Like a few others, I am a newbie. I purchased an LSU Gold starter plant from Mr. Cantor. The plant is growing extremely well. My question may seem vain but I like the look of a straight tree. The growth is all off the side of the main trunk which is at soil level. The growth is about two feet high. In order to get a straight tree should I just bury everything until the side shoot is stand ing straight when I repot to a larger pot? Is there any downside to doing this?

Should be flexible enough to stake it straight or just wait until you feel it needs bigger pot and that is instant way to straighten it up by tilting its rootball in new pot until the main trunk is perfectly straight .  ; )
Hope this helps. ; )

Dieseler

Thank you, tilting the rootball is exactly what I was trying to say. I assume if I have to trim the rootball a bit so it doesn't hit the side of the bigger pot will not cause issues.

Steve

I have the opposite issue. Many of mine look like palm trees - straight as an arrow with a tuft of leaves on top. I'll be air-layering this spring.

Look up some info on bonsai training.  Also if the whole tree sprouts from one node on a cutting for instance and it's at an angle you can just reposition the cutting part when you repot to have it going straight up.  

OctopusInc,

Thanks for the hint. I will take a peek at Bonsai books.

Steve

if you have the plant by a window, then turn the sprout toward the room away from the light. It will try to reposition itself seeking light and you will have a straight up shoot. Hey, the japanese bend their trees down, so having it side ways is not a bad thing..just matter if you care one way or another.

Grasa,

Thanks, the tree had been growing even better. I moved my olive trees out to my unheated shed. My wife being ever helpful, moved my LSU out there also. I realized two days later. The leaves were dead and the two tips were black. I put back, hit with water and fertilizer and I have new leaves just opening two weeks later. I will probably leave as is to allow the leaves to get their fill. The tips however remain black. Should I leave alone or clip them. When The leaves get larger I will try turning the plant

Appreciate the help.

Steve

Steve,
Personally, I would leave the black tips a little longer. If they are dead they will not hurt the plant, but if they are still alive they may give you better options for shaping your tree. Those tips tend to look dead and then suddenly pop open and grow away. Lsu gold is one of my favorites, very sweet when ripe. Good luck with your tree!

Cal,

Like everything else, patience, patience, patience ....

Thanks,

Steve

;)

I hope to plant 2 or 3 straight trunk trees to replace an existing sycamore by a view deck. 



I may put a few more around the deck where it's possible.  The thinking is to let them grow just above the railing for easy picking of figs, but not high enough to block the view.  JD hates the existing sycamore tree, and much to my delight, he is fine with a couple fig trees there.

I guess I'll just let the trunk tip grow with no pinching except for side shoots (which may become green cuttings).

Thanks for posting this thread!

Suzi

is it on your new home?  looks like a nice place.

Sycamore: beautiful tree, gigantic mess!

Yes, Sycamores are beautiful, but very messy!  JD want's that tree out!  There are others on the property, but not in the way of where people walk, so they don't seem to bother him like this one!  They have big roots too!  Meeting with a tree removal dude tomorrow to see what it will take to get that out of there and grind places to start a couple fig trees.  I'm pushing for 3 tall trunks on that one side and more opposite, but I am easing that idea in to JD's acceptance level... LOL!

Grasa, yep!  New house.  Deck is rotting, so needs to be replaced.  It will be a great place for Figfest 2015 if I can get some fig trees to grow that tall for easy picking :-), but the yard will have many varieties in ground on the big slope!

Although there are many dormant fruit trees on the site, I have no clue what they are, but there is only one that might be a fig.  Tips look like fig cuttings should, but there are all these little whispy dried flower looking things, and I wonder if those could be figs that were never picked.  I'll have to wait and see!  I've never seen an unpicked fig!  :-))

Suzi

I tip my trees all the time when repotting.  If you have to cut the rootball the new pot's too small.  The bigger the pot, the more figs.  Mine gave me a fig last summer.  Yours should give you figs this summer.  Good luck with it!

Suzi,
Why don't you post a pick of a branch of the dormant fig looking tree if you get a chance?

Cajun, I just had a conversation with the seller, and I asked about the trees.  She said she planted a fig tree, and the gophers got it!  So, it is what it is!  I am going on serious gopher patrol/control!  Traps, and poison if necessary!  I have an entire vineyard and orchard to plant.  I found out from her that the entire land there is decomposed granite... Alkaline, which figs love!  Grapes are ok with it too.  But neither of those babies likes gophers!  Actually, truth is, JD and I don't like gophers either!!

Traversing that hill is kinda fun!  You slip with the sand.  Your heel can not dig in!  Fun ride!!

Easy to dig a hole, but the hole needs reinforcement with 1/2" galvanized hardware cloth to keep out the gophers.

Plan to roll with this!!  I like the ease of digging through the sand, but HATE the gophers!

Suzi

Princess & Tank would gladly rid you of your gophers.  Congratulations on starting your dream home!  :)

Is tank a Jack Russel Terrier?  or terror?  My neighbor had one of those!  YIKES!
suzi

On the subject, LSU gold seems perfect for a big nice trunk!  Raspberry Latte next.  I need a few more!
Suzi