Hi guys i have this squmata juniper.and have decided i want to approach graft a new trunk leader to it giving me better branching taper and making a more compact tree.
I was thinking of using a shimpaku or something more favoured for the scion and grafting it to the rear of the trunk in this picture about an inch above the Jin.
Are there some trees that are not compatible with each other . Any feed back would be great
Hmm not sure about grafting a different juniper on a different host.
Ill be honest though mate there are easier ways to get a more compact tree and junipers can get away with not the best taper...
Not sure about compatability but as I said, for aesthetics sake, you dont want two different types of foliage on one plant.
I suggest taking the tree along to a club or even a nursery, it looks like it has great potential and you would be surprised what you can achieve without grafting.
-Mo
There are many ways to do things, but only one "best" way.
Should be doable mate. They graft Simpaku onto other juniper bases in Japan all the time. Simp is a bit of a slow grower as I understand it, so doing this is common. Perhaps you can try the graft and then give the rest of the tree a real bendin' to see if you can make something of it. That way, if the graft fails, you still have a tree, and if it takes, you can decide whether or not to get rid of the rest of the foliage.
I'm with Mo,
What will the tree look like with 2 different looking foliage on 1 tree????
Try looking for alternatives - wire and bend existing branches, change the front, etc first.
If you still think grafting a new apex is best look at inarch graft - bend a branch from the tree itself and approach graft that into place.
All junipers are probably compatable for grafting (I have only used a few types so far). I get best results from appoach grafts and it often takes a full year for them to unite enough but that might just be my sloppy technique. Sometimes well healed in a few months.
I'm planning on applying the graft very low were the tree runs out of taper above the Jin . There won't be any Squamata foliage on the tree at all it will become a shimpaku .
I cannot see any reason why you could not graft shimpaku onto the Squamata base, however my question would then be why?
I love squamata as a bonsai subject, I think you have enough to work with there in order to develop a nice tree. If you are determined to make this an up-right tree then you chop back to one of the side branches and bring that up as the new leader.
Your squamata as pictured here, is like so many trees that I have seen that are a prostrate variety by nature, that being a curve towards horizontal just above the soil line and then an obvious upward curve that has been put into the tree in an effort to raise the tree closer to vertical. I have done this myself a number of times, however It takes quite a long time to develop a natural looking tree this way as most times I have found that where the upward curve is placed tends to swell and the tree ends up with an unsightly bulge in the trunk at the bend. This can be cured however it takes a considerable period of time to grow out.
The squamata is a naturally prostrate bush/tree, I believe they lend themselves more naturally to cascade, semi cascade, slanting or windswepts styles. Looking at your tree here you could easily change this from an upright into a cascade and develop the desired taper quite easily.
First things first, lets see the whole tree, not just part of it. There may be something there we can not see that's usable. Grafting will take the tree back a long way and take a long time to get branches and foliage like you have already. Post a pic of the whole tree and see if someone can come up with something.
