Divide & Double (updated)

 Oct 26, 2025

Here's the challenge..can you divide a tree with 2 trunks & make 2 little trees from one? This one is an out-&-out gamble..I found this HoneySuckle at Home Depot

Nothing special about this plant, but when you take a closer look, you'll see that he has parallel trunks, seemingly growing beside one another or, are they both growing from the same root stock or ??

I won't know until I get it out of it's pot & take a look..

First step is removing soil & trying to see if this is one plant, or two that have grown together & slowly, slowly, start to pull them apart.

The idea is to NOT destroy this little tree, & after a few minutes of pulling & prying & trying not to tear too many roots, I turned to my trusty pruning saw.

The two trunks were indeed joined..looked as if they had both grown out of a large, woody root, but the saw cut cleanly through the root ball.

Now we have 2 specimens, each with root ball intact..now, can I keep them alive...?

I potted both & here they are..will they survive after major surgery? Only time will tell... I will leave them alone for a few days..see what happens.

Oct 30 - Update

Both of these are doing fine..no sign of wilting or die-back. If you want to follow their progress, click on HoneySuckle II

Nov. 8 - Update

Over the last week, these 2 lost some leaves, but otherwise showed little ill-effects to the surgery & re-potting, as separate trees. Now I have to decide if either is a candidate for potting-on &/or development..however, I now have 2 HoneySuckle specimens for the price of one.

Nov. 24 - Update

I think enough time has passed to declare that the "gamble" paid off..this specimen survived what I consider "major surgery" to divide him & make 2 plants. Now, the question is, what can we do with them? I've selected one to work on, pictured here, & started preliminary style pruning.

This is all for now, as I want to see how he reacts to pruning, so soon after being divided & potted.

Dec. 9 - Update

It was not difficult to choose which of these little trees would become a candidate for further attention..we'll differentiate between them, heretofore, as Honeysuckle II(a) & Honeysuckle II(b). I'm going to let Honeysuckle II(b) grow & watch how she develops.

Honseysuckle II(a) will be the focus, in terms of this project, going forward. One of the next things we need to determine is "which side is up".. does the plant have a front, back & side? Sometimes, that's obvious, but often it is not; at times, the choices between front & back might trade places, as the plant matures & presents differently..below is how I see it..what do you think?

SIDE 2

FRONT

SIDE 1

Use the Comments section (below) to record your answer

Back to roots: a brief history of trees-in pictures

Over 120 years ago Henry John Elwes and Dr Augustine Henry embarked on an epic project to create a comprehensive catalogue of British and Irish trees. This monumental work was published in a series of seven volumes containing 2,022 pages and 412 main photographs. It recorded over 500 species of tree. Collotypes by Henry John Elwes and Dr Augustine Henry

The Guardian published a sampling of this fascinating look into the past & printed it in the online US Edition today. 

For those that are interested in either the sociological impact of trees(& nature in general) during the pre-war period or the history of photography during that period should take a look.

Back to roots: a brief history of trees-in pictures

Say 'Hello'...

Say Hello to the Abelia Kaleidoscope..

Japanese Maple (Update)

Dec. 6

I think the crisis is over & JM is recovering from whatever  was causing his leaves to turn black & die-back from the tips..the infected leaves are never going to regrow tips or regain their color,but there is new growth appearing that will replace the discolored leaves that remain & I also see back-budding since the pruning. 

(click here to access the full history for this tree)