AusBonsai

TimS kindly gave me a Shishi. I was going to keep it as a lovely garden plant but this bl@@ody addiction got the better of me. So did patience.

I was thinking of air-layering a few parts over time but this morning I saw that five branches were on one side - so why not lay it down and form a raft of some kind. Why not take advantage of any little cuttings too; I think they are hard to strike, so any that survive are just a bonus.

I am that confident the mainline tree/raft will survive. I didn't cut the root ball massively; enough on the under side and top so that I could lay it down. The moss is covering the root ball which is necessarily raised. On the underside of the trunk I striped back to the cambium and also scored it a bit. I applied liquid roots hormone and buried it. The scoring/roughing of the edges of the bark is something I learned from a Japanese Bonsai book that I have - I believe the technique may improve the look of the roots... if they do grow.

Anyway - this could be one of my many public failures; could be good. We'll see.
I've chucked 'em under a couple of clear lids that I have - perhaps create a bit of humidity to help strike roots? Or not.

Cheers, M

I hope it does work for you mate! I think it's a good way to use a pretty boring stock tree (other than plant it out in the garden)

Thanks Tim. A week out and no visible signs of stress on with the raft or the cuttings. They seem to be enjoying life under the plastic ... that said, I know Shishi's are slow - perhaps slow to kark it too! I hope not.

I've only managed to successfully airlayer shishi's. Never got a cutting to take, good luck with it. Be interesting to see your results.

Hey 63pm, thanks or your interest. I'll definitely keep you posted... to date, there's been little change... none dead yet. That said, I understand from this thread (viewtopic.php?f=104&t=25517&start=45) that cuttings can survive with stored energy (no roots) for months. Even if roots do sprout - it's unlikely they'll pot-on anyway! Sooo... it's probably a silly experiment. Regardless of the cuttings - I think the main raft will survive just fine - because of the intact root ball at the base ... whether the raft throws roots is yet another question. the raft is the main game and I reckon it will look good in due course.

I remember Bill Valavanis saying Shishi can be grown from cutting, but i’ve Never had any luck at all myself. Air layering is very easy though, so that’s why I always go with