My twisty Shimpaku!

[Eric Group]

A friend of mine hooked me up with this one because I helped him dig this tree and a few others out of a large grow box about a month ago. I was trying to dig this one up to buy it from him.. it had just been sitting on the soil surface until it grew through the pot it was in, with the roots escaping down into the soil.. No idea how long it had been there, but I loved the trunk and after just a month or so in it's new pot with me, the tree seems to be thriving! If this was some old yamadori, I'd probably be real careful not to work on it much, but the compact root base we removed fit well into this pot and the lack of any signs of stress tell me it may be ready to start work this coming spring! I don't plan on re-potting it again obviously, but I might go ahead and remove a few more branches to make Jins and wire some into place that I am keeping... IF it still seems happy and grows well in the early Spring of course...

Tell me what you think! Obviously it is long and unkept right now, but I am real excited about it's future!

 

[Eric Group]

A couple more closeups of some features I like about this tree...

 

[Robert E Holt]

It looks like the trunk has seen a bit of damage but it's hard to tell how long ago. What is that green thing wired to one of the branches? With the magic I have seen you work on trees I'm sure it will look great one day.

 

[Dav4]

I like it. I see a much shorter tree here, so my suggestion would be to feed a lot and start cutting back hard this spring to hopefully force some back budding closer to the trunk. Also, start thinking about where you're going to create your shari.

 

[Eric Group]

It looks like the trunk has seen a bit of damage but it's hard to tell how long ago. What is that green thing wired to one of the branches? With the magic I have seen you work on trees I'm sure it will look great one day.

Thanks for the compliment Robert- I am not nearly a Wizard like many of our members are!

It probably looks like damage, but that is I believe just a large flake of bark that wasn't quite ready for removal yet. I removed a good bit of the old stuff to see the living veins of the tree so I could start plotting the course of future Sharis... But some of the ones that were really stuck on there good I left... I think the damage you see is the "crack" along the edge of one piece I left on.

Oh, the green stuff is plant tape I used to fix a broken branch we snapped while digging it up... I wrap the plastic tape around it and wired it together to hold it super tight... should be healed over by next summer I imagine. If not, the branch will be jinned.

 

[Eric Group]

I like it. I see a much shorter tree here, so my suggestion would be to feed a lot and start cutting back hard this spring to hopefully force some back budding closer to the trunk. Also, start thinking about where you're going to create your shari.

Yes sir- I have started making mental notes in that direction... I used a gouge I recently bought- my new favorite tool I think- to dig out some rotted wood in a few soft spots and reveal some natural dead wood, so first step will be to extend and connect a few of those, let the tree rest then finish up a year or so later... I too think this one needs to be shorter- some pruning to get branches shortened and some bending to bring the top down will be needed...

 

[sorce]

Makes me go back and think about what they told me about good Junipers in the 187thread.

(Dispatch ham radio controlled bonsai stealing drones)

Sorce

 

[GrimLore]

IF it still seems happy and grows well in the early Spring of course...

Nice start Is that a Kishu? Reason I ask is if it is a Kishu or Shimpaku I would wait until that foliage fills in a lot before further abuse. Other then that nice!

Grimmy

 

[Eric Group]

Nice start Is that a Kishu? Reason I ask is if it is a Kishu or Shimpaku I would wait until that foliage fills in a lot before further abuse. Other then that nice!

Grimmy

I cannot ever tell for sure. Looks like Kishu to me... Most the guys I work in trees with and get trees from just call them Shimpaku. According to what I know/ have been told/ read... Nobody was making these distinctions between Shimp/ Kishu/ Shimpaku in the states until recently. Prior to that all the Chinese Junipers with this desirable tight foliage were just called Shimpaku basically... Or even just "Sargentii"... I have read umpteen posts with pics trying to differentiate between the different types... I get that some people think it is a big deal... I just don't. Itiogawa, Shimpaku, Kishu... They are all desirable varieties, all grow similarly and look good to me... So, please tell me what you think it is, but I will like it regardless!

 

[GrimLore]

So, please tell me what you think it is, but I will like it regardless!

No reason not to like it! Again, nice one! I am hard pressed to ID this one as it looks more Itoigawa then Kishu only the foliage is to dark. It could be Kishu or Shimpaku but if so the foliage was thinned heavily. Hoping perhaps that Brian might check these for "my" peace of mind They are all nice as you said but in "my" eyes a Shimpaku is most desirable as they are all but extinct from such heavy collection. The History is long and tough for them. In general I like most all Junipers so myself as well don't get picky just curious on this one.

Grimmy

 

[M. Frary]

I cannot ever tell for sure.

It's not foemina though,right?

 

[Eric Group]

It's not foemina though,right?

You'd have to ask @Smoke about that one my friend, he is the expert!

 

[Eric Group]

No reason not to like it! Again, nice one! I am hard pressed to ID this one as it looks more Itoigawa then Kishu only the foliage is to dark. It could be Kishu or Shimpaku but if so the foliage was thinned heavily. Hoping perhaps that Brian might check these for "my" peace of mind They are all nice as you said but in "my" eyes a Shimpaku is most desirable as they are all but extinct from such heavy collection. The History is long and tough for them. In general I like most all Junipers so myself as well don't get picky just curious on this one.

Grimmy

Thanks Grimmy! Hope you know I wasn't intending to be rude in my comment, just saying I wasn't sure which one it is.

 

[Adair M]

I think it a "Sargents" juniper. A strain of Shimpaku. The foliage is finely textured, but not dense.

Which means in the future this one will be a bit more difficult to get nice tight pads. Give it as much sun as possible. That helps.

Hmmm... If that's the case, a really small tree might not work as well. On the small ones, tight foliage really helps. My first thought was to go small. Now I'm not so sure...

Here's my shohin Kishu:



Kishu has coarser foliage (the stems are fatter) but grows very dense.

Here's a big Sargents juniper I worked on recently:



The foliage is very "wispy" and soft. Looser. My Kishu is more firm to the touch.

 

[Brian Van Fleet]

My Kishu is more firm to the touch.

Have you brought one back from CA yet? The ones I bought from CA had plump firm foliage, but I noticed the texture changed over the course of a couple years in Bham to softer, thinner, but still dense. Very odd. I talked to Brent about it and he thought maybe the UV Rays were more intense there than here. Who knows, but climate definitely had an impact on shimpaku foliage texture. I took photos of one as received next to one from him 2 years before that had the same texture and it's apparent. I'll try to find them.

I digress; nice pickup Eric. Add a little Shari to follow the trunk's grain, and I too see a nice small tree in that shimp.

 

[Eric Group]

Have you brought one back from CA yet? The ones I bought from CA had plump firm foliage, but I noticed the texture changed over the course of a couple years in Bham to softer, thinner, but still dense. Very odd. I talked to Brent about it and he thought maybe the UV Rays were more intense there than here. Who knows, but climate definitely had an impact on shimpaku foliage texture. I took photos of one as received next to one from him 2 years before that had the same texture and it's apparent. I'll try to find them.

I digress; nice pickup Eric. Add a little Shari to follow the trunk's grain, and I too see a nice small tree in that shimp.

Thanks Brian... Been looking for a nice curvy trunk to work with- honestly I think one of yours you posted here helped get me interested in finding something with that sort of movement! I am definitely planning to bring a shark down that trunk!

 

[Eric Group]

I think it a "Sargents" juniper. A strain of Shimpaku. The foliage is finely textured, but not dense.

Which means in the future this one will be a bit more difficult to get nice tight pads. Give it as much sun as possible. That helps.

Hmmm... If that's the case, a really small tree might not work as well. On the small ones, tight foliage really helps. My first thought was to go small. Now I'm not so sure...

Here's my shohin Kishu:

View attachment 86425

Kishu has coarser foliage (the stems are fatter) but grows very dense.

Here's a big Sargents juniper I worked on recently:

View attachment 86428

The foliage is very "wispy" and soft. Looser. My Kishu is more firm to the touch.

The "Sargents" I know of have MUCH more coarse growth than that. Even when they get mature "scale" foliage it is much thicker and "roap- like" than any Shimpaku/ Kishu / Itiogawa variety I have ever seen.

 

[sorce]

"roap- like"

Is Roap short for....soap on a rope!?

Well done. But I don't get it!
Lol.

The first time I saw this, I was outside so it was a little hard to see the pics......

This is very interesting!

Can I get you talking about plans?
(Who am I kidding, budding Novelist! )

Sorce

 

[JoeR]

I am just wondering how you are going to chase all of that foliage back.

 

[sorce]

I am just wondering how you are going to chase all of that foliage back.

When I asked myself that question ,
The answer was grafting.

Do tell!

Sorce