Excellent as always!

So do Bursera need to be planted in beds to get maximum growth, or can you keep them in shallow (but not bonsai shallow) pots while putting size on them?

Other than lots of warmth, any advice on getting cuttings or rottless plants established?

Nothing special done with the cuttings, I do them at the end of spring. just keep the soil slightly moist, and in 3-4wks you should see new growth

You can fatten them either way, the bed is just faster, free root run is the key. I've tried over potting, it works ok but you get more root rot since the bottom of the pot always holds a little moisture and top dries quickly.

a few examples

fagaroides, strange one here, just keeps getting fatter, in bed for 7yrs
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simplifolia, has doubled it's girth in 3yrs
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ariensis, 7yrs
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hindsiana, 4yrs, originally the diameter of a quarter
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microphylla, 4yrs in the bed, started out the size of a pencil
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Can you make cuttings of woody growth? or does it still need to be green? I have a large Bursera I got established this year, that I will be pruning next year. It has some very heavy branches that I'd like to prune, and it would be great if I could root them.

Unfortunately, as an apartment dweller, creating raised beds is a little problematic. I suppose I could do it at my parents house, but that is almost an hour away, so they wouldn't really get much attention out there...

1st year growth is the easiest, and have rooted up to an inch in diameter. Large old wood takes longer, and I mean long time, 3mo, 6mo, even up to a year. My friend brought in 2-3in diameter logs years ago, he was able to root about 2/3 of them, most rooted within 6mo. He burned the rest..

Kinda tough to do in an apartment. Even in today's homes raised beds would be tough, takes up a lot of real estate. I started off with one 8' x 4', the next year I added another 8'. 2yrs ago put in two 16 footers and now I want to build again. This time a winter growers bed.

caudex -

Excellent bursera! I especially covet that microphylla - can I have it, please ;-).

Tom

Although greatly lacking the sophistication and ramification of caudex1's (oh yeah, and leaves!), I still enjoy my Bursera (not sure of the species). I received it rootless about 8 months ago, and it is finally putting on some new growth. I was ecstatic to get it established despite being a little neglectful to it over our cool wet winter.

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Front

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Back

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And finally, for size comparison, here is one with the ultimate unit of photographic comparison, the 12 Oz can.

I think the current compositon is too messy and not very defined. I also think the smooth pebbles and rough piece of granite is pretty cheesy. I want to get some more big rocks and granite gravel to make it less "synthetic." Also, I've been trying to decide where to prune it and just don't know what to do. If anyone would like to make a suggestion, I'd love to hear it!

Also, where do you find the more esoteric species? I'm really getting into these new world genuses, but can't find the rare ones. In particular, I am after Fouquieria and Bursera. Are plant shows/trades the way to go? Any good SoCal nurseries to point me towards?

Very cool, Jo! Has a "Hand of Sauron" look to it!
All of these fat plants have a Tim Burton appeal!
Thanks,

Josh

Cool bursera, Jo. Depending upon where your growth points are, you might consider shorting that vertical growth a bit, except for one which might be your leader. I have also wired mine with some success (depending how comfortable you are with bonsai wire). That said, it does look pretty cool with the Hand of Sauron look as Josh points out.

For others, you may want to look into:

http://www.out-of-africa-plants.com/

or

http://www.gpdesert.com/

Also, I picked up an old, gnarly fagaroides from these guys:

http://www.tropiflora.com/

Happy hunting!

Tom

I saw a Bursera sp.for sale about the size of Joe's lowest left branch on his big'un. $40. I almost bit. If it had a red bark like some...