Black pines are one of a number of species that don’t naturally produce balanced growth. These pines are likely to produce strong shoots near the apex or at the ends of lower branches and weaker shoots everywhere else.

Of the many ways to balance this growth, the most effective I know of is to decandle the spring growth at different times. I start by decandling the weakest shoots, wait one or more weeks, and then decandle the strongest shoots.

If the tree has small, medium, and strong shoots, I might decandle on three different days ten days apart. If the tree has small and strong (but no medium) shoots, I might decandle on two different days two or three weeks apart.

The basic idea is that you give the weak shoots more time to produce summer growth and you give the strong shoots less time to produce summer growth (see “Decandling, an in-depth guide” for details).

I typically only do this on a handful of trees each year, and some years I don’t do it at all. If, however, I see the need and I have the opportunity, I give it a go. Here’s how this works in practice.

The black pine below has a number of really strong shoots, but the rest of the shoots are relatively weak – a perfect candidate for the multi-day approach.

Black pine with unbalanced growth

I start the decandling process by removing the smallest shoots.

After decandling the small shoots

It’s hard to see the difference between before and after this work as the small shoots in this case were much smaller than the strongest. Here’s a close-up.

Close-up showing decandled shoots and remaining strong shoots

About a week and a half later, I removed the strongest shoots and plucked some needles. I kept three pairs per shoot at the top of the tree, four pairs per shoot in the middle, and five pairs each on the lowest branches.

After decandling and pulling needles – 17″

I haven’t shared an update about this tree in a while as I’ve been rebuilding the apex for the last few years (see “Black pine – work in progress“). Now that the new branches have begun to fill in, I plan to wire the tree and refine the silhouette the next time I work on it.

For the first time in years, I have a dawn redwood in the garden. It was a favorite species of mine growing up but I’ve only worked on them as bonsai here and there over the years. After working on one last week, I’m not sure why I don’t see more of them trained as bonsai.

I picked up the tree from Cedar Rose Nursery in Placerville, California. The tree was still growing in the ground when I stopped by, so we dug it up and cut off most of the roots, the top half of the trunk, and all of the branches. That didn’t seem to slow the tree down as it produced lots of new growth over the course of the growing season.

Dawn redwood at Cedar Rose Nursery

After one year in a pot

I started work by removing the old leaves but found that small leaflets kept getting stuck between the branches. A small brush made the clean-up easy.

Brushing away old leaves

After removing the leaves it was easy to see some of the flawed branching.

Lots of opportunities to prune!

Some of the more unsightly flawed branches were “bar branches,” branches that emerge at the same level on opposite sides of the trunk.

Bar branches

Although there are good reasons to keep bar branches on occasion, there was no great benefit to maintaining them on this tree as there were plenty of nearby branches that I could use to create the primary scaffold branches.

After removing the branch on the right

The tree looked different after removing several bar branches and thinning branch clusters where more than two or three shoots emerged from the same spot.

After thinning

I also selected a single leader at the top of the tree. I don’t yet know what my plan is for developing the apex (a single leader? multiple leaders that branch out?), but I do know that I’d like at least part of the upper trunk to thicken.

From here the work was straightforward. I shortened the upper branches and wired the remaining branches to give them shape (thanks Mark and Nicole!).

After pruning

After wiring

I plan to prune the top of the tree several times during the growing season next year to give the lower branches time to get stronger. I’ll revisit the structural decisions when I look at the tree next fall.

News & Updates

[Winter Shohin School]

• There are a few spaces left for the 2026 Winter Shohin School (and lots of workshop material available!). This year’s event will be held in Alameda, California. Headliner Daisaku Nomoto will lead the two-day event focusing on shohin display and development. Learn more and register online.

[New Bonsai Book from Japan]

• Last year the Japanese Bonsai Association published a catalog with award winning trees from all 50 years of the Sakufu-ten. The Sakufu bonsai exhibit is an annual event featuring the work of professionals. Each member of the Japanese Bonsai Association can submit a single entry for the exhibit. Many Japanese professionals consider the show’s top award as the most prestigious in Japan.
  
  I’m a big fan of the event and of the book so I was thrilled when I found out I could make them available in the US. Learn more or pick up a copy at the Bonsai Tonight Online Store.

I usually aim to prune flowering quince such as boke, toyonishiki, or chojubai in fall after most of the leaves turn color and begin to fall off. In recent years, however, my garden has lacked the cold required to make this happen.

Flowering quince in early January

When this happens, I defoliate the trees and prune them to give them a short break (they usually start blooming immediately after cutback).

White flowering quince after cutback – 12″

My goal for cutback at this time of year is to remove any shoots growing from areas where I don’t need them and to shorten the year’s new growth to reduce the internode length and create an attractive silhouette.

When are new shoots not needed? When they’re growing downwards or towards the center of the composition, when there are two or more branches emerging from the same spot, or when they are growing in crowded areas that are unlikely to receive enough light during the growing season.

White flowering quince before pruning

After pruning – 10″

As always with alternate budding species, the goal is to prune to outwards facing buds to create attractive movement in the branches.

Chojubai before pruning

After pruning – 11″

Although little wiring is needed at this stage, each of these trees can benefit from modest branch arrangement with a few wires or guy wires. I try to avoid over-wiring quince as the wire can cut in quickly during the growing season if it’s not checked regularly.

News & Updates

[Local Event]

• The Bay Area Bonsai Associates (BABA) will hold their 42nd Annual Bonsai Exhibit next weekend on January 17–18 at the Lakeside Park Garden Center at Lake Merritt in Oakland. The event will include exhibit displays, food, a demonstration by Adam Toth, plant sales, and a raffle.
  
  The event runs from 5:30 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. Saturday (featuring Adam’s demo and light dinner) and 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. Sunday.

[Seattle Area Event]

• The Puget Sound Bonsai Association will host their 2026 Winter Silhouette Show on January 31 and February 1st at the Bellevue Botanical Garden in Bellevue, Washington, from 10am – 4pm both days. An artist tour of our exhibit featuring bonsai professionals Aarin Packard (Saturday) and David De Groot (Sunday) at 1pm will provide visitors with insights to the displays. Parking and admission are free. Learn more at the Puget Sound Bonsai Association website.

[National Event]

• This fall, the first ever US National Tropical Bonsai Exhibition will be held in Houston, Texas, on September 5-6, 2026. Event organizers Pedro Morales, Mike Lane, Hurley Johnson, and Dawn Koetting are putting together a fantastic program featuring a tropical-focused vendor area, demonstrations, and an exhibit featuring 100 outstanding tropical bonsai.
  
  The team is currently looking for submissions for the exhibit. Submissions will be accepted through June 15. There are also sponsorship opportunities available for businesses and individuals looking to support the event.
  
  To learn more about the event, check out Evan Pardue’s conversation with organizer Dawn Koetting on the Little Things for Bonsai Podcast. To submit a tree, donate to the event, or sponsor an award, check out the US National Tropical Bonsai website.