@Acerholic , actually there is another question now that I think of it, but I will leave it till tomorrow, (you know: interrogation technique,) it is said that I almost drove my kindergarten teacher crazy by my neverending questions...
@sun the most important thing to look out for next week is the overall health of the tree. Anything with black branching should be avoided, although you can prune these out it shows how well the tree has been looked after. It's always best to start well and not on the back foot. I like to look for strong vigorous shoots rather than weak branching. Tbh, you will see the differances very quickly when you are there. Do not be pressured into buying something you are not sure of. Nurseries are very keen at this time of year to move struggling plants. If they are young the long term habit will not really show under a few years of age. Vigour is the best thing again to look for. Check the roots underneath, I again like to see the roots starting to break out if the pot especially if buying in August. Pruning to the buds where you want your tree to grow from is exactly right. Do remember that if you chop straight across where there are two buds, you will then have two new shoots forming which can look awful. Try to avoid this type of pruning at all costs. Your new creative pruning book will show where to make cuts. I will look out for any new messages from you on Wednesday and Thursday, so dont think you are bothering anybody with questions.
@sun, your soil sounds ideal A, they love a very free draining substrate. As far as amending the soil is concerned, there are some very strong opinions on the forum about doing this. I do amend my soil and have had a lot of success doing this over the past 40 + years. I have tried planting in non amended soil and it did not work for me. Others I know do not agree and refer to a Linda Chalker-Scott as a reference, so it will be up to you to decide. The book is called The Informed Gardener, if you are interested in purchasing it. IMO this forum is to say to people, this is what I do in my own garden and not try to tell others what they should or shouldn't do. Hence why I am saying this to you. Hope that has not confused you.
@Acerholic , thank you D, I will look at the trees carefully and keep your words in mind. My layman`s impression from last time is that the plants there look very healthy to me. And I spent 8 hours there and Mrs. Angelika and Mr. Christian Nielsen were lovely and didn`t pressure me at all, in fact they answered all my questions very patiently:) Thanks again for also answering all my questions and good night!
@Acerholic Good morning D, I would like to ask you the question that I saved for today. Generally I am no fan of single stem trees, if it isn`t their natural habit. But I just want to consider all my options. If I took the Osakazuki as a stem tree ( they have it with stems from 100 to 150 cm) would that result to a smaller size ( I mean comparing the sizes of both a stem tree and a normal multistemmed tree if both were`t pruned) or would it just be like a multistemmed Osakazuki in its full size on top of a single stem? I hope it is clear what I mean...?
@sun good morning A, only a couple of days to go, it's like waiting for Christmas morning Lol I have some single stemmed trees and in fact my Osakasuki is single stemmed. This was done to enable planting of Hostas underneath. Regarding your question the answer is again that they 'either way' they will grow to their genetic height if left to their own devices. So it's personal al choice on aesthetics on what you want in that particular spot in your garden. Look at the spot wheere you are planning to place it and say to yourself, what do I want to see!!!? In another location in your garden you may want exactly the opposite. It is important before you go to Germany make a sketch of your garden and take it with you. Or a photo on your phone. Then when choosing the shape at the nursery, you can visualise how it will look in that space. You might say, but I know my garden well!! But it's surprising when faced with a lot of trees to buy, your mind gets scrambled and you come home with something you didn't mean to buy. We have all done this LOL. Do not worry about how many questions this week. Glad to help if I can.
@Acerholic, okay Ii understand, Concerning sketch: I took fotos of all corners of my garden from different view, then printed them all out and put them into a binder for me and to show at the nursery as well, I always like to be well- organised.;))
