JBP questions....

rock planting that was knocked over and trashed in yesterday's farkin' winds...

A ROCK blew over??? What was it made from Kevin ... balsa wood? paper mache?? or was it one of those ceeement slabs that seem so popular in Europe these days?

I don't know man. Alcohol is a depressant so go easy while bummed out. I would never suggest the taking of illegal substances but here, since it's now legal, I'd have to break out the vaporizer. Ruminate a spell. And slowly put that wayward puppy back together
.. or Mescal would work too ::)

it was a tufa rock planting on a 3 tier shelf along with 2 other large rocks on the other tiers that were also destined for plantings...
the shelf blew over... those 2 broke... luckily the planted one hit the grass, so the rock is intact... not so much the trees...

yeah... no crying in the beer
and i concur with the suggested alternative
but this thread aint about my misfortune

back to the JBPs !

I recommend no booze until after the rescue repotting is done, then bourbon, preferably aged in oak for more than 10 years. I prefer neat, but a single ice cube is acceptable if you like it cool. If it is cask strength, a little ''branch water'' to knock it back to about 70 proof to enjoy the smoothness.

JBP winter hardiness - I'm in zone 5b, and in the ground JBP is fully winter hardy, but zone 5 is the northern limit for JBP, it really is a sub-tropical pine, not a high mountain pine. I find for me that once it is in a pot, a JBP should be protected from cold, best if they are kept above 20 F in winter. You also have it in a nice pot, and there is always the risk that freezing could break the pot. The pot is a good enough shape, it should be ok with freezing, but it is something to keep in mind. I have a number of cork bark JBP, and they are definitely a more tropical pine. They are not hardy in my climate, so I winter them in a slightly above freezing well house. If you can't give them a warmer (20 to 38 F) place to winter, you could bury pot and tree in a bed, in winter shade, out of the wind and mulch deep after the ground freezes. A cold frame could work well. AAC member Mike N uses one to good results. But just putting it under the bench for the winter probably won't work. Under the bench is my favorite for hardy material. Hope this helps.

Leoooooooooo......wondering where you've been hiding. I have a long entranceway/porch for which I've constructed poly-covered "frames" to enclose the area. And it does get below 20 Fahrenheit at times. It is what it is and seems to be working,(4 years or so with this set-up). I also kept that corker I was telling you about in there this year. I was a little worried, it's a west coast tree and was potted in some really degraded Akadama. Looked like red dirt!! It's still alive. Candles are extending with pollen cones formed at the base. It's barely missed a beat after repot. Try to get some photos tonight.

hi Lance, sorry, been busy, (I just bought a property, now have several acres of woods to hunt for trees on)
Also having computer issues, my g and h keys are worn out, quit working, so typing anything ets tedious usin cut and paste to insert g or an h. I need to go shoppin.

+20 F was just a wild number chosen because my unheated well house stays above 20. In the past, I experimented and none of the JBP I had in pots oustide survived a Chicago winter (-10 F to -20 F). Oddly in the ground JBP usually did fine.

About 100 days out from the first expected frost. This tree barely slowed down and seems in fine shape. I'm flippin' a coin to decide to candle prune now or wait until fall to shoot prune. Getting pretty leggy up top so I don't want to let it get out of shape. Swapping over laptops at home and the new one has Windows 8 or something as well as a touch screen. So I kind of look at it like an ape in a zoo watchin' folks watch me fling my doody. So no photos. Healthy, healthy, healthy tree. Any opinions?

LanceMac10 wrote:About 100 days out from the first expected frost. This tree barely slowed down and seems in fine shape. I'm flippin' a coin to decide to candle prune now or wait until fall to shoot prune. Getting pretty leggy up top so I don't want to let it get out of shape. Swapping over laptops at home and the new one has Windows 8 or something as well as a touch screen. So I kind of look at it like an ape in a zoo watchin' folks watch me fling my doody. So no photos. Healthy, healthy, healthy tree. Any opinions?

reach out to da chopper... he knows his JBPs

Ouch...the crickets are deafining.....

HeHeHe.....

I'm feeling old today and I'm definitely in flagging health at this time of year, so, like your pine I also feel like I'm in decline. I've therefore made a decision to rest for one year to regain vigor. After successful wintering, during which I will be fed well, watered well and given good sun I'm hopeful that I will regain my vigor...................................in the meantime I'm going to get my hair and eyebrows pruned. That should at least make me look more presentable.

Today.....

Do you some Design for it ?
Pruning or De-candling towards what shape ?
Laters.
Khaimraj

Hmmm....perhaps you could sketch the feeling this tree conveys to you....I'll "pluck" new needles in the strong areas and lessen same through the weaker and so forth..prune strong shoots in "Fallish" weather. Just repotted...trying to lessen some stress....Deep right? I couldnt write my name right now....

Lance,

will do a sketch as soon as the laptop becomes normal again, lots of blue screens and my Vista no longer works with Amazon, Wiki or Yahoo weather, and the Firefox is also crashing.
If you see a mushroom cloud from my direction, you know what happened.
Later.
Khaimraj

Just a quick update. Left the tree to grow to regain vigor. Done no top work. Contemplating pruning this years shoots as far back as I can. Or I can wait until spring. Any thoughts?

It looks like it grew fairly well this year. I would probably prune out the long growth and leave the shorter growth, even if you only have one shorter shoot at a terminal. I would do it now so the tree puts its fall bud energy into strengthening those buds and perhaps some adventitious buds back in a bit. I would also remove the old needles, particularly those on the top and bottom of the branches. Not a full fall reduction in the number of needles since you are working to build strength, but a moderate one to encourage more buds.

Top growth cut first week september




oct. 16 buds ready for spring. It did what I thought it would. Learn by doing.

I had not gotten back to this thread until now. Well done, the tree was ready. Without the picture I would have said wait, but it really looks recovered. Nice.

Hey, guy's, thanks for commenting......
Really vigorous, so did some needle plucking, almost done!!
Probably minimal wire as fall shoot pruning activated many new buds closer to the trunk.
Don't want to damage them.
Thinning the bottom next week? A few weak secondary branches to remove should open up for light and air.
Removing the top of the secondary still remains a viable option!!

Hard to believe I'll be wintering this tree for my third winter, and after the last two, if it can get colder?



Like I said, it was growing so well and strong work could and had to be done,(I'm learnin' )......
I think I can say I did get it very healthy......and not just fat for the slaughter...hihihihihihihii

Fall pruning shortly. Old technique, but it has the tree back to full vigor. Next year I'll begin to use more modern methods.....cutting spring candles!!
I think cutting the new growth in early summer could give me more pronounced back-budding.....hopefully!!

I have a nice little root huggin' a rock JBP as well......





Sept. '15





Sep. 16...pruned some low stuff, I can't find the after pic!!!

did you say hugging a rock or humping a rock ???

that looks like a damn good clasp job there... did you develop that or did it come like that ?

this one looks ACES !

I couldn't do that, not for awhile!!!

Could be a cool tree in a few years, just have to sheppard it along.

Repot coming 2-3 years, on a conifer, I'm always nervous!!