EOL(end of life): Monterey Pine (pinus radiata)

 Today I declared EOL(end of life) for this specimen; complete photo/history below

Pine (Pinus Radiata) is a coniferous evergreen tree with upward-pointing branches and a rounded top. It is native to the Central Coast of California(Santa Cruz, Monterey & San Luis Obispo counties), as well as Guadalupe & Cedros islands in Mexico.

It typically grows 50-100 ft.; lifespan is 80-90 years. The cones are serotinuous, meaning that they remain closed until they are opened by the heat of a forest fire; seed are then discharged to regenerate on the burned-over forest floor. 

Acquired: Aug, 2025 - $8.00

This tree was acquired, along with a Mexican Weeping Pine, directly from the breeder, located in northern California. Ordered via the internet, delivered via USPS in a cardboard tube, it was identified as a "seedling" even though it was 30-33 inches tall. The roots were protected by a sheer mesh "sock" that contained some of the soil mix that the tree was grown-in & a plastlc bag that also served to preserve whatever moisture the root "plug" contained. 

I put the seedling in a jar of water & let him soak overnight, before I potted him & crossed my fingers. Since then, I have purposely let the plant alone & he has rewarded my patience by growing 2-3 inches & is starting to develop "candles".

I think that the next step for this plant is some kind of effort toward height reduction & from the research I've done on pines, candles are the key to this. I will continue my research on the subject, looking towards mid-winter before I take any further action.

Dec 18, 2025

The Monterey Pine has continued to grow & I finally decided that I had to do something to control the height. Some sources advise against pruning ANY young pine, while others say "no big deal'... I have decided to join the "no big deal" folks.

My understanding is that candles are the key to controlling both branch length, as well as height..that by pruning or removing candles on the growing tip, one not merely is controlling upward growth, but re-directing the energy of the plant downward, making for a thicker trunk & increased branch length.

I removed the growing tip about 1/2 way down to the next developing candles, which will become the top-most branches.

This photo (right) shows the area where the grow tip used to be & the next set of developing candles. As usual, I will now let the tree rest & recuperate for a few days, before any further work is done.

Feb 20, 2026

I don't know how I let this much time pass before I noticed that this tree was not doing well..I have to admit that the Monterey Pine is not the sexiest specimen on the patio, but I should have noticed the browning needles sooner.

After another week's worth of rain, this tree, like all of the trees on the patio, is super-saturated & will need to dry out for a day or two before I can start to diagnose what is wrong.

Feb 21                                                                                                                                           De-potted & took a look at the roots..it seems like the lowest-most roots are "greasy" looking & are black, not tan or white, so I'd say that's probably where the problem lies..I pruned the worst offenders & re-potted in fresh soil..now all we can do is wait & see if he recovers.

Feb 25

Re-potting has not made any appreciable difference so far..I am really kicking myself for not noticing his deterioration sooner when I might have been able to make a difference, but I think it is too late..at this point, I don't think he's going to make it..the reference information I've been able to find on the subject (not much) advises not feeding during this crisis, but I don't think I've got a choice now, I have to try SOMETHING,so I am going to give him a shot of fertilizer in hopes that I can turn this around.

Feb 28

This photo is probably the last we'll see of the Monterey Pine. The best that can be said now is that "this plant died well". I will do an "autopsy"..pull the plant from it's pot & examine the roots, but I don't think I'll see anything particularly enlightening or instructional, but I will go through the steps to conclude this history & end this story of a failed sapling.

EOL: 

Coprosma 'Karo Red' (aka Mirror Plant) Gets a New Home

 excerpt from Coprosma Photo/History page

Feb 2026

'Karo Red' is almost fully recovered from the chemical burns & is slowly "filling-in" the areas that were defoliated. This little tree has truly met the test of time & the ability to recover from what might have been fatal to others.

Decided he was worthy & due for a permanent home other than the plastic training tray he has been in for the last year. I had purchased this tray specifically for the Coprosma, because the ceramic body color matches the mature foliage & seems to be complimentary, I think.

Mr. Squirrel Came for a Visit

This morning during breakfast, I happened to look outside to see that Mr. Squirrel had come to visit. Mr. Squirrel is the patriarch of our neighborhood squirrels, at home in the trees, or scaling the 3-story apartment building atop which he raises his family, all the while, dedicated to making fools of the local cats.  

 I don't know how many generations of cats he has antagonized & humiliated, but he is clearly not intimidated by any of them, being faster, more agile & with the ability to go straight-up or down a sheer stucco building at will. Mr. Squirrel & I have had a relationship up until now, with him showing no fear & willing to approach me within 2-3 feet. When I talk to him, he makes eye contact with me & shows no fear.

chew marks - bark stripped

So I was more than a little upset & disappointed when I saw him happily chewing on the sole remaining branch & the new, green shoots that I have been counting on to keep the Hibiscus alive until he recovers from being severely cut-back. 

While my breakfast got cold, I went to rescue my plant. As I came out onto the patio, Mr. Squirrel greeted me & acted surprised that I would interrupt him..more handclapping, Mr. Squirrel retreated & hasn't returned today, but as you can see from the photo, he did strip some bark in an attempt to get at the green wood underneath & he ate about half of the new green shoots on the branch.

I don't think the minor damage done will kill the plant. 

Photo/History for Channel Island Barberry Published

 The Channel Island Barberry now has a Photo/History page accessible via this link:

Channel Island Barberry (Berberis pinnata ssp. insularis )

Spring is Sprung..I Think..

It's raining (again) but no wind..in fact, it feels more like a spring rain than the winter storm that's been forecast for the last several days..but, we'll have to wait & see how it develops. Meanwhile, all of my trees are huddled-up, under cover & cozy, for the moment.

This morning I was pleasantly surprised to see the Island Barberry & a brand new leaf(first of the season) that formed overnight. I am more than pleasantly surprised, as I had sort-of written this dude off..last fall, he had succumbed to the same virus that de-foliated the Japanese Maple & caused the leaves of the Fremont Cottonwood to blacken & die. (you can read more about this in either photo/history page)

And looking at the Japanese Maple, I was pleased to see that it has also produced the first new leaf of the season, in addition to dozens of buds.

Checking further, I was gobsmacked to see back-budding has begun on the Creeping Fig although it is only 36 hrs. or so since being hard pruned. Additionally, the Pacific Crabapple has finally awakened from his winter "snooze" & threw a bud, this morning So, in spite of what may become the worst storm of the season, it feels like Spring on the Patio.

Another tool in the toolkit - Lightbox

 Originally, this blog was a photo album..or a photo gallery..I had started snapping shots with my cell-phone camera to share with friends I no longer see on a daily basis, since I retired & relocated some 40 miles away. 

In short order, my cell was running out of storage space & I discovered Google Photos..free (1 GB) storage, instant access..& did I mention, FREE? Google Photos is great & does support the ability for a simple narrative, but not much control over layout or presentation.

As my collection grew, I also realized that what I needed was some sort of database, that could store information about different cultivars, and to document the stages that different trees displayed, as time went on & a way to display the chronology of their growth, over time.

A simple blog was the easy & obvious solution  & has served my purpose well. But, sometimes you don't want to wade through a narrative, loaded down with detail & simply see the visual  

screenshot

Try this now..click on any photo on any page; you should see something like this screenshot. In the center is the photo you clicked-on

Across the bottom of the screen are thumbnails of all of the photos on that page, in chronological order so you can easily see a visual record of changes over time. Click-on any photo to see full size.

So now, if you simply want to "cut to the chase" when viewing a page or article, or want to directly compare photos taken at different times & stages of development without reading the entire article, you know how to do so.

I particularly like this feature & use it almost every day.

Another Reclamation Project: Hibiscus (Rosa sinensis) 'Brilliant'

Unpruned - as purchased

There's nothing I like better than the "50% off table"  at the nursery..that & the challenge of taking-on a reclamation project for a specimen that has been overlooked, ignored or  badly served.

I was, sort-of, considering an Azealea to replace the Azealea that I managed to kill, last year. I didn't know how finicky they can be, but then happened to see this "Franken-plant" with the orange splotch on it's pot.(signifies 50% Off).

Rosa sinensis is also called Tropical Hibiscus, Chinese Hibiscus or Chinese Rose; this particular cultivar "Brilliant" has bright red blooms(supposedly). 

This plant is an evergreen & blooms year round (if kept outdoors). It is not hardy. He can be kept as either a shrub or tree, according to how it is pruned.

As you can see from the photos, the lower half of the plant was obscured by a "helter-skelter" of unpruned foliage & was testament to how long this plant has been untended to the extent that there was no choice but to "clean house" & be ruthless with the shears.

1st Pruning - Feb. 4, 2026

Once I cleared away some of the overgrowth & opened up the trunk & pruned dead, near-dead & cross-branches, we can start to see what this tree looks like..

Now that I can see what I've got to work with, I need some time to evaluate & research what I might do with this specimen, & that's going to take some time..in the meantime...

Potted 3 cuttings from the Hibiscus & there will be more, as time goes on. 

(Photo/History: Hibiscus (rosa sinensis) 'Brilliant' live now; click-here or use Tree Inventory Menu to access)

Another California-Native Tree: Manzanita

Howard McMinn Manzanita

 I visited the nursery at the CBG(California Botanic            Garden) yesterday & brought home a new candidate for my    collection..a very young Manzanita..about 4"- 6" tall, a healthy, seemingly happy plant.

CBG is the largest botanic garden dedicated to California    native plants, promoting botany, conservation and                  horticulture to inspire, inform and educate the public and    scientific community about California's native flora. 

And the garden maintains a nursery, open to the public, making many of those same native plants available to the public.

This will be the 4th specimen in my collection acquired from CBG. 

Click-here to access the photo/history page or use the Tree Inventory list on the right-hand side of the page.