Ginkgo

[Beano]

Hi,

I've read the wiki here about Ginkgo but want opinions on what to do here. This a an untrained nursery tree, not bonsai stock but I want to develop it. I want to reduce the height of the tree and could potentially train a new leader but also I've read that they only grow fast for the first 5-10years of their lives, then they thicken painfully slowly.

Should I:
1. Cut back to lower branch as new leader and put in the ground; OR
2. Leave it as is and put it in the ground?

[shibui]

They are very slow full stop. Also slow to ramify as well.
The lower branch looks to be quite high. How tall do you intend your bonsai to be?

My preference would be to cut now. That may stimulate some new lower shoots which will be very valuable. It will also start the process of developing taper in the trunk.
Also cut the low branch back to 3 or 4 buds to get it to ramify a bit as well.

You should check where the roots are before you plant it. These often have tangled clumps of twisted roots and it will be far easier to sort them out and arrange them now than when it has grown larger. I have found that I can cut roots back quite hard on gingko so don't be worried while pruning roots.

[Beano]

Ok. Should I wait until bud burst before pruning? Some places say you can cut while dormant but others not.

Want it not too tall but given it's a slower variety I'm looking more at developing it to be in the feminine style, so can be skinnier and taller, with a standard flame shape, or perhaps slanting with a round pot in the future. Sorry I have only included the cat as a scale, I'll get another photo tomorrow with something to give you an idea of it's size and proportions. It is a stick but has a small amount of taper at the base which is why I chose it from the bunch. I've not repotted it ever.

[kcpoole]

Cut back at the end of winter and repot.

they will shoot from bare wood and cutting back will help promote suckers to shoot dfrom the base and you can then wire them to be outward spreading and take on that flame shape.

I have 2 small ones just lik that that I have been growing for ages to develop though one died right back when it dried out in the ground trying to get it to grow faster


Ken

[barefoot]

Folks Ginkgoes:
By accident I found the best time to prune the Ginkgo is mid to late spring whilst in full leave. A pot with one seed grown plant fell off a table and broke the leader, with no visible buds left. Three months later back shooting was occurring. Over the last couple of years I have been verifying this but cutting of all growth in late spring with the result of them back shooting below the lowest bud. Any later in the season does not allow the leaves to harden off and change colour. Root Pruning is best done in winter. Look for good thick roots to grow cutting from. I am currently developing two good shohin from Root cutting. The latest Bonsai Focus had a good article on Ginkgoes but also missed the Root cutting as a way of propagation (thanks to Ric Roberts for showing me this form of Propagation).

[dansai]

I need to repot my ginkgo. I'm interested in trying the root cuttings. Do you leave the root long, or can you just use a section?

[shibui]

Thanks for the tip on root cuttings. I know they sucker from the base but was not aware of striking them from roots.

Do you leave the root long, or can you just use a section?

Root cuttings with other species is normally to cut roots into sections, I find that 3-5 cm is good but I have also put in long, twisted roots from Chinese elms to grow cascade plants. Many species will grow when the root cutting is buried horizontally but for bonsai it is usually best to plant them vertically with the top out of the ground. Note that you do need to get them right way up. Shoots come from the end that was closest to the trunk so that needs to be UP.

I normally root prune and prune the top while they are dormant. I've already pruned mine back to shape but I'll try out Barefoot's spring pruning on some younger ones to see how spring pruning compares with what I've been doing.

[Beano]

Here it is with scale. It always amazes me how a tree looks great through my eyes but then when you put a size comparison next to it and take a photo it looks way crappier!

[kcpoole]

I repotted one of mine yesterday to get rid of the weeds in them while I was cleaning off my benches for winter.
Put it onto a smaller pot too as it has not changed much since I got them in 2011

I took photos in 2012 autumn when it coloured up nicely

Ken

[Beano]

Nice pot! I've been collecting a few pots this year, just patiently waiting now for repot time for some of my trees.

[itsfullofstars]

There's a dwarf variety of ginko called munchkin. P

Probably impossible to find in Australia.

[Beano]

Would a dwarf one be even slower?? I haven't seen one here but my ginkgo was an impulse purchase.

[kcpoole]

Would a dwarf one be even slower?? I haven't seen one here but my ginkgo was an impulse purchase.

Never seen one but it looks cool.

ps the pot mine is in is a Mudlark pot ( Penny Davis)

Ken