Curious About My Flying Dragon

[Godschick]

Hello ! So this is my first post and I’m totally a Noob, actually probably not even to that stage yet. ;-) I’m still learning terminology and super basics. Anyways I acquired this Flying Dragon the other day and was wondering if anybody has one of these or has experience with these? From what I understand they do not need wired as they twist and bend on their own as they grow. Any feedback on these guys and how you specifically do pruning around or on those brutal thorns once they develop would be awesome. I haven’t planted it yet because obviously the pot I got for it is way too big. Also how small of a pot would you go? Thanks in advance for any feedback!

 

[penumbra]

They are an interesting botanical on their own but quite unruly and unpredictable as a bonsai.

 

[Godschick]

They are an interesting botanical on their own but quite unruly and unpredictable as a bonsai.

Very interesting indeed. I’ve seen ones that were larger and they were actually pretty gnarly and amazing looking. If nothing else, it will be very interesting to see what it grows into. Supposedly they have beautiful blossoms and smell amazing in the spring. On the other hand the fall leaves are not impressive at all. Just curious if anyone’s actually had one and how they dealt with it.

 

[Carol 83]

@Mellow Mullet may have some suggestions, he has a cool one.

 

[penumbra]

Very interesting indeed. I’ve seen ones that were larger and they were actually pretty gnarly and amazing looking. If nothing else, it will be very interesting to see what it grows into. Supposedly they have beautiful blossoms and smell amazing in the spring. On the other hand the fall leaves are not impressive at all. Just curious if anyone’s actually had one and how they dealt with it.

I hav about half a dozen of them now that were air layered from my larger plant. The flowers do smell very nice. Fall color is bright yellow.

 

[Shibui]

I have tried to tame these a few times but, as already mentioned they are unpredictable. Long internodes make it difficult to get good ramification so the tree is always sparse.
The natural twist and bend is one thing but getting it to twist and bend into attractive shape is another thing entirely. Wire and pruning is definitely needed to get an attractive shape rather than just a mass of random branches.
The thorns can be clipped off if you don't like being stabbed.
Down here they stop growing but don't lose leaves in winter.

 

[Mellow Mullet]

I don't wire mine too much, I use mostly guy-wires and fishing weights to try "direct" branch placement. Your's is quite small, I would not put it in a small pot, I would plant it in something larger to let it grow out and thicken. I like to use oil drain pans from the Dollar Tree, just drill some hole in them.

Here is mine:https://www.bonsainut.com/threads/flying-dragon-2.48063/

 

[sorce]

Welcome to Crazy!

That vase on the left is nice.

Sorce

 

[RKatzin]

I've got one that is over thirty years old. I have been working on it for about 12 years myself. I use directional pruning and a little bend and tuck to guide branches.
One thing I have learned from working on this is that you don't want to use concave cutters to remove branches. At the base of each branch where it attaches is a swelling, I think it's called caudical swelling, but on a citrus you want to cut above this swelling and let it die back to the trunk. Flush or concave cuts will leave an open wound that takes a long time to heal and leaves a depression in the trunk when it does heal.
Other than that they're pretty impervious. Cold hardy, drought resistant and pretty much disease free. I did have a three year battle with scale a few years ago, but finally got that cleared up by douching the tree with alcohol.. I tried to put up a pic, but I'll have to go off mountain to get a good enough signal.

 

[Godschick]

I have tried to tame these a few times but, as already mentioned they are unpredictable. Long internodes make it difficult to get good ramification so the tree is always sparse.
The natural twist and bend is one thing but getting it to twist and bend into attractive shape is another thing entirely. Wire and pruning is definitely needed to get an attractive shape rather than just a mass of random branches.
The thorns can be clipped off if you don't like being stabbed.
Down here they stop growing but don't lose leaves in winter.

Good to know about the wiring! I was thinking about keeping the base/trunk area pruned but leaving the thorns near the top because they look interesting on the more mature trees. Thanks for the info!

 

[Godschick]

I don't wire mine too much, I use mostly guy-wires and fishing weights to try "direct" branch placement. Your's is quite small, I would not put it in a small pot, I would plant it in something larger to let it grow out and thicken. I like to use oil drain pans from the Dollar Tree, just drill some hole in them.

Here is mine:https://www.bonsainut.com/threads/flying-dragon-2.48063/

Oh wow they are amazing! Reminds me of something from a Salvador Dali painting or Dr Seuss Thanks for the tip on the bigger pot, I think I’ll go that route.

 

[Godschick]

Welcome to Crazy!

That vase on the left is nice.

Sorce

Thank you! I throw pottery as well, but my skill level is not quite at that vase yet. So I collect the cool pieces until I can get there

 

[Godschick]

I've got one that is over thirty years old. I have been working on it for about 12 years myself. I use directional pruning and a little bend and tuck to guide branches.
One thing I have learned from working on this is that you don't want to use concave cutters to remove branches. At the base of each branch where it attaches is a swelling, I think it's called caudical swelling, but on a citrus you want to cut above this swelling and let it die back to the trunk. Flush or concave cuts will leave an open wound that takes a long time to heal and leaves a depression in the trunk when it does heal.
Other than that they're pretty impervious. Cold hardy, drought resistant and pretty much disease free. I did have a three year battle with scale a few years ago, but finally got that cleared up by douching the tree with alcohol.. I tried to put up a pic, but I'll have to go off mountain to get a good enough signal.

Thank you for the information especially about cutting the branches. You probably just saved me a lot of distress from potential wounding. When you come down off the mountain if you remember to send a pic that would be awesome! I would love to see it.

 

[RKatzin]

Thank you for the information especially about cutting the branches. You probably just saved me a lot of distress from potential wounding. When you come down off the mountain if you remember to send a pic that would be awesome! I would love to see it.

Will do. Mine hasn't leafed out yet this year, in fact it's still in the winter storage, but good timing as you can really see the structure and of course the multitude of sins committed on my first citrus.
By the way, the deer love to eat this tree! Not just the leaves, but right down the new wood. Between the deer and the scale I haven't seen flowers or fruit in quite a while. But it has flowered in the past and made the nastiest little oranges I've ever tasted, but I do believe there's a marmalade made from them.
In the orange industry the tree is used as a rootstock for growing those seedless oranges.

 

[RKatzin]

Another thing comes to mind and I don't know how I forgot to mention that these trees are very basally dominant and tend to shoot out from the base. If left unchecked you'll end up with a bush as these will grow out strong and healthy and the tree will give less and less energy to the older top growth. These shoots from the base make good cuttings, I give them a year or two of growth and them remove them.

 

[sorce]

@RKatzin you can text me that photo if it's takeable.

Sorce

 

[Crazy Diamond]

If it were mine I would plant it in a colander or bigger training pot for now, im not a big fan of putting small saplings in bonsai pots

 

[Joe_B]

They’re fun! I’ve had this one for about 10 years. They get gnarly and grow in all directions. I just let mine grow out then cut back from time to time. Mine is just a “for fun” tree. Don’t really know what kind of potential this species has.

 

[Crazy Diamond]

Don’t really know what kind of potential this species has.

Pretty obvious right..? a very cool gnarly spiny tree for spooky Halloween displays xD

 

[sorce]

Rick's Twisted Deer Feed.



Sorce