Eucalyptus Parvula (small-leaved Eucalypt)

[quodlibet_ens]

I'm taking inspiration from a set-up I've seen (pic 1), binding multiple seedlings/saplings together to create trunk girth.

I've grown some Eucalyptus Parvula from seed (pic 2) and thought I'd try the same thing to see what happens. Worst case I mess something up or the species is not suitable and the seedlings die. Best case scenario is that everything works to plan and I am able to create trunk girth by binding the seedlings together and allow each seedling to be a potential branch.

There is another scenario I have thought about and that is as the seedlings grow, the inner seedlings may die off, leaving a shell of outer seedlings to grow, potentially leaving a hollow up through the length of the trunk. This could be a future design opportunity if I were to carve into it revealing the hollow.

I'm going to experiment with another group of seedlings by grouping into a 'C' shape to creat a hollow as they grow. This one I have plans to burn the hollow as if it survived a bush fire and give it an aged look that way.

These are some ideas I've been toying with to see how they work out. Keen for any feedback anyone might have.

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[Rory]

I admire the work invlovled.

My only query is, if it works as it ages you’ll have a mutltitude of intertwined trunking, then normal branches, which will contrast a lot, and may offset your design

[quodlibet_ens]

I admire the work invlovled.

My only query is, if it works as it ages you’ll have a mutltitude of intertwined trunking, then normal branches, which will contrast a lot, and may offset your design

I guess what I'm trying to achieve is something like a natural grafting (as you see in pics attached here). As the seedlings grow I'll use raffia or grafting tape to bind them. My theory is that as the trunks grow, especially the inner trunks, they will naturally graft to the outer trunks, thus creating more girth quicker.

I'm curious to see how it turns out, whatever happens.

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[shibui]

This technique is used with trident maples and figs which both grow and merge together quickly. I have not seen it used with other natives yet so it will be good to see how these go.
I find with the tridents that they really need to be held together quite tightly so that they fuse, otherwise the thickening trunks just push each other away and don't join up. Getting good taper and branches growing at appropriate places can also be a challenge.
I hope you'll post updates even if this does not work as well as expected. We can often learn as much from failure as success.

[quodlibet_ens]

This technique is used with trident maples and figs which both grow and merge together quickly. I have not seen it used with other natives yet so it will be good to see how these go.
I find with the tridents that they really need to be held together quite tightly so that they fuse, otherwise the thickening trunks just push each other away and don't join up. Getting good taper and branches growing at appropriate places can also be a challenge.
I hope you'll post updates even if this does not work as well as expected. We can often learn as much from failure as success.

I was hoping to try it with Japanese maples as well, but I did not get 1 seed to germinate this season.

What is normally used to bind tridents together tightly, and how long does this process ordinarily take?

I'm very much a novice, so I'll be posting regularly to get advice on what to do next.

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[Sno]

Cool .im looking forward to see how this turns out . I've often see branches of Eucalyptus viminalis fused together on the same tree . Eucalyptus parvula is a slow growing tree (at least it is up here ) so that maybe a factor . A larger container may help speed up the process .

[quodlibet_ens]

Cool .im looking forward to see how this turns out . I've often see branches of Eucalyptus viminalis fused together on the same tree . Eucalyptus parvula is a slow growing tree (at least it is up here ) so that maybe a factor . A larger container may help speed up the process .

I didn't realise Parvula was slow growing but I mainly picked the species because of the smaller leaf material for a Eucy. I'm hoping the slow growth doesn't negatively effect the trunks grafting together properly.

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[Raging Bull]

Hi quodlibet,
Some interesting work you're doing there. I'm a newbie too, so haven't had much experience with this. I've only tried it successfully with poinciana seedlings, one where I've put 3 together and another with 2 together, trying to get a thicker trunk faster. They were a little more advanced than your seedlings, so I've scraped the bark/skin of the trees where they are in close contact and found that this encourages them to fuse probably a bit faster than just tying them together.
I've also done that with an established swamp cypress which needed to have the nebari improved on one side. I took a cutting and after making a hole in the ground hard up against the trunk with a skewer pushed the cutting into the hole, again scoring both skins to encourage fusing. I'm happy to say that so far the cutting is putting out heaps of new shoots, so hope that's working .
I've also tried this with chinese elms, over winter while they were dormant, but in both instances only one of each of the trees budded out in spring with a non-responsive tree next to it . Also the same result with a trident.
Good luck with yours.
Cheers, Frank.

[shibui]

What is normally used to bind tridents together tightly, and how long does this process ordinarily take?

You can bind the trees with whatever works. My best results have been with duct tape. It is durable so holds the trees for more than 1 year, is elastic so if you stretch it as you wrap the bunch it shrinks back to hold the bunch together really tight, it is adhesive so it stays in place and is wide enough to be reasonably quick to apply and spreads the pressure out a bit (see next point).
One problem I have had with wrapped trees is that as they thicken the wrapping constricts the increase (good for holding it all together). problem is that the trunks will still thicken above and below the wrapped area giving inverse taper if left too long - monitor wrapped trees and remove wraps if you see bulging above or below as you would for wire. Reapply wrapping if fusion is not complete.

How long? How long is a piece of string? Fusion will depend on the species and how quick it is growing which will depend on a number of factors - climate, nutrients, water, temp, etc. I've had a bunch of tridents wrapped up for nearly 2 years now. Most of the trunks have fused but there's still a few spots that have not joined completely. If they had been grown better the whole lot may have joined in less than a year? If 1 or more trunks die that leaves more room so the process may take longer. usually one or more trunks grow quicker/ slower than others which also affects the speed of fusing and the end result. A good result is by no means assured. Even when good fusion has been achieved, the shape or taper of the resulting trunk may not be desirable and branch location may or may not be desirable.