I understand your frustration, Kathleen. I have been able to find all of the products (well, with some "authorized" substitutes) for the gritty mix, but have been unable to find the pine bark fines for the 5:1:1 mix. I can't find pine bark mulch or shredded pine bark mulch here. I haven't checked at Walmart, but according to Walmart's web site, my local Walmarts don't sell ANY sort of mulch, just various Miracle-Gro bagged products. None of the big box stores in my area have pine bark mulch; they do sell pine bark nuggets, but those, of course, are way too big. In fact, none of the nurseries in the area at which I have checked sell pine bark mulch, either - it used to be available, but I haven't seen it in the last few years. Shredded cedar mulch seems to be the mulch of choice around here - there's plenty of that! I haven't been able to find any sort of pine bark soil conditioner, either. I guess we both just live in the wrong parts of the USA to make finding the supplies easy - or even possible! And the cost of shipping if ordering supplies on line would be prohibitive - I can't even contemplate doing so because I don't have the $$$ to spare. I have read some posts where people say that the Repti-Bark can be used for both mixes, but this product is definitely not partially composted so I have my doubts that this is what Al meant should be used in his 5:1:1 mix. Here is a quote from a post Al made in 2009 in reference to the bark in this mix: I like bark best, and the best size for the 5:1:1 mix is sawdust to 1/4" pieces and partially composted, with most of the particles concentrated in the 1/16-3/16 size. I'm NOT suggesting you go out looking for bark that fits this description, but it will give you an idea of what works best. Sigh. Holly

Pinus edulis will graft 100x better when only grafted to edulis. Pinus flexilis can be grafted to the most commonly sold seedlings: P.strobus, Pinus strobiformis and any other pine including flexilis that has needles in fascicles of five. For you: Pinus strobus or strobiformis is a fine choice. Also, Pinus sylvestris is a fine choice for pines with needles in fascicles of two. These are the commonly sold seedlings at nurseries, however, if another 2-needles pine is available, go for it. You just need to use common sense. Abies concolor has tap-root issues and should be avoided. I know some guys on here use it w/o fear, but I personally wouldn't recommend it. A good all around understock for you is Canaan (Abies x phanerolepis) or Abies fraseri (sourced to the SW). The common most frasier fir sold as SW origin if from Lincoln National Forest. If you can get nordmanniana, that's a good choice as well. Spruce: either Picea abies or Picea pungens are equal. I use Picea abies because the needles are not sharp and are easily removed. Maybe you've seen my grafting video? I'll link it. And I have two more videos. Dax Here is a link that might be useful: Grafting 2011 Bonsai and Root Grafts

Yep, Tcharles is right - your only realistic option is to go there yourself and collect your own seed. Yucca-do Nursery in TX at least used to collect several of the piñons on their Mexico trips and sell the plants, but last I looked at their website, they no longer had them on their list. Might be worth asking though. Not that collecting your own is any hardship, you get to see mature specimens in their native habitat, and what could be more exciting than that! ;-) Time to go is late October or early November; I was there early-mid Nov., which was a touch late for P. cembroides, P. culminicola and P. pinceana (most seed gone but still some in), ideal for P. nelsonii and P. johannis (cones freshly opening but still full of seed). P. remota ripens earlier, early to mid September. P. maximartinezii is the odd one out on timing, its cones take about 26 months to mature, and open in late summer; I think the locals harvest them in August. Growing piñons from seed isn't difficult; fresh seeds germinate readily after cold moist pre-treatment (couple of months in damp sand at +2°C), and the seedlings are vigorous in their first year (having good reserves in the large seed!). Early youth is much more difficult - they deeply resent any root disturbance, and I lost some transplanting from seedbed to individual pots (if I did it again, I'd use individual pots one per seed from the start). But this risk applies just as much to bought-in plants as to own-grown seedlings. Resin Here is a link that might be useful: Pics and some locations

Tom, Thanks for mentioning this. Winter protection from cold winter winds is definitely a must for most but especially us. We discussed this issue above in a few posts, but my backyard where most of my garden (and Japanese Maples)is located is protected on all sides. Two sides, north and east, by a wood fence that borders my yard and two neighbors, and the western side by my house. The southern side has a chain link fence partially protected by bamboo fencing, beyond which is a large neighboring yard. Even the side that is more exposed has houses beyond the yard breaking up wind from that direction. My front yard facing north gets most wind between my house and a neighbor's, but the north winds get partially blocked by the neighbor's house. Here, I have a few Maples, two of which are most exposed to wind--one an AP 'palmatum' (parent cultivar) has done fine for two years. The other a Acer Shirasawanum 'Palmatifolium' I put in this year. I will probably put wire around this and burlap or other protection as suggested. Other palmatums: A Red Dragon, Hogyoku and Bloodgood have done fine for two years and a Kandy Kitchen over the winter. These are in a bed that get some north winds exposure in the front. Back to my backyard though I have a micro-climate created by the enclosure of the fences. I plan to extend and improve my bamboo fencing. And in fact, when I go to the best Japanese gardens typically they have all the most delicate and finer plants located in an enclosure of some sort here (at Botanic Gardens). Actually making a garden enclosure is not just for protection but looks nicer as well. I also have two Norway Spruces anchoring the corner of my backyard garden which provide a windbreak. I also have other conifers (Pines) in the garden which provide some protection from wind too. A larger Norway Maple away from the main area provides some afternoon shade for summer heat, but I have had to prune this to allow more sunlight to get through. My pleasant surprise is that these cultivars are much hardier than they have been given credit for, but we here in northern Illinois have not seen drastic winter temps. I haven't seen temps in the -25 degree range for over fifteen years. Since I've been collecting (very short time) the winters have reached -15, but this is only for one or two days. Long term cold fronts typically are in the zero degree, plus or minus 5 degrees range. Wind chill can be much colder. But it is the temperature below ground that is key. In fact, snow as tough as it is to deal with in some ways actually protects the roots from the cold and wind. It is a natural insulator. The real killer is actually late frosts after a warming trend as many here on the forum can attest to--the killer Spring frost of 2007 that drastically affected the Southern states and southern Illinois though not here because the warming trend here was brief enough that it did not cause the trees to leaf. These type of events can quickly take the life of our trees as I found out this year with a small Bloodgood. Late frost can happen in any zone, but affect areas that are more prone to drastic temperature swings in the Spring. More later, Ken