Hello, I was hooping for some tips on my pine. I’m going for twin trunk style but I’m having a hard time envisioning the apex as it’s not real full yet. I arched the top branch over as you see, is this good for forming the apex? I’m hoping it’ll look a bit better ones new candles emerge. Also, I had a couple buds in the left side of the trunk where there r no branches, I’m really hoping a branch or two will emerge there and I dislike the empty space. I recently repotted. So I just let it grow out this year and see what I have to work with after new growth? Thanks!
Yes just let it grow since it was just repotted. The lack of taper on the left trunk is challenging for my eye. I personally would think about reducing it to the first whirl when it’s strong enough and time is right and build a better transition of taper. Longer road but figured I’d toss it at you
With the current design, I think you have more potential to develop a nice apex using the 2nd whorl. If you decide to take that approach, I would then wire the top up and let it grow for a year or two as a sacrifice to thicken the trunk. That will also strengthen the tree which will help with back budding. I have found that strongly growing P. nigra will back bud even on sections like your trunk if you disrupt the auxin by breaking the candles as they just start to show needles. Leave a single candle on the sacrifice and remove most of the older needles - Gary Wood technique from Telperion Farms)
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I tried to do bends like this and the bark just started literally slipping off the the trunk. I’m hoping it survives above where bark was slipping off, I’ll see with time I guess. I couldn’t get sharp bends out of it and it did end up rounding some. Photo of it in the left hand side of the photo. I wasn’t actually taking a picture of the pine but the bark peeling spot is visible.
I also pulled up the top branch to be a sacrificial branch if the tree ends up surviving that is
You are asking too much of that gauge of wire, you can try double wrapping it or increasing the gauge, next time. Twist when you bend also helps…even with all that it’s hard not to get rounded bends, it’s why they are sought after.
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The best way to get sharp bends is to cut back to branch and regrow. Takes a lot longer, but that is how many of the sharp bends in yamadori developed.
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Thank you I appreciate that
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