Scotch Pine

hey all!
So i have decided to take on a new project....pinus sylvestris "glauca nana"
I picked up 2 B&B scotch's from the local nursery.....couldnt pass up the price!
I have the training boxes ready and was wondering if i should start project now or wait till a better time for this sizable project?
From what i can tell there should not be much need to trim roots after i get all the farm soil off of root ball......
Bryan

They are Scots pines. The approach I have taken with similar trees is to loosen the edges of the clay ball in which they are interned and plant them in ground for the winter along with removal of the branches that obviously have to come off. Then pull the older needles. In the spring you can lift from the ground and remove more of the clay ball when you pot up into the box. I have done both complete root washes with success over half of the time and taken a more moderate approach where I knock off about half of the clay, loosen the rest, and work bonsai soil into the voids. If the price was very good and I have not put a huge amount into top pruning I do the root wash and am far closer to a bonsai if the tree survives.

I used to use a soil mix that included bark, but I found that it created root rot issues hot summer sun so I am using a completely inorganic mix and organic fertilizer now. My best Scots pine has taken 3 years to recover from the root rot issues, but it sure had nice short needles when it first had the problem.

Hm.. The difference between scotch and Scots..  The difference a letter makes. Just for fun and gags..




Not sure which to prefer, really!

Thanks for the replys....wonder why the name confusion....nursery stock is scotch and bonsai trade is scots.?

Your nursery is wrong. "Scots" is the correct common name for the tree -- in nature, in the yard and in a bonsai pot. But Pinus sylvestris is THE correct name.

A little history. Up until fairly recently, American English used Scotch instead of Scots. I was reading a Nero Wolfe mystery dated 1937, and people in it of Scottish descent were called Scotch. After WWII, when the Atlantic Ocean shrank, the British began to protest that only whiskey could be called Scotch. American usage began to change. However, up to a couple of years ago, the US Forest Service continued to call them Scotch pines, hence the usage in the nursery industry. Now we are all on the same page with Scots (adjective and noun). Of course there are a few confused people who call it Scott's pine. And we are still left with Scotch tape.
Iris

bonsaisr wrote:A little history. Up until fairly recently, American English used Scotch instead of Scots. I was reading a Nero Wolfe mystery dated 1937, and people in it of Scottish descent were called Scotch. After WWII, when the Atlantic Ocean shrank, the British began to protest that only whiskey could be called Scotch. American usage began to change. However, up to a couple of years ago, the US Forest Service continued to call them Scotch pines, hence the usage in the nursery industry. Now we are all on the same page with Scots (adjective and noun). Of course there are a few confused people who call it Scott's pine. And we are still left with Scotch tape.
Iris

Thanks Jim....and Iris I love your replies they are corrective,useful, and most importantly educational!

bonsaisr wrote: (...) After WWII, when the Atlantic Ocean shrank, the British began to protest that only whiskey could be called Scotch. (...)

Sorry Iris, you left a typo, it's "whisky", not "whiskey"  

PS: For those interested, there's a mnemonic trick here : Whiskey vs. Whisky: What's the Difference?
Anyway, any spirit which is not malt whisky is not whisky, so it can be whiskey, I don't really mind...

And just to complete the set, I am neither Scotch not Scots: I am Scottish.   

AlainK wrote:
Sorry Iris, you left a typo, it's "whisky", not "whiskey"

You might be using the OED. In Merriam-Webster American English, it's whiskey. Whisky is listed as a variant.
Iris

Actually, Alain is quite right in that whisky is the term used in Scotland for our national drink as distilled in Scotland. The term whiskey is applied usually to non-Scottish varieties, especially non-barley ones, although I notice the Japanese using "whisky" too. More germane though, the spelling "Whisky" has been recognised legally for quite some time, most recently in the Scotch Whisky Regulations of 2009, which amongst other things, cleared up a significant amount of confusion over labelling.

Oh Gawd, I want so bad to be anal. Is there a thread or internet source where I can learn    

It's not learned. It's usually inherited. I got it from my great-grandmother, who enjoyed word-plays in Yiddish.
Iris

Oy Iris, it was only my grand mother and I still can't get it:P    

rrubberbandman wrote:Thanks for the replys....wonder why the name confusion....nursery stock is scotch and bonsai trade is scots.?

As it was explained to me once, "They don't have citizenship."