Enjoyed these, thanks.
Please can you tell me the identity of the weeping conifer in the final picture and also the taller spruce immediately behind it in the other bed.
Richard

alex??? is that you????

i thought you were land challenged in suburbia ... the only other pic i recall being of a small bed right near the house .. some rock project ... or did i dream all that up ...

i dont suppose that undeveloped field behind the top most pix is yours .. ????? [almost looks like a drainage field ..] .. regardless. at least you arent staring into the neighbors house ....

thx for the pix.. they may be more entertaining.. to our non-snow peeps.. but man.. my winter doldrums.. are not making me enjoy seeing your snow.. any more than mine.. lol ...

regardless.. i enjoyed your pix.. and appreciate the effort to put together a post like this .. brrrr...

ken

ps: who the heck was Gimborn and what is so 'ideal' about that parv???? .. looks just like a bunch of other blue parvs that grow to that size???? .. joy??? history on that name????

Ken, The Pinus parviflora 'Gimborn's Ideal' is from the Von Gimborn Arboretum in Doorn, The Netherlands.
The Von Gimborn Arboretum is the life work of Mr. Max Von Gimborn, he lived from 1872 till 1964.
He reason he got interested in plants was because his father was a pharmacist who passes his botanical knowledge to him.
Hereby he started a collection of plants from all over the world...

lol.. i knew you would know ... lol ...

but any clue on why he thought this one was 'ideal'????

perhaps it was just really unique at the time he found it.. and now it is common..

ken

Thanks Richard and Ken.

The weeping spruce in the foreground of the last pic is Picea omorika 'Pendula Bruns'. This specimen had been staked in an upright position for several years. Then, the big storm we got last fall blew away it off its stake and left it as you see it now. Rather than stake it back up right away, I thought I'd leave it like this and see what develops. I figure I've got at least a year to get it staked back up again, before it becomes fixed in it's present conformation. Behind it in the distance is another omorika, 'Berliners Weeping'.

Ken, you're right, that's a detention basin visible behind 'Gimborn's Ideal'. Behind the high fence in the last picture is farmland, usually they grow corn and sometimes soy. My town is a farming town which embraces what they call 'the country code', in essence prohibiting any sort of commercial development.

Thanks for confirming the IDs.
Please can you post a picture of your 'Berliner's Weeper'. I would be interested to see it.
Richard

Here you go. Pic taken last fall (Ken you should appreciate that).

Picea omorika 'Berliner's Weeper'

{{gwi:645701}}

That is really lovely! I have one around 5 years old which is gradually developing and I look forward to this spring's growth.
Richard

Nice plants, Alex. Thanks for taking the time.

tj

Alex,

Thanks for the photos.

Snow...we hardly ever see that anymore in Kansas City USA.

The 'Pendula Bruns' should be standing on its own when it is the size of yours. True it is known for its wandering around but never to the point where it won't stand on its own in the vertical. I would get that back on its feet as soon as possible and remove the snow load. Only grow this one in the vertical. Do you have a summer time photo when staked so we can get a better idea what's going on with this one?

Dave

Thanks tj and Dave.

I don't have a photo of the 'Pendula Bruns' from this past summer, but here's one from the previous summer:

{{gwi:645702}}

I have posted this image to the forum previously and the consensus was that I staked the wrong branch at planting, and that the true leader was the arm projecting off to the left. Last winter, I cut that branch back by a third and will remove the next third this year.

Judging from the angle of the main trunk in the original picture, I agree it looks unstable as is and will likely fall forwards sooner or later. But, I have been enjoying the wild and windswept look that it creates like this.

One reason for my laissez-faire attitude is that I did plant two 'Pendula Bruns' at the same time, and the other has been coming along alright. Here's a pic from two summers back, same day as the other pic:

{{gwi:645704}}

and a close-up with snow that I took this past weekend

{{gwi:645705}}

The first one has been giving me trouble for a couple years and it's tempting to give up on it. I am considering growing it for another year and then turning it into a big pile of scion wood. Dave, you're right, I should probably stake it up if I plan to keep it, but it's also tempting to leave it as is and see what happens.

Alex

I thought something was unusual in your snow photo of 'Pendula Bruns'.

You can do two things. Enjoy it as is or remove the horizontal branch. If you leave as is you will need to eventually support that wayward branch. Sooner then later it will probably become a balance issue but enjoy it now just because you like it.

If mine I would remove it now. That will make for a
healthier faster growing cultivar and your issues of imbalance will be over.

I can't tell how far away your plant is from the deck. I have seen branches trained by attaching them to houses and fencing. The late Ed Rezek had an atlas cedar attached to his roof/gutter and it went around his house. Attach yours to the deck lattice as see where it goes.

I am currently training a Cedrus atlantica 'Aurea Robusta' to trail along the top of my chain link fence. Has two leaders . A work in progress...we will see where it goes.

Dave

Snow laden conifers are definitely a nice consolation prize compared to the spring flush.

You should get a little budda and put that pendula arm around him! Make sure its one thats smirking.

Thanks for the pics!