Mugo Pine Suggestions requested

OK, Here she is:



I've never had one survive this long!

I started to trim back the oldest set of needles (to be finished this weekend) Since I've never gotten one this far, I'm at a loss as to where to go with it now. Any ideas? If more photos are needed I can get them.

Jay

We maybe need more than that one pic, but it looks to me like it is gonna be a problem to do much with.

I will try to take 5 or 6 pictures tomorrow morning, top down, plus 4 or 5 different "fronts". It is a Lowe's shrub, I got for next to nothing so learning to keep it alive was worth the effort. Now experimenting with pruning and shaping will be the next order of business. Could you be more specific regarding the types of problems you envision?

Thanks Jim,

Jay

Eventual Windswept with some carving perhaps?

Based on the current positioning in the photo, would you suggest twisting the farthest branch to the right around with the wind, or carving it to look like it broke under the stress?

Thanks,
Jay

I'm not sure I would prune any branches yet. I would wire the trunks and branches and shape the tree into a believable image first. Then decide if any branches detract from the image. If you decide you want to convert a branch into jin, it is already wired to enhance the shape; just cut off the foliage on the branch you want to be a jin; you can clean off the bark later. I don't have a lot of pine experience, and I have managed to kill every mugo I started to work on... so procede with caution
The good thing about cheapmaterial is that you can make mistakes without it costing you and arm and a leg. All of the mugos, I tried, came from discount stores and I started too much drastic shaping before insuring their health. I also believe our climate here gets too hot for them; some grow well in the landscapes, most seem to linger.
Todd

Todd Ellis wrote:I'm not sure I would prune any branches yet. I would wire the trunks and branches and shape the tree into a believable image first. Then decide if any branches detract from the image. If you decide you want to convert a branch into jin, it is already wired to enhance the shape; just cut off the foliage on the branch you want to be a jin; you can clean off the bark later. I don't have a lot of pine experience, and I have managed to kill every mugo I started to work on... so procede with caution
The good thing about cheapmaterial is that you can make mistakes without it costing you and arm and a leg. All of the mugos, I tried, came from discount stores and I started too much drastic shaping before insuring their health. I also believe our climate here gets too hot for them; some grow well in the landscapes, most seem to linger.
Todd

I have a similar background with mugos, this is the only one to survive this long. With all the luck bonsai enthusiasts climbing the sides of mountains for yamadori, at one time I had a thread I entitled Yamastori, because all of my material is purchased at nurseries, hardware stores.

Here are the added photos. They can be viewed in my Photobucket.com files at
https://s71.photobucket.com/albums/i143/forbey/Mugp%20Pine/

I liked this angle shot the most:



Almost everything is already "swept" into the same direction. If I visually cleaned out the main trunk area and worked that right branch to the left, or jin it, it might work.

Jay