pitch pine terrible nebari.

[*tree*]

Last spring I bought three pitch pine saplings and put them into the ground, I didn't do any root work on them since the were a bit weak, but they got much stronger over the last year. But now I noticed that one of them has some terrible surface roots going up and down and stuff and it had longer straigth part of the trunk anyways so I choped it and dug it up to make something smaller out of it.
I put it in a pond basket not cutting any roots and I added some 1:1 perlite and potting soil, because I suppose that if I would put some pure pumice there or just a regular bonsai soil, it would rather root into that, but I want the tree to root near the trunk so that I can do some major root work on it next spring. So was the potting soil good to use here?

 

[Shibui]

The pines I grow don't usually volunteer new roots like say trident maples and junipers do. I suspect you'll need to force your trees to generate new roots. That may include really hard root pruning.
Pines are generally quite flexible. That includes roots so is is often possible to untangle and straighten roots, even quite thick ones but I doubt your little trees have really thick roots yet. It's a pity you've already chopped the trunk because pines recover from root work much better when there are strong growing tips above. I'd suggest letting it recover this summer and doing real root work next spring.

Not sure that trees prefer to root into potting soil. Roots grow wherever conditions are good.
Putting 2 very different soil types into a container can sometimes cause problems. Root sometimes don't cross to very different soil media. Water may run right through the new free draining soil and not penetrate into the older soil in the middle. I have had trees die of dehydration because the roots could not cross to the new soil and water did not cross to the more compact older soil. Sometimes the reverse happens. You need to water a lot to keep the new soil damp to make sure the new roots can grow but the older soil stays too wet and causes root problems near the trunk.

 

[August44]

The pines I grow don't usually volunteer new roots like say trident maples and junipers do. I suspect you'll need to force your trees to generate new roots. That may include really hard root pruning.
Pines are generally quite flexible. That includes roots so is is often possible to untangle and straighten roots, even quite thick ones but I doubt your little trees have really thick roots yet. It's a pity you've already chopped the trunk because pines recover from root work much better when there are strong growing tips above. I'd suggest letting it recover this summer and doing real root work next spring.

Not sure that trees prefer to root into potting soil. Roots grow wherever conditions are good.
Putting 2 very different soil types into a container can sometimes cause problems. Root sometimes don't cross to very different soil media. Water may run right through the new free draining soil and not penetrate into the older soil in the middle. I have had trees die of dehydration because the roots could not cross to the new soil and water did not cross to the more compact older soil. Sometimes the reverse happens. You need to water a lot to keep the new soil damp to make sure the new roots can grow but the older soil stays too wet and causes root problems near the trunk.

So what are you suggesting here if I can ask. I collect a lot of conifers and have the problem of native soil that I try to collect and leave around roots and then use pumice under and around that. As you stated, the native soil stays wet and the pumice can dry out way faster that the native soil. Your thoughts would be appreciated.

 

[Shibui]

So what are you suggesting here if I can ask. I collect a lot of conifers and have the problem of native soil that I try to collect and leave around roots and then use pumice under and around that. As you stated, the native soil stays wet and the pumice can dry out way faster that the native soil. Your thoughts would be appreciated.

We do not have native pines down here so my experience with collecting pines is limited but I do grow JBP in the grow bends which are just improved native soil. When I transplant pines I shake off as much soil as will easily fall off, even raking more out if it doesn't fall off easily. I don't wash the roots clean but aim to get rid of most of the field soil. That native soil causes many problems when in pots. Getting rid of it prevents many of those problems. The trees I work with don't seem to have any problem with a complete change of soil and that allows the roots to get started quicker and stay healthy.
I know that's not what is usually recommended but then I'm not known for slavishly following conventions.
Changing the soil right at the start works for me. I'll let you decide whether to try it.

 

[*tree*]

The tree grew well this season so repotted it, the shoots have been hardened off for about a month now and late summer is a good time to repot in this part of the world, possibly better than spring. The up and down going stuff ended up being circling roots as well so I just cut them all off. The rest is workable. Odds of survival??: