AusBonsai

I have a large grevillea robusta I dug from my neighbours yard just over 2yrs ago, it was put back in the ground as I did not have a pot that would hold it. It has lots of potential but has one major problem...damn reverse taper! The section of the trunk that was below ground level is considerably thinner than above, I have tried nailing it, hammering it & I forget what else to try & get some thickening happening, all without success. There has been great growth & some thickening but the reveres taper seems even worse than ever... so its layer time. I will document it as I go along but was wondering if anyone else has ever done one on this species & if so was it a success? What method was used? etc etc etc

Matt

Hi MattA,
Maybe the technique of pinning seedlings that will improve root structure/nebari?
Never tried it yet and not sure if it will work on a grevillea but worth a shot.
Just raise the soil level.
Maybe a silly idea but who knows??

Crowie wrote:Hi MattA,
Maybe the technique of pinning seedlings that will improve root structure/nebari?
Never tried it yet and not sure if it will work on a grevillea but worth a shot.
Just raise the soil level.
Maybe a silly idea but who knows??

Actually its not a silly idea, alot of the more temperamental Grevillea's are grafted onto robusta rootstock, so they will fuse. I might wander down to the native nursery & have a chat with them tomorow, see if they are able to give me any more info, doubt it, I usually get more info from Ausbonsai than any nursery or other source (even my contacts in DECCW now use this place for info!)

I was thinking of just layering off at the widest point, it would be very easy to just put a solid board on the soil & then some medium over the top for it, bonus its only about 1.5m from the front tap (I dont water my front garden at all). If I opt for grafting seedlings round the base I can do the same no problems.

Thanks for the input.

Matt

hi Matt,
i have done an areial layer on a grevillea. Not sure on the name though,as the mother plant was here before we moved in.
It was a 4cm thick bit. It took 6- 7 weeks for the roots to thicken, then i choped it .This was done end of last summer. Was going great guns
till i planted in the ground this seasons spring. I had cut it back hard and when the buds bust they dry up. Not sure if im watering too much or its too hot.
Answering your question they layer no worries. Hope you have better luck than me mate. look forwards to what you do next.

Petra wrote:hi Matt,
i have done an areial layer on a grevillea. Not sure on the name though,as the mother plant was here before we moved in.
It was a 4cm thick bit. It took 6- 7 weeks for the roots to thicken, then i choped it .This was done end of last summer. Was going great guns
till i planted in the ground this seasons spring. I had cut it back hard and when the buds bust they dry up. Not sure if im watering too much or its too hot.
Answering your question they layer no worries. Hope you have better luck than me mate. look forwards to what you do next.

Hey Petra,

Thanks for the info, got a pic of the one you did (or its parent) to know which one it is?

What method did you use? (ringbark/sliver etc)

What medium (sphagnum or a mix)?

Was the layer set or removed late summer?

Sorry for all the questions but I think this has lots of potential and is atleast 40yrs old according to the neighbour (was in the yard when she moved into her house in 1971, just never really grew! She keeps telling me "stop cutting it and all those other lovely trees back so hard all the time" I have quite a few potensai growing on in the front garden, if only she saw what was out back she would faint

Matt





Matt

Hey Petra,

Thanks for the info, got a pic of the one you did (or its parent) to know which one it is?

What method did you use? (ringbark/sliver etc)

What medium (sphagnum or a mix)?

Was the layer set or removed late summer?


Matt



Matt[/quote]
will get a pic tomorrow for you. I areial layered (ring barked) early september , with spagnum moss wraped in a plastic shopping bag. I chopped it from the shrub november last year. Hope this is of some help to you.

Petra wrote: will get a pic tomorrow for you. I areial layered (ring barked) early september , with spagnum moss wraped in a plastic shopping bag. I chopped it from the shrub november last year. Hope this is of some help to you.

Hey Petra,

Thankyou soo much, thats awesome ... YES it helps me immensely.... I will have to factor size etc into my layer but it is defintely a green light for it to happen. Swap out the sphagnum for another medium & allow alot longer before removing...

Without seeing the pic I am going to have a 3 card guess
Robyn Gordon, Moonlight, Honey Gem...

Matt

OOhhh i just saw where your located.. think my guesses will be way off

This is the grevillea picture for you Matt,

Now i see its not the same as yours . Tried the layer on the tall grevillea with honey colour flowers,and if i remember rightly the layer never took. Ill have to dig through my photos
and see what time of year it was when i did that. I had tried on 3 different areas on that tree.

Petra wrote:This is the grevillea picture for you Matt,

Now i see its not the same as yours .

janry bonsai20th Janry005.jpg

janry bonsai20th Janry007.jpg

Tried the layer on the tall grevillea with honey colour flowers,and if i remember rightly the layer never took. Ill have to dig through my photos
and see what time of year it was when i did that. I had tried on 3 different areas on that tree.

Robyn Gordon... these are tough as & are one of the easiest to strike from cuttings (apparantly, i have never had any success).

Its interesting you had no luck with the Honey Gem ( I dont know its parentage so that may be a factor). I look forward to hearing more on your trials with it. Your very good to have photo records of what you get up to, I have only really started taking photos of my trees in the last year or 2 & regret not having any early pics of some of them to see how far they have (or havent) come.

Mine is robusta, the largest of the genus & also a major pest as it self sows readily, yet I have all manner of grief trying to raise seed It is also used as rootstock for most of the more rot prone western species so we can grow them here on the east coast.

Matt