surface and they form a bar.

Nana #3

Top Down View of the split trunk and limbs growing in a U shape

 

[PeriwinkleBlueTick]

Yesterday I started working Nana #2 and performed an HBR with a repot into Napa oil dry. The rootball more or less disintegrated in my hands with very little disturbance of the nursery soil, which was primarily composed of perlite and pine bark fines. There were plenty of fine roots and several thick ones that wrapped around the bucket(which were trimmed back), however I did my best to keep as much of the finer roots intact. There wasn’t much of a nebari on this tree though b/c it was a cutting and the nursery only stuck it about an inch into the soil. All things considered, I shoved a large handful of the nursery soil under the rootball to ensure there wasn’t too much loss of beneficial fungus(even though I have my reservations).

I really wasn’t thinking about this during the repot but I kept placing the tree to one side. I’m glad I did this though b/c it opened up a few possibilities for a new leader, as well as giving the tree more of a pyramid shape.

I do have some questions for the Napa Oil Dry peeps in the crowd. Do you soak the oil dry prior to reporting or do you just sift and water after the tree is positioned? Are there any tricks/techniques to getting it ready to absorb the most amount of water before repotting? Would it be a good idea to go ahead and start propogating moss on the top to ensure water retention during the hotter summer months for zone 7b?

Thanks in advance.

 

[TN_Jim]

been putting most collected trees in %100 de..
I have it wet in a bucket and scoop it in...
otherwise it will/may yank all moisture from fine feeder roots possibly damaging them??
Otherwise I’ve found myself rushing while setting up placement and wiring in to drench em’. That hiss it makes is kinda scary sounding when I haven’t pre-soaked

 

[sorce]

The way 8822 sticks together when wet kinda sucks...
But I guess with enough water in the scoop?
It flows in well?

I don't mind working it dry so long as it doesn't sit for long..usually I just dump dry in in massive quantities, holding the trunk in postion if not wired in...tapping shaking rubbermalleting...and then saok the corn S out of it.

But this wet scoop...which seems better...hmmmm?

For me...that DE would only dry down about a quarter, maybe 3\8in by 5o'clock.
So depending where the roots are...you dont NEED moss.

Chem fert? No moss.

Organic? Moss.

Sorce

 

[TN_Jim]

Scoop is kinda herding cats, defies gravity, more chopstick and shake involved --combined with hose/water-filled-bucket tho it settles in alright.

 

[PeriwinkleBlueTick]

been putting most collected trees in %100 de..
I have it wet in a bucket and scoop it in...
otherwise it will/may yank all moisture from fine feeder roots possibly damaging them??
Otherwise I’ve found myself rushing while setting up placement and wiring in to drench em’. That hiss it makes is kinda scary sounding when I haven’t pre-soaked

Thanks for the info. I knew DE needed to be fully soaked after planting but was concerned when I started seeing the edges of the pot turning back to white a few hours later. Next time I will soak it before and after the repot just to be sure.

@sorce I always use organic fertilizers if at all possible, natures way is the best way. Glad to hear you’re getting that much water retention throughout the hotter summer days. Puts my overly active and protective mind at ease.

 

[TN_Jim]

I'm at the top of a hill, windy, top .5-1'' dries super fast..started putting some flat creek rocks around base of trunks has helped this tremendously.

 

[PeriwinkleBlueTick]

I'm at the top of a hill, windy, top .5-1'' dries super fast..started putting some flat creek rocks around base of trunks has helped this tremendously.

So like larger “skipping” stone creek rocks? That’s an excellent idea and I can definitely acquire them nearby.

 

[sorce]

I like rocks but have noted some dangerous compaction ...usually over winter.

I started mossimg the sides of my baskets too!

Moss Love!

That close side for instance....
Moss it!

Tweezer it in and it expands in the hole...

The roots will happily find the outside and still airprune.

Watching these roots that come out the baskets....mossing them...noting carefully temps and wind and exposure time ....
Loads and loads of knowledge there.

The "visible" root.

Understanding it is KEY!

Sorce

 

[TN_Jim]

yup...bet I could skip this big one..discus throw style!¡

 

[PeriwinkleBlueTick]

yup...bet I could skip this big one..discus throw style!¡

Ok cool deal! We typically have granite and other igneous rocks around here instead of limestone but either one will provide the same function. Is that an azalea? I like the trunk and roots.

 

[PeriwinkleBlueTick]

I like rocks but have noted some dangerous compaction ...usually over winter.

I started mossimg the sides of my baskets too!

Moss Love!

That close side for instance....
Moss it!

Tweezer it in and it expands in the hole...

I will mos def keep an eye out for compaction in the event that I go this route.

What does “close side” mean in this context? Also do you tweezer it in similarly to planting in a fish tank?

 

[TN_Jim]

For those about to rock..
I’m diggin what sorce warned about compaction..will be removing them come the freeze/thaws.

You got good rocks..I should probably watch my limestone on trees preferential to acidic soils.

Thanks, it’s a buckeye. A. flava I think. I collected it probably waaay too early, and it ain’t ideal bonsai sp. (some would say opposite of ideal), but its coming along, good to learn from, and makes me happy. Dem leaves gonna get BIG!!!

 

[sorce]

What does “close side” mean in this

This.

really wasn’t thinking about this during the repot but I kept placing the tree to one side

Yes like a fish tank!

Into the "close side" holes...

And once you get the top laid....tweeting bits into the seams to hide em.

Sorce

 

[PeriwinkleBlueTick]

I’m not able to provide pics right now but one of my nana’s(not the tree that was repotted) is browning on the last node of the growth tips. It’s nearly uniform but it’s not causing the foliage to be dry or falling off. We had temps in the mid 30’s last night but it didn’t get down to freezing. It was a huge swing in temperature from the previous week too. Any thoughts on what this could be outside of the cold last night?

 

[PeriwinkleBlueTick]

Snapped a few pics of the browning on the growth tips.

 

[TN_Jim]

There is something called, juniper tip blight..starts at tips and works back. Can see it as tiny blk fungus w/ hand lens or magnified

Spider mites may also do this, these too should be visible super up close..

That’s not to say that it’s one of these.

Did you trim it back? That can cause a kinda dieback

 

[TN_Jim]

Peep this
https://www.bonsainut.com/threads/tips-turning-brown-juniper-bonsai.21750/

 

[PeriwinkleBlueTick]

Peep this
https://www.bonsainut.com/threads/tips-turning-brown-juniper-bonsai.21750/

Thank you sir, much appreciated. I searched for the exact same words but in a different order and got nothing...smh.

We had one hellova storm roll through Saturday night/Sunday morning and I watered on Saturday prior to the storm b/c most of my trees were dry to the first knuckle on my finger. I will be using the chopstick method now though, I like that much better.

I’ve not introduced any fertilizers other than what is already in the nursery soil.

The other nana’s aren’t showing the same symptoms, nor is my Mugo or the recently acquired hinoki cypress. I will be keeping an eye on them more closely to see if that changes though too. I will check for spider mites and take the magnifying glass out to see if there’s anything growing on the tips. Many thanks for the suggestion and pardon my forum search function blunder.

 

[TN_Jim]

It’s a labyrinth yo. Have had same issues. I’d give it time and watch.
Weathers been bonkers it was flurries all day...in mid April..