Yangmei (Morella/Myrica rubra) thread

[FruitFly]

No signs of leaf out on any of the 10 plants I purchased. Not surprising though since I got the message that they were here a week after they arrived and they were mostly picked through, mixed up with grafts disconnected and sitting uncovered in the hot sun.
Luckily Bill was nice enough to credit me back for two trees that weren’t there at all.

Scratched the bark on my bare sticks today and it looks black underneath. What a shame to go through all that trouble and expense only to have risked infecting our gardens with evil nematodes. If anyone has any success please make scions available to others once your trees get bigger.

I still appreciate that Bill went through all that trouble for the group. I’m sure it wasn’t easy. Still crossing my fingers for some Morella/Myrica Miracles!

[nattyfroootz]

It's a bummer, that happened to me the first time more or less (got one survivor).  I'll be selling some of the duplicates of the grafted yangmei that I imported if anyone is interested in getting some recovered plants later this year.

[TropicalFruitSeeker]

I'll be selling some of the duplicates of the grafted yangmei that I imported if anyone is interested in getting some recovered plants later this year.

Sign me up. I'll take 3 if you have ones that survive. Both the two I got have been twigs with zero growth.

[simon_grow]

Well here is what they look like now.
3/4
Dk make
Biqi
An hai
Treatment for RKN has been going on, but I wonder if it’s just better to graft. I’m also wondering if rioting cuttings of these is possible? Has anyone done it before?

Grafting would be ideal. I believe rooting cuttings may be more difficult. I ran some experiments with rooting the cuttings and I got callous formation but it took too long so I 86ed them. The cost benefit numbers didn’t work out.

Simon

[simon_grow]

Here are a couple of grafts that I have on M. californica.  I've had plants push pretty hard and then just brown at the tips and die. Some have dieback on the uppermost parts of the scions while still having healthy buds below, others have just deteriorated quickly and been dead scions. 

I really don't know what to expect on takes because it seems like they can push a while without having healed. I did graft pretty ginormous scions so wondering if I'm running off stored energy. 

On a seperate note, I think I'll probably have ~50 survivors out of 70

Good going Nate! There will be plenty of disease free trees soon. Once the union is fully healed and the weather warms up, the plants will explode with growth. All my trees are going through a nice flush now.

Simon

[FruitFly]

It's a bummer, that happened to me the first time more or less (got one survivor).  I'll be selling some of the duplicates of the grafted yangmei that I imported if anyone is interested in getting some recovered plants later this year.

Yes please, I would love to get a few different varieties when they are ready.

[roblack]

Here are 2 of the 3 seedlings from Nate:



Just repotted them. They are tough as nails, not like the bareroot trees from China. The other seedling is planted in ground next to Biqi. Not as pretty as the 2 in pots, but doing well enough.

Seems yangmei can do better in pots than I thought.

[kh0110]

...
Seems yangmei can do better in pots than I thought.

They don't dislike being in pots, here are my 2 seedlings from Nate bought last August. I have them in pure Akadama. One is starting to branch out now.

[simon_grow]

I agree, the seedlings are very vigorous and don’t mind being in pots. I’ve been gradually stepping them up in pot size so that they don’t “J root” and get pot bound.

Did you guys see the video I posted earlier in this thread where the guy fruited his Yangmei in a pot.

Although they grow fine in a pot, they should grow much better in the ground once their roots are established.

Simon

[slopat]

There's a YouTube channel "Ben B in Seattle " that grew one, is that it? I think he's also in the fb yangmei group too.

Talk about convincing a relative to travel on a plane with a tree...

Same with the seedlings from Nate, in 4x14 treepots growing nicely 👌until I figure out where to plant them. More useless 30+ year old ornamentals to rip out.

[simon_grow]

Here’s the video

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=BrFCWhuQAsQ

Simon

[Nick C]

Finally got around to grafting onto new rootstock. Threw 2 male cultivars and the only surviving female on there.

[socalbalcony2]

...
Seems yangmei can do better in pots than I thought.

They don't dislike being in pots, here are my 2 seedlings from Nate bought last August. I have them in pure Akadama. One is starting to branch out now.

Do you have to water them daily with that medium? I really enjoy using bonsai mediums for my harder to grow plants but the watering becomes a huge hassle..

[kh0110]

...
Do you have to water them daily with that medium? I really enjoy using bonsai mediums for my harder-to-grow plants but the watering becomes a huge hassle..

With pure Akadama, I water every 2 weeks or when I see ALL the top turning light kaki. That's the particularity of Akadama, when they are wet, they have a dark brown color and when they are dry, they have a light kaki color.

[spaugh]

I had to look up akadama.  Is it similar to hydroton?  Just naturally occuring?  How do you fertilize it?

[kh0110]

I had to look up akadama.  Is it similar to hydroton?  Just naturally occuring?  How do you fertilize it?

Akadama is a naturally occurring volcanic clay from Japan. It has medium to low CEC (Cation Exchange Capacity), the ability to absorb/release nutrients, but it compensates with its porosity such that feeding roots could grow right through it and in a way that sort of increase the CEC.
The closest to Akadama is a sort of calcined clay that is called Monto clay. It is often used as a much cheaper alternative. Normal calcined clay which has smaller grade could also be used as alternative.

I hope this answers your fertilization question, Brad. It all comes down to CEC when you're dealing with gritty mix components.

[spaugh]

How are you fertilizing with it?  Water soluable fertilizers or what do you use?  I think the stuff looks interesting and I always like to try new mediums.  Im just curious how you fertilize your plants that are growing in it. 

[kh0110]

I use a liquid fertilizer as I already use one for other plants but a dry kind would work as well. The Akadema particles would absorb the nutrients and release them to the feeding root as needed. The same way an organic soil / soilless would do.

[nattyfroootz]

The scions from the China plants that I grafted onto Myrica californica have officially surpassed the plants we imported from China. They are much more vigorous, and appear to be healthier.  I'm thinking that I have gotten about a 60% take rate on scions but still gonna hold out. Some of them have a good couple inches of growth so I'd Imagine those are takes.  Others flushed, died back and are flushing again, making me think they were growing on stored energy but have now officially taken.

Note to future purchasers. Graft immediately onto new rootstocks. I grafted a couple weeks after the plants arrived and the plants started to show signs of pushing buds. Most of the buds held and pushed, some pushed and withered but are coming back for a second push.

[K-Rimes]

The scions from the China plants that I grafted onto Myrica californica have officially surpassed the plants we imported from China. They are much more vigorous, and appear to be healthier.  I'm thinking that I have gotten about a 60% take rate on scions but still gonna hold out. Some of them have a good couple inches of growth so I'd Imagine those are takes.  Others flushed, died back and are flushing again, making me think they were growing on stored energy but have now officially taken.

Note to future purchasers. Graft immediately onto new rootstocks.

Absolutely seems the way to go. I now probably have lost my last female biqi and only have 1/4 remaining, the male biqi. That still may be useful, but wish I'd just gone ham grafting like you Nate. Good info for the next buy!

[nattyfroootz]

I'm gonna revise my post above to say that I did in fact graft them right when the buds started swelling on the grafted plants from China (for the most part). The swollen buds held on a lot of scions and pushed pretty quickly. I'll hook you up with a survivor if ya want.

I'm thinking about maybe selling a multigraft M. californica with about 3 or 4 different types on each.  Any interest in that? It wouldn't be cheap and would be pick up only.

[kh0110]

...
Note to future purchasers. ...

To future buyers, I'd say, PLEASE DONT PLACE BUY ORDERS WITHOUT A REFUND CLAUSE IN CASE OF ROOT KNOT NEMATODES DETECTED.
RKN is NOT a joke. You don't get rid of it with existing nematicides and other beneficial nematodes as some have suggested here. You can control its population and learn to live with it, that is all.

[nattyfroootz]

Yeah RKN sucks. Glad my habitat isn't prime for it and that I have space to grow them that isn't my main growing space.

[Jaboticaba45]

Thanks for the update Nate. I recently ordered a rootstock (m.pennyslvanica although I haven’t heard of anyone using this yet…), but it is too late to graft as the new branches need to harden up. I’m tired of waiting and was thinking of planting one in ground but really far away? I don’t think it’s a good idea.
All of the ones that survived are doin great at least.

How’s everyone else’s trees doing?

[roblack]

Question for Nate and others:

Is now a good time to graft from the last trees ordered?

Only have 1 WuSu alive from last order, and the green shoots are droopy and some have wilted and dried out. Seems the roots are not that healthy, and this plant continues to struggle. Wondering if it is a good idea to see if it will graft onto m. cerifeira now, or if I should wait.