Re: Collecting Eastern Red Cedar- Juniperus virginiana

Kevin yates1 Tue Oct 21, 2014 2:37 pm

Sorry for the slow response, it's still alive and kicking, I just can't seem to post an image right now from my cellphone!

LanceMac10 Tue Oct 21, 2014 3:31 pm

HOORAY!!!!!

Kevin Yates Wed Oct 22, 2014 3:32 am

Here it is, I repotted it last week, the roots were is great shape but it looks like it will take a few more times of trimming the roots back until it would fit nicely in a bonsai pot. I haven't done any trimming this year on the foliage to improve its health and it converted to it juvenile foliage on me, which I don't really like. Any styling suggestions would be appreciated!

Kevin Yates Wed Oct 22, 2014 11:05 am

**JimLewis** Wed Oct 22, 2014 1:48 pm

Chances are that as a bonsai with the continual pinching that is required you will always have some juvenile foliage. That's just how these are.

Kevin Yates Wed Oct 22, 2014 9:18 pm

I forget where I heard that if you transplant junipers just before or after pinching/pruning (I can't remember the order), the tree doesn't revert to the juvenile foliage, has anyone out there tried it, does it work? The few at the US National Exhibitions in the past all had the mature foliage.

**JimLewis** Wed Oct 22, 2014 10:06 pm

That's a new one on me, but I don't do enough of then to have had that kind of an experience.

Precarious Wed Apr 01, 2015 5:10 pm

crust wrote:Vey nice material! My approuch would be to work the tree out of the original soil over three years then really feed. Then down pot and then keep energized and style.

My experience on virginiana care:

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don't overpot
retain green upon collection
foliar fertilize upon collection
work in coarse inorganics into pockets of root ball on inital planting
give sun
repot 2nd or 3rd year after collection
make holes in old soil and pack in coarse soil (large turface,perlite,pumice) in summer
empty 1/3 of mud/duff etc. out of roots during repotting until its ALL gone
mine in the northern mid-west like /medium/coarse 20%perlite, 40%Turface, 20%pumice, 20% composted bark
once in coarse soil they can really be fertilized allot
don't work if weak but don't let them get gangly during recovery either. cut back wisely.
once going fast, grow hard and then cut back.
Their foliage can settle down and be very nice once cultured.
See Lenz book

Collected and brought home a 3 ft tall J Virginiana last night. Have it in a bucket in the shade, planning to pot up as early as this evening, but it may have to wait until friday morning. Any other advice beside the above? I don't have Nick Lenz' book, but maybe the library does. Will post pictures when I pot it up.

Dave Leppo Wed Apr 01, 2015 5:41 pm

I have two ERC's, both I believe were mowed with a bush-hog or other flail mower and survived, thus creating character. One is now two years past collection, the other, one year.

Leo Schordje Wed Apr 08, 2015 8:35 pm

Kevin - great tree and great that you kept it alive, good growing. I have some young bean poles, will likely end up in a tray planting with other species. I have no advice on how to keep mature foliage.

David (Precarious) - Nick Lenz's book really doesn't say much about ERC J. virginiana specifically, but it is a great book for other junipers especially if you decide to try J. horizontalis. Lots of good general juniper care in the book. There really is no reference I can think of that goes into depth on J. virginiana. You are probably stuck with having to adapt care for other junipers to create your own guidelines for J. virginiana. It is the ''red headed step-child'' of the juniper world. Usually disappointing results for the time and effort required. But like I said, I have a couple bean poles, because they are so wonderfully hardy and native to my area.

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