After more than twenty years of growing pine bonsai from seed, I noticed a big difference between red and black pines this year. Red pines are harder. Specifically, red pines are less likely to develop small shoots in the tree’s interior that can be used to create primary branches after thickening the trunk. Here’s an […]
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Diagnosing root rot in black and red pine bonsai
For years, I’ve spotted unhealthy shoots on black and red pines and wondered about the cause. Unhealthy foliage on black pine The main symptoms are discoloration – primarily yellow foliage – and deformed needles. The problem affects young trees and old trees alike. On more refined trees, I see short, twisty, needles like in the […]
Initial styling on a Ponderosa pine
I’d been looking forward to working on a Ponderosa pine this year. Now that the old needles are starting to turn yellow and fall away, it was time to do some work. Ponderosa pine – 18″ tall The best features of the tree are the deadwood on the lower part of the trunk and the […]
Restoring health to an old Jeffrey pine – update and fall work
A year-and-a-half ago I started working on an old Jeffrey pine. The first step was to help the tree regain vigor (see “Repotting a Jeffrey Pine” for details). Here’s what the tree looked like after repotting in March, 2018, followed by a photo of what it looks like today. Jeffrey Pine – March, 2018 September, […]
Why are my pines yellow?
I’m used to the pines in my garden looking a certain way. They usually yellow a little in fall and green up again in spring – only this spring, many remained yellow. I figured part of that was a result of fertilizing late this year. But even after fertilizing for a couple of months, many […]