Black sagebrush (Artemesia nova)

[treeline]

Inspired by this thread that @Hartinez created a while back, I started taking a closer look at sagebrush while tromping around the desert.

It wasn’t long before a twisted example on a wind blown ridge caught my attention.



I gave it a rough initial styling this past summer.



And this week, a little over three years after collection, I wedged it into its first pot.



I have a young collection built mostly from nursery stock and yamadori. Like all of my trees, this is an early work in progress and I can’t help but see the opportunities for improvement. That said, I’m very happy with the way it evokes the wild, unpredictable place that it’s from.

I’m hoping that this little guy, inspired by some of the phenomenal white cedar work by @crust, will hint at similar things once it’s styled and potted up.

 

[Colorado]

Holy smokes! That is an incredibly awesome sage. Well done!

 

[treeline]

Holy smokes! That is an incredibly awesome sage. Well done!

Thanks! I was pretty excited to stumble across it. It’s been a really easy plant to grow here, which I never expect.

 

[Colorado]

I am interested in your collecting technique - what time of year? Bare root or intact root ball?

I am going to try to collect one this spring but have never tried before. I had one for awhile that someone else collected and it was incredibly easy to care for and vigorous in a container. I wish I wouldn’t have sold it

 

[treeline]

I am interested in your collecting technique - what time of year? Bare root or intact root ball?

I am going to try to collect one this spring but have never tried before. I had one for awhile that someone else collected and it was incredibly easy to care for and vigorous in a container. I wish I wouldn’t have sold it

You should definitely grab a few! I’ve had good luck collecting as soon as the ground thaws in late February or early March.

I try to avoid disturbing roots in the field and then wash all the field soil off when I get home again. I haven’t collected a ton of these, but the ones I have seem to recover quickly with this approach.

 

[August44]

You should definitely grab a few! I’ve had good luck collecting as soon as the ground thaws in late February or early March.

I try to avoid disturbing roots in the field and then wash all the field soil off when I get home again. I haven’t collected a ton of these, but the ones I have seem to recover quickly with this approach.

Interesting that you was off all of the field soil. I'm not saying that is wrong, but why do you do that. Then what soil do you pot it with? Good job on the collection. I hope to collect several this spring.

 

[treeline]

Interesting that you was off all of the field soil. I'm not saying that is wrong, but why do you do that. Then what soil do you pot it with? Good job on the collection. I hope to collect several this spring.

I do it to shorten the process of getting the tree in good soil. They live in very fine silt from an old lakebed, which makes it tough to manage water during the growing season. Washing that off and potting them in pumice with a little akadama makes for great roots and easy watering from the get go.

 

[ponderingsage]

Were there fine roots or just the tap root?

I’ve tried a few but they didn’t last in the container beyond a few years. I struggled to get feeder roots at collection?

 

[yashu]

Damn, that’s a very nice one!

 

[treeline]

Were there fine roots or just the tap root?

I’ve tried a few but they didn’t last in the container beyond a few years. I struggled to get feeder roots at collection?

There were a few fine roots at collection, but nothing like what happened in the grow box.

Here’s a shot of the screen I used in the bottom of the box — those roots all grew after collection.

 

[treeline]

Damn, that’s a very nice one!

Thank you! Hopefully I can keep it headed in the right direction.

 

[Ruddigger]

Killer tree, nice direction with the styling too.

 

[treeline]

Thank you!