Hi Shawn, I just bought some in from Oregon. Unfortunately the truck arrived during the heatwave and they were unloaded from a 45degrees refrigerated truck out into the 90 degree day and they almost all experienced the same browning you show. I've been pinching the burnt foliage off with my fingers. Hopefully they will repair.

Could it be sunburn, because it's on the top exposed part?

in tree time.. stuff just doesnt happen all that fast ...

what about winter damage ... maybe somehow elated to the potting mix???

i think i killed one or two of these .... no clue why ... just some vague recollection its a PIA plant ...

i think your jumping way out there with acid rain as a possibility ...

ken

Hi John, yea, I got this one from Oregon as well, but in November when I ordered some understock for grafting, so it had nice temps for travel. Good luck with your Icebreaker's, hope they recover ok. Hopefully I will get down to Katsura soon!

@wannabe - It really hasn't seen much sun yet. With the exception of a few warm days, it's been like the PNW here! Overcast, rainy, and very cool.. It was 48 degrees yesterday!

@Ken - Yes, I have killed an established one of these also. It was last summer, while we were in a drought and temps were very high. In that case, it did happen pretty quick. Not just the top, but the whole branches turned brown and needle drop followed shortly after. I'm starting to think these are PIA plants too, but it's too cool not to try a couple more times!!

It was outside and frozen with all the other pots this winter. I had more cold sensitive plants right next to it that didn't suffer any winter damage, such as Abies pinsapo... so no cold damage, but the mix is much richer than I previously thought, so that's really the only variable difference between this one and the others. Although they were essentially frozen the majority of the time, so not really sitting it wet soil per say.

As usual, the only option is to wait it out and see what happens. I'm fairly confident it is a stress issue, rather than a disease. Most likely caused by the wet conditions. Maybe the rest of those branches will die too, but for now it's odd that the upper side of the branch is brown and the lower side is green... usually the whole branch dies.

I would say it was moisture deficit related, this can include winter burning - any situation where the foliage has become dehydrated. In fact in your first picture, the one with all the browning of the foliage the potting soil looks all dried out on top.

No way their was a moisture deficit, just the opposite! The soil is indeed bone dry in the photo above. 2 min before taking the picture I transferred it from a soggy, wet mix, to the 5-1-1, then it immediately went back outside into the rain. I normally would pre-soak the 5-1-1, but knew it was going back out into the rain and would quickly bypass the the stage where the mix repels water and start to soak it in.

I had an Ice Breaker planted 2 falls ago. It was doing well until last June when we hit into the upper 80's. The whole tree quickly turned brown and died. The tree was watered when it was dry. I'm not an expert but I think this tree need afternoon shade in hotter climates. I guess the tree could handle full sun in Oregon. I'm trying another Ice Breaker which gets Full sun until about 1:30 in the afternoon and then its in the shade.

This plant is notorious for being sensitive to too much water. Drainage and exposure almost needs to be perfect for this one.

I forgot to mention my Ice Breaker that died last year was located in full sun. I only watered the tree 2 times. It died right after I watered it. I don't know if it was the watering that killed it or the heat.

My 'Icebreaker' dropped dead after about three or four years. Planted 3 feet from a now 10-12 year old A.k. 'Cis' which is still doing fine. I agree with whaas, drainage and exposure are key. Mine may have had a tad too much shade and too much winter snow.

tj

Appreciate the replies. I agree, my first one was in full sun, which seemed ok in year 1, but in year 2, it was really dry and very hot. On the other hand, I think this mix was much too rich, I'll see if I can get it to survive in the 5-1-1, then try to find a Goldilocks spot for it, when it goes in the ground.

Nice specimen Alex! It really had a pretty easy life, other than the excessive moisture. As you said, the roots are koreana, which I have many successful plants growing on those same roots, so it's probably just bad luck that I have had such a hard time with this particular cultivar. It still hasn't pushed new growth, so probably will fail shortly.

Bummer. Time to graft more.

Alex, nice IB! Time for pics of the entire place?

I was under the impression this particular cultivar is more sensitive to heat and moisture, therefore the rootstock selection is more critical. If on A.firma less finicky, if on say A.korena more finicky.

What is your rootstock?

Shawn, how did your Icebreaker make out in the 5 1 1 mix?

I want to grow this tree in a container and would like to know how this tree will do in the 5 1 1 mix.

Thanks.

I lost it, but it wasn't a result of the 5-1-1, it was already in big trouble when I switched it. I have 50 Abies koreana understock potted in 5-1-1, as well as 15+ of various other species, all doing really well... It's a great mix as long as you make sure to soak it at first, intitially it tends to repell water until the bark, peat, has been fully saturated.. then it's good. Also, in full sun it dries out pretty quick, most of mine in the mix are on a drip line

Thanks for the update. sorry to hear about your tree :(. I'll give this tree a try in the 5 1 1 mix. Would you recommend full sun or part shade for this tree?

Either should work. I'll probably keep my new one in partial sun, but it's a cool plant that doesn't take up much space. I'll get a few more and try full sun again. I doubt there is any issues with full sun on this cultivar, I think I just had bad luck