Playing with pitch pine

[RJG2]

Just need a place to document my pitch pine adventures. If anything becomes of an individual tree, I'll give it its own thread.

A couple years ago I planted a few seeds, and bought a couple larger ones in a native plant sale (I have yet to find a good place to collect legally - they all seem to be in state parks and protected areas).

Lets start with the purchased trees.

Repotted into Anderson flats May 1st this past spring. Chopped about 1/3 off the bottom, bare rooted one side on each of them. New substrate is probably about 70% pumice, 30% pine bark.

1:







2:

 

[RJG2]

Late August I chopped most everything off except the sacrifices and future options.

1:







2 (had a little help):

 

[RJG2]

Now the older seedlings. These are about 2.5 years old, and I did the seedling cutting thing to them. I think I only planted about 10, in just a perlite and coco coir, outside and let them stratify naturally.

I have 4 left after losing a few and giving away a couple.

Earliest photo from late April this year:



Recent group shot:



Twisted up the two uglier ones today, will grow out the other two in the more standard JBP way.

 

[RJG2]

Finally, I started a bunch more last winter.

Potted 40ish in individual small pots, and about a dozen in tall pots for root over rock plantings or exposed root.







Left overs:

 

[InstilledChaos]

You got some stellar growth on those older seedlings. I really like the drastic movement you put into them. Excited to follow along on their progress!

 

[RJG2]

You got some stellar growth on those older seedlings. I really like the drastic movement you put into them. Excited to follow along on their progress!

Get the seeds I sent you started this winter and you won't be far behind!

 

[NateDyk47]

Late August I chopped most everything off except the sacrifices and future options.

1:

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2 (had a little help):

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Bark is already looking great on these two. Looking forward to following your progress with these.

 

[rutulus]

You mentioned in your first post that you can’t find a spot to legally collect these so you’re growing from seed. I have no shortage of wild pitch pine to collect on a large family farm in deep south Jersey on the edge of the pine barrens—but the trouble is they’re all straight as a pin, or close to it. I’ve collected tons of seed so I can wire seedlings for interesting movement, because I’m just not finding it in the field. I know there are stunted, interesting ones to be found. I think my issue is the parcel I have access to is a relatively fertile patch of woodland, adjacent to productive fields, so the trees grow straight and tall.

I did cut back a ~6 inch thick tree to within 4 inches of the ground to see if I could introduce movement into any new growth. Within six weeks this lifeless stump of old wood exploded out with a dozen new buds. I’ll keep an eye on it. What a wild tree.

 

[RJG2]

You mentioned in your first post that you can’t find a spot to legally collect these so you’re growing from seed. I have no shortage of wild pitch pine to collect on a large family farm in deep south Jersey on the edge of the pine barrens—but the trouble is they’re all straight as a pin, or close to it. I’ve collected tons of seed so I can wire seedlings for interesting movement, because I’m just not finding it in the field. I know there are stunted, interesting ones to be found. I think my issue is the parcel I have access to is a relatively fertile patch of woodland, adjacent to productive fields, so the trees grow straight and tall.

I did cut back a ~6 inch thick tree to within 4 inches of the ground to see if I could introduce movement into any new growth. Within six weeks this lifeless stump of old wood exploded out with a dozen new buds. I’ll keep an eye on it. What a wild tree.

Yeah, that's the rub, right? Either plentiful and straight (and 999 times out of 1000 growing in sand) - or cool and gnarly growing in a granite rock pocket in a state park.

 

[rutulus]

East coast problems…