collecting hemlock in the pacific NW

Yesterday, three of us headed up to the Mountains in search of adding some yamadori dug hemlocks to our collections.
we'd had no rain since july so the soil was bone dry. The patch of trees were in a rocky ground where shovels were useless and only
heavy picks could help secure a tree.
Upon collection we wrapped the roots in plastic bags secured with plastic tape, and then secured the trees to the packs with bungee cords.
Arrival home had them soaked in B vitamin and then the roots sprayed with liquid root hormone prior to potting up in pummace and moss.
the climb into the mountains was exhilerating and yet trying for a "flatlander" poorly out of shape.

Dick , what liquid rooting hormone did you use ?

I get it from John at Bonsai NW, will have to check with him and get back to you.

here's what the final product looks like. I'll keep in there for two years till it's gets it's feet (roots) under it before transplanting into a proper pot.

Hi Dick,
Great fun yesterday, perfect weather for a collecting trip!
heres a few of the ones I got




small one


one collected this spring


These are impossible to get good pictures of!
good times, thanks for posting Dick.
see ya

Thanks jason, your first pic was the one we all loved..... the liquid rooting concentrate that we used to mist the roots is called dip n grow and retails for under twenty bucks

dick benbow wrote:Thanks jason, your first pic was the one we all loved..... the liquid rooting concentrate that we used to mist the roots is called dip n grow and retails for under twenty bucks

Thats the first "rooting concentrate" I've seen that contained both NAA and IBA. Cool. Usually it's just one or the other.

Though neither actually produces adventitious roots per se, I have found NAA to be excellent at promoting callus formation even on major sub surface cuts resulting from field collection.

Try using a product in which the NAA is suspended in powdered talc (as most are) as opposed to a root soak. Powdered suspensions tend to 'gel' when water is applied and will remain in place for several weeks allowing prolonged exposure to the acid itself rather then being washed away during the first few waterings. I apply mine with an old foam brush almost like a wound sealant over large root cuts, works very well.

Many also contain an anti-fungal which is of tremendous help especially when collecting deciduous material.

-Jay

Jay, thanks for sharing your knowledge with us. truely appreciated!

Good materials!
The tree in first pic of Jmek is my favourite.
I am curious about its progress.
Please keep us posted.

Good luck
Taner

What medium are you planting them in? I am new to the Pacific NW and got a hemlock this spring. I put it in the ground as I have not always had the best luck with yamadori and decided to try it a little slower. It is doing very well, but I have never had the chance to work with hemlock, any advice? Also being new to the area I am not sure what is the best soil medium to use here. Thanks.
Austin

Hi Austin,
Experience has taught us that pummice is a good medium to use to first pot up our collected material. Once adjusted ( minimum of one year, I prefer two) I use a mixture of 2/3rds drainage material ( kiryu or volcanic rock*)& pummace...combined with akadama.
Our springs falls and winters are pretty wet, so my first focus is on drainage hence the mixture is made up of it by 2/3rds. There are some issues with akadama getting into the states these days so you may have to consider something else organic that could retain moisture during the hotter/dryer summer months. bark is a possibility.

*my sensei, david de groot, who is in charge of the weyerhaeuser collection has gone to japanese rounded rock (kiryu) as he has found when repotting, the root shears are not dulled anywhere near as fast as what the volcanic rock does to them. kiryu has more of a natural color that blends well with akadama making the soil more uniform looking. red and black volcanic rock is quite available hereabouts but makes the soil look abit garrish in color IMHO. lately we have been using about 10% activated charcoal in with the 3 way mix to mimic what david is doing at the collection.

Nice yamadories. Thanks for sharing pictures

nice trees. i wish for the days i will be able to go out west to the mountains yamadori hunting (im stuck in the east for now). i have plans to dig up some hemlock i have found in the spring so i am wondering if i should take any special precautions with the roots ,or can i go for the "take what i can get" approach that i have in the past with unwanted garden yamadori? i just hate bringing home a tree just to find out i killed it and regreting the though of taking it from its happy home. thanks in advance

Hi Keith,
If you Plan on collecting in spring, try to time it just before bud break. If you'll be collecting at elevation this can be tricky due to snow/accesability.
Fall is great after all new growth has stopped and next years buds have hardened off.
when digging try to get the top couple of inches of soil undistubed within the dripline.
that is where all the fine feeder roots reside, these are the roots that sustain the tree,all the larger tap roots can be removed. Still get as much of the rootball you can . wrap the rootball nice and tight to protect the the soil and roots.
This has worked best for me.

have fun.
jason

Good to see some other PNW folks and their collected Hm. Many of us up hear in the great white north use a good percentage of decomposed bark with pumice/lava for a mix. We also keep them for at least two years before doing any major repotting and I've learned the hard way to remove the old soil over a number of re-pottings as they dont take well to agressive root work.
Good luck guys, I look forward to seeing their progressions.
Cheers
Graham

hey Graham, always good to get others take on things. thanks for commenting