Future large JBP

JesusFreak

Shohin
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Location
Tifton, Ga
USDA Zone
8B
Looking to make about a 3.5-4ft naturalistic JbP. The plan is to put it in the ground sometime soon. I also plan on having a tall sacrificial branch to get my girth. I got this pine from @cmeg1 a couple years ago. My question is for those pine experts, when should I start cutting shoots to work on my branching. If I cut the leader half way up will that be a good start? Not sure how far back this joker will bud. It is really healthy.
 

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If you want it to be bigger, you need to let it grow.
Cutting it back will slow down that process tremendously
 
If you want it to be bigger, you need to let it grow.
Cutting it back will slow down that process tremendously
I understand that it needs to keep growing. At what point do I concern myself with the branches.
 
That virt seems to be one very tall, skinny tree. Getting trunks to thicken takes either many years or a good sacrifice branch or both. Getting taper in trunks is usually a matter of chop and grow, even with pines. Cutting that high and using high shoots is likely to end in disappointment I think.

JBP will back bud from any healthy needle so you can get lots of buds way back down that trunk but only if you chop. Most pines will also bud on recently bare sections where needles have fallen so yours could also bud back down below the existing needles. Trees will usually only produce buds close to where they've been chopped so chopping high won't achieve much useful if you want lower shoots.
Sometimes we have to sacrifice some short term growth for longer term structure.

Most pines would be developed from the lowest branch, in this case way back down near the ground. Those branches would be trimmed and managed while the main trunk acts as the sacrifice branch.
 
Aye, I see the tall part as a first segment sac and the right part a second segment sac.

Sorce
 
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