Processing a stock plant

I got this tree from Rob Addonizio. I’m sure he grew it from a cutting.
I’ve had it for awhile now so I figured it was time to process it and start it on its way towards being a bonsai.

here’s the trunk. It’s busting out of the pot.

another view. It’s in a ten inch wide container.

Real healthy growth. What I do to this today will not kill the tree, promise.
If I wanted to spend a lot of time I probably could rake this out. But I don’t. Plus, there is an opportunity here to share a secret with you.

saw saw saw

There we go
The sawn off bottom I will save and
put here.

From those cut root ends a forest of shoots will grow. And that is the first secret I will share. This will grow into a small clump; all the best salicaria clumps are started this way. It was a technique discovered by Jim Smith. He would toss the “waste” roots into a pile.

Then they began to grow Jim, being the smart man he is, let them grow.

And turned them into art.
You end up, after a few years, with clumps like this.

Good roots. This was planted in bonsai soil so,instead of just some big chunky roots,there are nice fine roots. Good job Rob, you proved a point I’ve been making about soil.

Cut back all the larger roots and save the feeder roots.

 

This has a good base and good taper. This is superior stock. All I have to grow now are branches. I wish Japanese black pines were this easy. (There’s a question for everyone. If a JBP was this easy would people still value them as much as they do? Think about it. I think I would.You? )

Tie it in and add some good soil.

Water, fertiliser, and sunshine. I’ll do an update in a couple of months.

I cut off here and here. These will make good cuttings.
Here’s my second secret.

How to have better bonsai from cuttings.

First trick. Take cutting. Split with scissor, wedge something in between cut (I use something organic but you can use a stone)
The roots will emerge from the cut ends and the base will automatically be spread out.
I have not tried this with other species but I know it works amazingly with ficus.

So…..cut…..

Wedge….
Now, here’s an idea for non ficus species to get a bigger base.
The heel cutting

Now, instead of roots emerging from one or two spots they have the opportunity to emerge from almost anywhere. Where a branch splits off from another spot is called a node. The tree has the ability, from this node, to grow either a root or a branch, depending on light. When you do a cutting, it is best to have the cut end close to a node. This will increase your success rate.

This is a good cutting.

Here they are ready for soil.

And plant them. In a free draining mix.
Someone told me I use too expensive a soil in my nursery pots.
My thought is, if it works better and grows the trees better I will have less years growing, therefore less labor in a tree.and less overall soil use. I think, in the long run, it’s cheaper.