ara kawa or ibo can

[Dave E]

i want to get a cork bark jwp-which would you recomend more as a bonsai

from what i understand the ara kawa is a dwarf variety with short dense needles and dense growth and a slow grower
the ibo can (again from what i understand) a faster grower with longer needles but i really dig the warty bark

 

[Eric Group]

Well from what was said in another thread- as I understood it- Arakawa is a Japanese word that is a descriptive term more than a specific cultivar... So if Ibo can is a cork bark then it IS "Arakawa"... If you are a Japanese guy...

Glad I could clear that up for you!

Smoke- can you pile on here please?

Here is the thread I mentioned:
http://bonsainut.com/index.php?threads/ulmus-parvifolia-yatsubusa.19072/

 

[Cypress187]

There are different kind's of jwp

 

[Leo in N E Illinois]

The cultivar 'Ibo can' has twisting needles. The cultivar sold in the USA as 'Arakawa' usually has fairly straight needles. This might not be obvious on young grafted material, but usually by year 5 or so, they really do look different. 'Ibo can is better if you are going for a larger bonsai, 'Arakawa' is also good as a larger bonsai, but can more easily be made into a smaller bonsai. The bark of both is fairly similar.

I believe most of the 'Arakawa' in the USA are grafts of the same cultivar, even though in Japan there may be multiple cultivars running around under this name. After about 1980 or maybe a little earlier Japan adopted the USA and EU habit of assigning a specific cultivar a unique name. Their old naming system did allow any tree with certain traits to be lumped under what to the westerners would look like a cultivar name.