The 2025 Yamadori/Collecting Thread

[Notsureaboutplantnames]

Yes, and yes. I think you're talking to the right people. That inverse taper in the root end up looking like an onion bulb. Best case you have feeder roots coming out of it. Worst case feeder roots are much farther down. In either case cut at the base of that reverse taper and you usually get new roots there.

Thank you!

 

[Cruiser]

Nursewood Sitka spruce.







This tree will come to represent the form of a forest spruce/hemlock that established on a high-cut stump. Its long snaking roots made their way through rotting wood into the ground below. As the stump disintegrated the tree may have become unstable and slumped over.
Something in the spirit of these..but as a cascade maybe.

 

[JesseKane]

Question for Rocky Mountain collectors out there, how do y'all time your collecting of RMJ in the spring? Just wait until the ground is thawed enough to easily dig? Or do you use a plant indication such as foliage starting to green up?

 

[ShadyStump]

Question for Rocky Mountain collectors out there, how do y'all time your collecting of RMJ in the spring? Just wait until the ground is thawed enough to easily dig? Or do you use a plant indication such as foliage starting to green up?

The general rule for deciduous is to wait until buds start swelling, but ideally before they open at all.
Conifers can be trickier to tell that, though. Yes, ground thaw, but it needs to stay thawed even over night. It'll be hard for you tell in Denver because the urban heat island effect in the metro strip tempers the extreme temp swings you should naturally see. Color returning is also a useful indicator, but it can start coming back as soon ambient freezes are over, but the ground is still cold enough to hold the tree dormant.
It really is a matter of just spending enough time out there to learn how to tell. It's not like this in other places, but our geology makes everything about collecting yamadori extra tricky, so timing becomes important in order to mitigate that

 

[JesseKane]

The general rule for deciduous is to wait until buds start swelling, but ideally before they open at all.
Conifers can be trickier to tell that, though. Yes, ground thaw, but it needs to stay thawed even over night. It'll be hard for you tell in Denver because the urban heat island effect in the metro strip tempers the extreme temp swings you should naturally see. Color returning is also a useful indicator, but it can start coming back as soon ambient freezes are over, but the ground is still cold enough to hold the tree dormant.
It really is a matter of just spending enough time out there to learn how to tell. It's not like this in other places, but our geology makes everything about collecting yamadori extra tricky, so timing becomes important in order to mitigate that

So beginning of the window opens up with persistent ground thaw, got it. Is that to ensure that the tree has broken dormancy before collection, allowing the tree to use the stored energy from fall to heal roots? It would then follow that the end of the collection window would be when new growth starts pushing as that root healing energy is now going into foliage.

The areas I've scouted are a couple hours into the mountains, so environment temps will be close to normal. Of course that means that there's every chance I'll have to make a couple test trips to the area to build knowledge on seasonal changes for that specific spot as things warm up. But hey, I'll be itching for mountain time by then!

 

[BrianBay9]

My first indicator was when the fire roads were passable

 

[ShadyStump]

end of the collection window would be when new growth starts pushing as that root healing energy is now going into foliage.

Close, but not necessarily. Again, just like deciduous, as the new buds start to swell is ideal. It's just not always easy to tell on juniperus. Native conifers can handle the extreme swings we can get in the spring better than deciduous, so there's a wider range of time, but they often don't handle root disturbance as well.
Also, it's important to remember just how trees grow. The growth hormones responsible for root growth are created in the new foliage growth and sent down to the roots in the cambium layer under the bark. Conversely, the hormones that push foliage are produced in the new root tips and sent up through the sapwood. The trunk stores carbon for the organism, while the roots store carbohydrates and other nutrients.
You'll notice as you track this thread and sometimes after root pruning that often (but not always) trees will show stunted foliage growth after a severe root reduction.

ABSOLUTELY, NO EXCEPTIONS let the tree recover AT LEAST a year with no work at all! Just water and feed, in a temp-stable space.. And leave plenty of room for new root growth in whatever container. You're not going to want to go straight to a fancy pot. There's a reason you see them go into wooden boxes, baskets, just about anything else that's more ideal for root growth.

 

[kollman]

Did my first (urban) yamadori today. Someone needed to get rid of their juniper bushes in Los Angeles so I figured I’d try my hand at it.

Sprayed the roots before bagging it, then built my box and planted it in a mix of pumice, akadama, potting soil, and some sphagnum on top because I was all out of soil. I haven’t given it a proper watering yet, just been spraying the roots and soil and covered with a bag. Keeping it in a generally shaded spot

Any tips moving forward for best chance of survival? Anything I should’ve done differently to this point? Thanks