Christmas at the Experiment

It's been just over five months since the Experiment began and things are looking good. We even got into the holiday spirit and decorated the tree!

 It's hard to tell because this is such a slow process but I do think that the needles at the end of the branches are starting to bunch up and thicken.

I'm still trying to figure out how often I should be clipping the candles. Should I be doing it monthly or more, or should I just wait until the candles get pretty long? I've looked online at some websites but haven't gotten a good answer. If anyone has any suggestions, I would appreciate a comment. There is a workshop at the Japanese Gardens in Portland this spring that I hope to attend. Maybe Santa will bring me a gift certificate for Christmas!

From all of us at the Experiment, MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

The Experiment Has Visitors

Poodle Tree enthusiasts Frank Plescia, Gary Tinseth, and his brother Jim Tinseth made a stop at the Experiment a part of their vacation plans.

The Experiment likes to hear from Poodle Tree fans and is always happy to host visitors. Plescia and the Tinseth boys like to call themselves "The Traveling Poodlers" and were overjoyed at getting a look at the early stages of the Poodle Tree process. "On our Poodle Tree road trips we see a lot of Poodle Tree that are complete." said Plescia. "It's not often you get to follow one from the very beginning. This is extremely exciting." 

Gary Tinseth examines one of the middle branches of the tree. "I'm fascinated by the combination of gardening and art. This truely is a living work of art. I don't know if I will be able to stand the wait to see how it finally turns out. Plus, I just like the smell of pine needles." he said.

I gave the boys a brief history of the Experiment and brought them up to date with the latest phase of the project. Always a good host, I also served them chips and dip before sending them on their way. The Experiment has been underway for about three months now, and it's still to early to tell how it's going to turn out. There has been some growth around the ends of the branches, and I have trimmed the candles again to promote more shoots. I need to do some research to see what I should do during the winter in terms of protecting the tree and keep promoting the growth. I also trimmed a few more branches to better shape the tree. Rremember this is a five year project, and so three months is just barely the beginning. 

Here's what we're going for.

A couple of my readers suggested that I include a picture of what a complete Poodle Tree looks like so they could get an idea of what I'm trying to do. Good idea! So today I saw a good example and snapped a photo. This tree is slightly smaller than my tree, but you get the idea. I would guess that this Poodle Tree is at least three or four years along, so I've got a ways to go with mine.

I was talking with a lady at a Farmer's Market last week about my tree. She claimed it would never work and that I had probably already killed the tree. "You can't do that with a Scotch Pine." she cackled. I told her I would bring her a picture in five years to prove her wrong. I'm not going back to her vegetable stand anymore this summer. I don't need the bad karma!

Big Day - the Tree gets its first trim

Well, this was the big day. After all the potting and planning, I was finally ready to take clippers to wood and start the process of turning my little Scotch Pine tree into a Poodle Tree. I figured it was probably better to trim too little than too much, so I left more branches that I originally planned. I can always trim more later if I want, but I can't glue them back on. I've seen some trees that have more branches and they look pretty cool, so maybe this will work out. (My daughter Caitlin says they look like one of those trees from Whoville in a Dr. Seuss book!) In the end I cut off quite a bit, and now the wait begins, to see how it all works out!

First thing I had to do was shape the tree by getting rid of all the extra branches that I didn't want. Most Poodle Trees only have a few branches, with the needles at the end creating the poodle effect. Deciding what to leave and what to cut was interesting and a little scarey. Once I got it all trimmed back, you could start to visualize what the final product might look like.

Then, to create the poodle effect, I had to cut back the candles at the end of each branch. This was where I was a little confused about how much to cut and how it would effect the shape of the tree. I tried several different things on different branches. On a couple I just cut the candle at the end of the branches and removed all the rest of the shoots. On others I cut the candle on the end and the candles on all the shoots to see if that will create a bigger poodle effect. 

I cut the candle at the top of the tree and also on the four short branches that were about six inches below the top. I was hoping that would create one large poodle, but it might mean a poodle at the top and then four smaller ones on the branches. If that doesn't work out I might trim some of the lower branches later.

I'm told that as the tree grows cutting the candles will stunt the growth and the branches will become thicker. That should be interesting because my tree has some interesting, angled branches. I'm not sure what to do with the needles that stick out of the branch below the shoot. I think I'll wait and see what happens before doing anything about them.

Here's what it looks like after the trimming. Now I guess we just sit back and let Mother Nature do her thing! 

Oops...correcting a BIG mistake.

So, I'm laying in bed last night, listening to the rain, wondering when/if Summer is ever going to start, and I think about all those people sweltering in the 100+ degree heat in the Midwest, and I decide that maybe the rain isn't so bad after all. In fact (at this point I'm just trying to think positive about our crummy weather) the rain is good for my tree. It can use the water and the rain will help settle the soil in the new pot. Then WHAM it hits me! I planted my tree in a pot without any holes in the bottom!  No way for all that Oregon rain water to drain. My tree is doomed, unless I take immediate action! Or action after eating breakfast and getting a haircut in the morning. 

First thing, I had to take the tree back out of barrel, and then drill some holes in the bottom. This did mean I got to go buy a new drill bit,and anytime you are forced to buy new tools, it's a plus. Three holes with a 3/4 inch bit should be good.

 To help with the drainage, I added some gravel to the bottom of the barrel. Just enough to keep the dirt off the bottom. The barrel is already heavy enough without a bunch of rocks weighing it down.

 Then, tree goes back in. After getting it centered and straight, I replaced the planting mix and patted it down.

Home again, good as new, and ready for all that Oregon liquid sunshine!  

Repotting the Tree

I finally got my tree into its new home. After doing some research on the best location in my yard, I settled on a spot on the deck near the back of the house. The pot is going to be real heavy once the tree is in, so I wanted to make sure I had it in the right place. It should get lots of sun and be sheltered by the house from any extreme wind or cold. So, location selected, new pot (whiskey barrel) ready, plenty of planting mix on hand, I was ready to make the move.

Since I didn't want to put the tree into the ground, I was told to get a new pot at least twice as big as the pot it was in. Scotch Pines do well in a variety of soils, but I wanted the best so I got two bags of Filthy Rich Planting Mix to fill out the barrel.

It was a bit of a struggle to get the tree out of its old plastic pot. The roots were pretty tightly wound.

First test was to get the tree centered in the barrel and level. I also didn't want to bury the crown of the tree. My research said to put the tree on a firm foundation or it might settle and go crooked, so I had to put a couple of inches of planting mix into the pot and pound it down to make sure it was solid before I put the tree in.

First trim! I cut some of the small low branches before I filled in the planting mix. I'm still not sure just how I'm going to trim the tree to make it a Poodle, but I know those were branches I won't want.

It took almost two complete bags of planting mix to fill in the barrel.

Poodle Tree Experiment - Day One

For the longest time I have seen those really cool trees that people have with the funny branches and wierd bunches of leaves or needles, and I have always wanted one! After doing some research I found out they were called Poodle Trees, and were very expensive to buy. So, with some advice from my friend Josh at the Pleasant Hill Nursery, I decided to take on the challenge of creating my own Poodle Tree. This is a long term project, three to five years I'm told, and so I'm in it for the long haul.

I know that alot of people see blogging as sort of self serving dribble, but my real intent is to get some help with my project. I'm hoping that someone that has already created a poodle tree will find me and offer some advice, because I plan to have plenty of questions! Feel free to let me know what I'm doing right, or wrong, and how things went with your tree. So, here we go.......

Details, details, details

I will admit that by nature I'm not a very patient person, so the whole idea of having to wait five years to have a Poodle Tree is a little tough to take. So, in addition to learning about pine trees and topiary techniques,I'll learn about patience. 

Right now I've got to take care of all the litttle things to make sure I'm off to a good start. First, I need to repot my tree. I don't want to plant it in the ground just yet, or ever, so I was told to get a big pot, at least twice the size of the pot it came from the nursery in. I was thinking about a ceramic pot, but boy are they expensive! So I settled on a half whiskey barrel. Either way it's goiing to be real heavy once the tree is in, so I've got to make sure I've got it where I want it in my yard. Research shows that the Scotch Pine likes full sun (don't we all) and so over the next couple of days I've got to check out the sun patterns in my backyard. The Scotch Pine also does well in a wide range of soils, but my plan is to get the finest planting soil available. Nothing but the best for my little tree!

By the way, did you know that the Scotch Pine (Scots Pine/Pinus Sylvestris) is the national tree of Scotland?!