Hi, as to my opinion, dwarf cultivars of pinus mugo are the best plants for small and rock gardens. Let mi introduce my mugo. It is derived from witch´s broom, I found 6 years ago. I grafted some scions and you see very dwarf an very nice new plant. You can see more, starting new witch on this grafted mugo. New one is grafted too... Jan -wbgarden - witch´s broom garden http://wbgarden.com
Hi Oscar, all pines I like, Got make it personally... More than 500 cult. of pines I have on my wbgarden. Mostly dwarf of course, derived from witch´s broom. Jan http://wbgarden.com
Can you tell me why you feel this Mugo Pine is a witches broom and did not come about as a result of a branch or twig sport instead? If we were to come to Prague to visit you from Passau after our two day visit to the Passauer Glasmuseum I'd ask you that question. Guenter told me that he has gone into Prague from Passau and this below shows how close in proximity those cities really are. Passau, Germany Travel Guide | Photos, Map, Blogs, Time Zone Jim
I think the Mugo Pines have shown the best adaptability of any of the dwarf Pines. Not all of the selected cultivars came about naturally however, as some were produced and propagated as a result of induced sports. Witches brooms do happen with Mugo, so I am curious as to why you think your Mugo is a witches broom as the smaller growth as seen in your photo to me is more of a sport. Essentially the same kind of sport to which 'Sherwood dwarf' came about from. My personal favorite Mugo Pine for rock gardens and for landscaping is 'Mops'. We are a little too warm here for the aurea forms. You should be rather proud of your work as you have a beautiful and well thought out set up and garden layout where you are. Let enough people see photos of your garden and you should have lots of Conifer and plant enthusiasts wanting to come see your dazzling array of beautiful and well cared for plants. Jim
Quote You should be rather proud of your work as you have a beautiful and well thought out set up and garden layout where you are. Let enough people see photos of your garden and you should have lots of Conifer and plant enthusiasts wanting to come see your dazzling array of beautiful and well cared for plants. Unquote Well said Mr.Shep - only I would have to come home with a lot of them as well.
Hi Jim, my problem is, that is difficult for me to understand, not only in english.., what is sport " sport, a spontaneous mutation from the plant..., Sports seem to be more common on highly bred plants, such as roses, chrysanthemums and perpetual-flowering carnations and also occur frequently as a result of micropropagation." and what is witch´s broom ? " Some conifer species mutate prolifically. Most of these mutations are discovered in the wild by enthusiasts who spend countless hours appreciating the beauty of nature as they spy towards the heavens looking for witches brooms or congested areas of trees that may yield the next diminutive beauty. After locating the tree with a sport.." Let´s have a example. Yesterday was destroyed 60 years old mutation of Pinus rotundata, photo enclosed. As to your opinion, is it witch or only sport. Jan - wbgarden PS. My name is Jan Slama and I live in Ostrava, Czech republic. It 400 km from Prague.
Hi Jan: I was hoping you were in Bohemia but my physician will love it if I went to Krakow as he was born near there. We can disagree on this and that will not be a problem. The other growth looks to me like a sport which you may have learned it as being a witches broom and that is okay. A witches broom for a Pine to me is a marked difference in how the needles are shaped and in their structure. As an example, a witches broom we found on a Calabrian Pine had needles only one inch (2.5cm) long and was a solid mass of growth about one half foot (15cm) tall high up in a tree in which all the other needles were about 6 inches (15cm) in length. There was a color difference in the needles also in which the witches broom were a golden cast in color and there was a curving, twisting to the needles that the host Pine did not have. As long as I know what you mean by a "witch´s broom" then we can talk Conifers. Sorry, I thought your garden was in Prague. What form of Mugo did your plant above come from? Jim
Witchs broom, sport, pure semantics, they are probably one and the same, if not, makes no never mind to me, at the end of the day it's the discovery of something new that makes life worth living. Good luck with all your pines.
I do agree with Oscar that it really is just semantics. Although, in my mind's eye, a sport is a growth that has changed in some way from the original plant and a witch's broom is a reduction in growth rate and plant size from the original plant. A plant that produces a variegated branch would be considered a sport and a plant that has produced a branch that is growing at half the rate of the original plant would be considered a witch's broom. And it would be a-dream-come-true if both features were found being produced together on the same branch (the branch would also display a contorted growth habit as well as exfoliating bark). (:o) Jan, I hope you can save the broom by grafting some scions or giving the broom to someone who can graft the plant to save it. Mike
Just semantics, yes.., as to scions I am changing regulary with my friends and I am still looking for somebody from Noth America who want to change small amounts of scions. I have about 20 to 30 new witches every year. Enclose image - last year hunts - only picea.... Jan - wbgarden http://wbgarden.com
I doubt that will be possible with the plant health legislation now. Both USDA and Canadian authorites, and the EU, are very cautious and restrictive about live conifer foliage, given the importance of conifers in the economy and the number of potentially devastating pests and diseases that could be transferred
A Conifer sport can change the size and/or color of a needle. A witches broom changes the shape or texture of the needle. How many Conifers do you know of in which an unusual growth in the tree had rounded tips at the ends of the needles as opposed to having the normal sharp pointed tips instead? Of these two Pines below which one came about as a witches broom and which came about as a sport? Pinus parviflora 'Recurva' * Pinus parviflora 'Tortuosa' By the way, Sir Harold Hillier called the bun shaped unusual growth high up in a non-cultivated tree, that most all of us call a witches broom including me at one time, a Pygmy. *Note, let me point out that as I remember it Mr. Humphrey J. Welch in one of his books also lists an Akamatsu of the same cultivar name, Pinus densiflora 'Recurva'. Jim
I think I already made mention that whether these are sports or witches brooms as I learned them to be is not a big deal. There is a difference in them if we want to get technical about it. Another more common plant to look at for seeing the differences of these are Japanese Maples. We can see with some of the broom cultivars just how the witches broom affects the middle lobe of the leaf, whereas sports can occur on many of the Maple cultivars more frequently in nature or seen much more often than witches brooms in cultivation. I have a strong affection for Conifers anyway and the person that taught me the most regarding Conifers would go wild with all of these Pygmies Jan has. I am just to glad to see that there are people still willing to explore and find these mutants of nature as they really do make some of the choicest plants in any garden once they have been handled properly and propagated with care to perpetuate them. I am sure there are several people licking their chops wishing they could get their hands on them. There are ways to share wood from continent to continent but it indeed has become tougher legally to ship live plants than in the past, although that can still be done also. It is just that today there are more restrictions on how those plants can be shipped to comply with requirement and certification standards from the departing country to the destination country. More than likely the plants will have to be shipped bare root, sans any soil and only after a series of root and needle fumigation. Jim
