Fall and winter are my favorite times to wire black pines. The trees are relatively dormant, the foliage is mature, and I have a long time before spring to get the work done.
I can also do this work when I decandle, but I don’t always make the time for it. As a result, I’ve started doing more limited wiring jobs.
I set up guy wires on the tree below last winter and as a result there is plenty of good growth in the tree’s interior.
Black pine before decandling – 19 years old from seed
After decandling – 20″ tall
The tree below is a good example of a pine that hadn’t been wired in a few years. All of the branches were growing upwards and there was no way for light to reach the tree’s interior.
Field-grown pine from Telperion Farms
Although it was easier for light to reach interior buds after decandling, it’s clear that the tree would benefit from light wiring.
After decandling and pulling needles
Here’s the tree after wiring the primary branches.
After wiring primary branches – 22″ tall
Limited wiring doesn’t take the place of full wiring jobs, but it can make the work easier when the time comes. I plan to do more wiring on these trees in fall at which point I’ll aim to get more of the branches in shape.
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Gabe says
Hi Jonas,
Awesome trees and info. I was wondering what your plan is for the top or the second tree you showed. It looks like the new leader is going left and a side branch is going to the right. How do you reduce the length of the right branch properly at this stage?
Thank you,
Jonas Dupuich says
Thanks, Gabe! The original plan was to use the top left branch for an apex but now I’m planning to remove the entire top of the tree and use the upper bud on the lower section for the apex.
Alessandro Costa says
Ciao Jonas! I never thinked about wiring my (3) pines but also I never thinked about guy wire in summer as I was afraid to damaging new shoots and young needles!
Thank you for opening up my mind!
Alessandro
scott chadd says
i see a stout monster little black pine in the future.
Paul says
Beautiful work! What is the advantage of the rebar in this situation? I am imagining that it allows you to get better leverage on the main branch to bend it at the takeoff. Must be tricky to get it down without snapping the takeoff from the trunk. Any tips for that?
Jonas Dupuich says
Thanks, Paul! The main benefit in this case is that it allows me to get a good angle where the branch emerges from the trunk. It’s ok if there’s stress on the branch or if it separates a bit – as long as there’s integrity in the branch it’ll work as long as about half of the branch tissue remains intact.
Mike says
Jonas did you pre-cut the junction with the trunk to get that angle or just let it tear naturally.
Jonas Dupuich says
I didn’t pre-cut, and it didn’t tear much either. Were the branch older or larger I’d expect more of a tear. When that happens I cover it with cut paste.
Mel Brackstone says
It’s so good to see trees in development through your posts. Thank you.
GIORGIO RANIERO says
Considero molto difficile una raccordatura con una cima che possa essere “credibile”. Penso, come dice il nostro amico, che ne esca un mostro però confidiamo nelle tue capacità bonsaistiche e ne seguiamo gli sviluppi.