How to Establish Age of a Pinus Mugo "White Bud"?

4 years ago

I purchased some Iseli Nursery Mugo Pine variety "White Bud". How do I establish the age of the plants, given they are relatively slow-growing?

Is there any published guideline about how large the rootball should be for a plant that is three years old versus five or six? If you were a nursery buying wholesale from Iseli directly, how large would the container be for a 2-to-3 year plant versus a 5-to-6 year plant? Would they be in the same container? My plants have a seven-inch diameter rootball, so they were likely planted in a 2-gallon container.

I understand one way to estimate a tree's age is by counting up the whorls, with each whorl level accounting for about one year of time. Would that rule apply to White Bud? The plants I purchased have three whorls, although establishing that requires careful inspection since the trunk twists.

Featured Answer

alley_cat_gw_7b

4 years ago

Hi westes, I'm afraid the easy peasy, definitive, consistant answer isn't there. Again lots of variables. One example is bonsai. Another is tree type and propagation techniques.
With practice and desire you could learn to get close... commercial growers...they know how long the've had stock growing.
But as a blanketed tree statement I don't believe so, especially in a matter of inches being disputed...
Do you measure in spring or fall?

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Comments (10)

ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
4 years ago
this years growth should be green fading to brown .... last years growth a little darker brown .. maybe a bit flaky ... etc ...

you should be able to see how the bark changes and matures ... at least a few years back ...

thats the best i can do in words ...

ken
westes Zone 9b California SF Bay thanked ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
plantkiller_il_5
4 years ago
what is the size of 4 yr old Picea glauca 'Humpty'

what is the size of a Metasequoia 4yr old
westes Zone 9b California SF Bay thanked plantkiller_il_5
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plantkiller_il_5
4 years ago
at some point you said these plants were cutting started

that makes them much slower growing to start

the fact that you got such nice bushy plants ...I would be happy with that
westes Zone 9b California SF Bay thanked plantkiller_il_5
westes Zone 9b California SF Bay
Original Author
4 years ago
@plantkiller_il_5 Apparently the grower of these Pinus Mugo clones them by grafting. My bad to assume they were grown on their own roots from a cutting.
Sara Malone Zone 9b
4 years ago
Most conifers are difficult to grow from cuttings. Almost all cultivars are grafted.
westes Zone 9b California SF Bay thanked Sara Malone Zone 9b
sam_md
4 years ago
THIS site says "... we propagate them from cuttings..."

Can you imagine grafting Dw Alberta Spruce? Of course not. I am in the difficult position of someone who actually worked in the prop house of wholesale growers so I guess its up to me to put a premium on accuracy.

How old is the plant? Hard to say, dwarf conifers can put on more than one flush of growth per year, especially under ideal growing conditions. A mugo pine grown in PNW will fill out faster than one grown in Connecticut.
westes Zone 9b California SF Bay thanked sam_md
plantkiller_il_5
4 years ago
last modified: 4 years ago
some grafters are amazing

on the other hand , there are rooted cuttings & grafted
westes Zone 9b California SF Bay thanked plantkiller_il_5
westes Zone 9b California SF Bay
Original Author
4 years ago
@sam_md So, yes, Iseli's website says they propagate from cuttings, but another of Iseli's resellers told me that all Iseli TruDwarf clone conifers are grafted. I have no way of confirming what is or is not true. If you are an industry insider, maybe you could ask a contact at Iseli and get the dirt. :)
sam_md
4 years ago
I have no way of confirming what is or is not true. westes, check out THIS site. Scroll down to the images of grafts with top removed. Your mugo pines will not look like this. Think it through, grafting is laborintensive and requires expertise. Cuttings not so much.

Now how about you do us a favor, go to your plants, look at the base and tell us what you see, you can answer your own question.
westes Zone 9b California SF Bay thanked sam_md