Pruning Dwarf Scot Pine

[Nishant]

Hello Friends, I have this large bush of dwarf scot pine from a garden centre and it has quite a few branches/trunks that emerge from quite below and a lot of foliage and buds on several places. I bought it this year in September with aim to develop it like a bonsai. Its quite healthy and has extra-large root ball as it was meant to be a garden plan anyway.

This bush has two trunks that are thicker than others and my plan is to develop a twin trunk bonsai: one trunk being shorter than the other one. As there are quite a few leggy branches and sub-branches, I have been removing them slowly over time. I just thought I may as well pick up other people's kind ideas and suggestions. There are also quite a few smaller branches about 7 to 8 cm long and I want to keep them and develop them further.

Is it okay to trim the unwanted branches now? I feel it is okay to do now rather than closer to spring so that the young & smaller branches will get the light over a period of time and they would thus be better prepared to take-off once the spring arrives.

As per the way I am doing, I see that I will eventually be left with the two main trunks and with just the young & tender branches that are about 7 to 8 cm long. I will leave the lower which are below the final design till fall and until those young & tender branches have grown and strengthened. I am hoping that the big root ball will push a lot of growth to the new branches that are part of my design.

 

[Potawatomi13]

Pretty good growth for dwarf. Best fortune.

 

[Nishant]

Hello All, I know the normal Scot pine keep needles of three years. The new needles are formed in spring and the three year old needles are shed in autumn. So keeping three years needles overall.

Does Watereri/Dwarf Scot pine keep needles for two years only?

 

[Wires_Guy_wires]

Scots pine can keep them for three years, but they only do that in very good conditions.
My watereri drops them after 2 years. But most of my scots pines do that too.

 

[leatherback]

Unless you expect lots of frost, I would see no reason to not start styling and trimming now. Get most out of spring.

 

[penumbra]

Study the graft carefully as you proceed. This can sometimes negate the possibility of a future bonsai of quality.

 

[Nishant]

As far as I know, Its not a grafted Dwarf Scot pine. I don't see grafted wounds as such. Why do you think this is grafted,

 

[penumbra]

As far as I know, Its not a grafted Dwarf Scot pine. I don't see grafted wounds as such. Why do you think this is grafted,

It is probably just a clean graft. Commercially gown pine cultivars are just about always grafted. If you are not seeing a graft, that is great.

 

[Nishant]

If it was a grafted one that is neatly grafted, then what do I need to be careful of?

 

[penumbra]

If it was a grafted one that is neatly grafted, then what do I need to be careful of?

It sounds like it is not a problem. However grafts can be quite ugly and they can often outgrow the grafted top and give you an undesirably stilted look. If you are not seeing a graft that is great.
Since your picture did not show the base of the plant I was simple cautioning you.

 

[MaciekA]

It is probably just a clean graft. Commercially gown pine cultivars are just about always grafted. If you are not seeing a graft, that is great.

Adding to this point, nursery stock is often buried a bit relative to the top of the soil line. It's possible that a graft is still hiding a bit farther down under the surface.

 

[penumbra]

Adding to this point, nursery stock is often buried a bit relative to the top of the soil line. It's possible that a graft is still hiding a bit farther down under the surface.

Excellent point. I have seen a lot of cases where this is true and don't know why I didn't think of it.

 

[Wires_Guy_wires]

Watereri (if that's the cultivar) is always grafted because they have weak roots due to an excess of cytokinins that block proper rooting but this in turn does induce insane amounts of buds - and a dwarfing habit.

I found their grafts to be well done in general and they blend well when grafted onto nigra or sylvestris. It looks like most of Europe gets them from a single source, but I've seen ugly grafted batches in nurseries for sure.
Watereri is a short and stout growing cultivar that gets pretty fat branches fast. I'm sure that in some cases, the rootbase will stay smaller than the trunk. However, the few aged ones I've seen didn't show any weird transitions at all.

There is a cultivar out there with a similar budding and growth habit but without the glaucous foliage, which also performs well on its own roots. It's called the norwegian type / norsk typ.

 

[Cruiser]

Hello Friends, I have this large bush of dwarf scot pine from a garden centre and it has quite a few branches/trunks that emerge from quite below and a lot of foliage and buds on several places. I bought it this year in September with aim to develop it like a bonsai. Its quite healthy and has extra-large root ball as it was meant to be a garden plan anyway.

This bush has two trunks that are thicker than others and my plan is to develop a twin trunk bonsai: one trunk being shorter than the other one. As there are quite a few leggy branches and sub-branches, I have been removing them slowly over time. I just thought I may as well pick up other people's kind ideas and suggestions. There are also quite a few smaller branches about 7 to 8 cm long and I want to keep them and develop them further.

Is it okay to trim the unwanted branches now? I feel it is okay to do now rather than closer to spring so that the young & smaller branches will get the light over a period of time and they would thus be better prepared to take-off once the spring arrives.

As per the way I am doing, I see that I will eventually be left with the two main trunks and with just the young & tender branches that are about 7 to 8 cm long. I will leave the lower which are below the final design till fall and until those young & tender branches have grown and strengthened. I am hoping that the big root ball will push a lot of growth to the new branches that are part of my design.View attachment 413473

Serendipity, man.

I just picked up a dwarf scots pine the other day and was looking for info

Btw, nice tree. It looks healthy.

 

[Cruiser]

Hello Friends, I have this large bush of dwarf scot pine from a garden centre and it has quite a few branches/trunks that emerge from quite below and a lot of foliage and buds on several places. I bought it this year in September with aim to develop it like a bonsai. Its quite healthy and has extra-large root ball as it was meant to be a garden plan anyway.

This bush has two trunks that are thicker than others and my plan is to develop a twin trunk bonsai: one trunk being shorter than the other one. As there are quite a few leggy branches and sub-branches, I have been removing them slowly over time. I just thought I may as well pick up other people's kind ideas and suggestions. There are also quite a few smaller branches about 7 to 8 cm long and I want to keep them and develop them further.

Is it okay to trim the unwanted branches now? I feel it is okay to do now rather than closer to spring so that the young & smaller branches will get the light over a period of time and they would thus be better prepared to take-off once the spring arrives.

As per the way I am doing, I see that I will eventually be left with the two main trunks and with just the young & tender branches that are about 7 to 8 cm long. I will leave the lower which are below the final design till fall and until those young & tender branches have grown and strengthened. I am hoping that the big root ball will push a lot of growth to the new branches that are part of my design.View attachment 413473

Can we get a money shot? How’s that lower trunk and nebari looking?

 

[Crazy Diamond]

If it doesnt have the typical pine inverse taper under the soil its a nice buy, al the trunk bellow the soil doesnt form bark and if its too deep planted always creates inverse taper