DO'P Arbor Day Dawns

[Desert O'Piñon]

Mostly so far so good. This one has a couple growing tips wilting, but the other 4 are doing well. I moved them into mid-afternoon full sun three days ago - the first day of 2 very hot and windy ones, so it could be caused by that. I moved this one back into the flowerbed for now and will watch it closely.

 

[Desert O'Piñon]

All 5 seem to be doing well at this point. No further wilting, although the foliage has paled and taken on a slightly bronze tint on all five trees. Anyone know if this is typical color for foliage that's hardened off? I'll post a photo tomorrow.

 

[Desert O'Piñon]

 

[CaptSeaweed]

All 5 seem to be doing well at this point. No further wilting, although the foliage has paled and taken on a slightly bronze tint on all five trees. Anyone know if this is typical color for foliage that's hardened off? I'll post a photo tomorrow.

I can’t state if it is typical but all 5 of mine also look similar to your photos. My foliage appears dull or faded. They seem to have plateaued at this color and have not changed further; no wilting or leaf loss.

Mine were in the mail for +2 weeks so I have chalked it up to that. I am interested to see the color of new growth if/when mine push.

 

[Desert O'Piñon]

Mine have shown some growth, but it's only been in the last few days. And the newer leaves have the same bronze hue.

 

[StruggleBus]

Are yours turning this brown? I am seeing new growth at the ends. Is it lignification that is turning these brown? Interested to see how others are looking.

 

[Desert O'Piñon]

Mine look most like your last pic. The foliage bronzed slightly, but has regained its medium-light green color. I have them in a more organic mix than yours, as they prefer a moister root zone than any of my other trees. Roughly 30/30/40 DE (NAPA 8822)/gypsum pellets/bark. In my climate, it's been a true challenge learning how to balance water requirements in general, but moreso for each individual species.

 

[StruggleBus]

I have one in a mix of potting soil, perlite, sand, and spagnum moss. It seems to be looking the best. The 4 in the more typical bonsai soil i have sitting in a tray of water (their roots are approximately 2" above the water level).

 

[Desert O'Piñon]

I have one in a mix of potting soil, perlite, sand, and spagnum moss. It seems to be looking the best. The 4 in the more typical bonsai soil i have sitting in a tray of water (their roots are approximately 2" above the water level).

Ok, I see that now in your pics. Is it possible the roots are stayingtoo wet?
I've killed 2 very healthy and vigorous junipers already this year from overwatering, and they were in a purely inorganic mix in pond baskets, and our RH is usually below 20% with temperatures around 90° most days (this weekend we were over 100° both days. I'm afraid of keeping any of my trees in water trays.

 

[Desert O'Piñon]

https://www.bonsainut.com/resources/introductory-soil-physics.29/

Here's a resource that has been a tremendous help for me to understand a lot of aspects of essentially how soil/substrate works. Especially for drainage, water retention, air availability for the roots, and particle size/shape in relation to cohesion. If you're already familiar with all of this, you can ignore this post, but I constantly refer back to it.

 

[Desert O'Piñon]

How they looked this morning about 0530.
I'm beginning to believe the bronze color may just be a natural phase of leaf maturation. None of them seem to be lacking in health or vigor.

 

[Desert O'Piñon]

WOW!!!
I never expected this! About 5 weeks, and roots coming out the bottoms of all 5 pots! YES, I'm finally doing something right.
I'm optimistic, but I don't want to get ahead of myself, either. At this rate of development, I'm considering putting three of them in the ground on a tile, and maybe put the other two in pond baskets with a washer around the tap root.

Anybody have any information about air layering or cuttings for this species? Seems like it might be a good candidate for a forest.

 

[SFDrake]

How they looked this morning about 0530.View attachment 601874View attachment 601875View attachment 601877View attachment 601878View attachment 601879
I'm beginning to believe the bronze color may just be a natural phase of leaf maturation. None of them seem to be lacking in health or vigor.

Looking healthy to me, maybe just a bit of sun tint? Might not be a bad idea to throw some wire on (carefully!) while they are young? I already threw some wire on my Arbor Day crepe myrtles and it's working well so far

 

[Desert O'Piñon]

Looking healthy to me, maybe just a bit of sun tint? Might not be a bad idea to throw some wire on (carefully!) while they are young? I already threw some wire on my Arbor Day crepe myrtles and it's working well so far

Not a bad idea. Might give it a try this weekend. It will be my first effort.

 

[SFDrake]

Not a bad idea. Might give it a try this weekend. It will be my first effort.

I take my time and go slow on this young material, im new at this and am prone to break things

 

[Desert O'Piñon]

I take my time and go slow on this young material, im new at this and am prone to break things

Call me Ferdinand, and imagine me in a tableware store.
Trying the new things in bonsai intimidates me, especially when I haven't yet figured out the basics.

 

[CaptSeaweed]

Checking back in. Mine seem to have recovered (if that is even the right word). The leaves have returned to what I expected the color to be and are now pushing new growth.

Looking back I believe mine were stressed from the literal two weeks in a package and then I exacerbated it when I placed them in too sunny a location. They are now in a shadier location getting maybe 1.5 hours less of afternoon sun. I’m not seeing that bronze shade on any other leaves.