Cherry Blossom - Air Layering a Cherry for Bonsai

This is an air layer I took last year.
Prunus x yedoensis 'Akebono' (Yoshino Cherry)
I've known about the concept of air layering for years, but it wasn't until I found Peter Chan's channel that I found out that you can air layer such giant branches.
I'm just a beginner at bonsai, and I guess I know that this cherry blossom tree might not be the best species (I don't even know what species it is) for bonsai. But for me, it's turned out to be a good one to learn with, it grows fast, and it seems to forgive me for whatever I do.
If you want to learn more about air layering, check out:
Growing Bonsai by Jelle
‪@GrowingBonsai‬
• How to succesfully air...
and
Herons Bonsai (Peter Chan)
‪@HeronsBonsaiUK‬
• Air Layering Bonsai Tu...
and many more!
And remember, If I can do it, you can too!
Will
-
My channel is mostly Bonsai related, but I make no promises.
I like to make videos about air-layering, wiring for bonsai, pruning, growing seeds, and well... anything I find interesting.
I am documenting my bonsai progress on TH-cam to share what I am up to with my friends and family, to document the progress of the trees so I can look back at them over the years, and maybe show others that bonsai is something that anyone can get started with since really all you need is a tree (or a seed!) and some patience.
I've always grown trees in pots; ever since I was a little kid growing apple seeds in elementary school. I think bonsai is a great way to keep interesting species at home without having a lot of space. One of my favorite families of trees are maples, but I'm getting into all sorts of other trees as well. Fruit trees and flowering trees are also super interesting to me, and if it has seeds, I want to try and grow it!

[@KetogenicWoman]

Wow! I was not expecting to see you pull down such a large branch 😮

[@willbreeze397]

I suppose that is why the roots grow so fast. Lots of solar panels up there!

[@joewatkins1667]

Wow thats crazy, i might have to give that a go sometime

[@willbreeze397]

Very crazy! I was really surprised how well it works. I’ve had a little less luck on other trees, but I think they just grow slower and I need to be more patient.

[@joewatkins1667]

Amazing root growth in 2 weeks, be cool to see what you do in terms of cutting it down

[@willbreeze397]

Definitely. I’ll try and make up my mind what to do and share it soon.

[@Maples-and-cats]

Great effort and success💯

[@willbreeze397]

Maples! I just did a severe root prune on one of mine to fit it into a pot. Watching it closely to see if it survives 🤞😬

[@ianmorrison9480]

I’d want taper and movement from a design. So, I’d make my cutting choices around that. My reply is 3 months after your post, what did you do?

[@willbreeze397]

I ended up doing the massive cut taking out the old thick leader, then a little later I shortened the smaller leader.
I guess in general that’s going to create some taper, but not so much movement.
That was captured in two different videos. The tree is starting to push some new buds in weird places, so it has survived so far.

[@mikec3820]

been trying to root cuts from my cherry tree for years with no luck, i have yet to try air layer tho, soon as it warms up i will try again lol

[@Free_Falastin2024]

You can't propagate stone fruit by cuttings. They have to be grafted or air layered.

[@willbreeze397]

I did not know that! There are some nice street trees (also cherry blossoms) up the hill from me that I always want to grow from cutting... I suppose I should stop trying ;-)

[@thegreenmanalishiyamadori371]

​@@Free_Falastin2024how do you know? If it can be marcotted,isnt there a Chance for rooting cuttings,even if under plastic foil Tunnel???

[@Pokeman_official1]

Since your in bc I’m gonna say say that your tree is the akebono variety of yoshino which has more pink blooms than the regular yoshino and it’s the most common type grown in bc.. I finally found it lol

[@willbreeze397]

I was cleaning up in the backyard today and I was shocked and amazed to find the label from that Cherry Tree!
And even better; you were right! It is a Akebono Yoshino Cherry - (Prunus X yedoensis 'Akebono')
I couldn't believe it.

[@Pokeman_official1]

@@willbreeze397 wow haha I was right

[@Dream.big.dreams]

Hello, I am a big fan of Yoshino Cherry trees and would like to start propagating them. I have planted over 100 trees on my land and would like to have a few thousand growing before I part this world. However, that is very expensive and I realized I could air propagate all the lower prances of the trees I have to grow more. Is there a limit of branches I can tie up with those bags on a tree? What problems do you feel I could encounter? As well, I have a beaver problem and have lost some trees I planted w0 years ago. Other than trapping the beavers do you have any suggestions on how to keep beavers away and how to save trees that have had the bark girdled by the beaver? Also, is there a size restriction limit of a tree to propagate?

[@willbreeze397]

Hi! That's awesome that you have a tree mission! I'm not aware of any limits on how big of a branch you can air layer. The trick will probably be that you need enough roots to support the size. Often when I take the branch off I will reduce it quite a bit to make sure there isn't too much demand on the roots. I also don't know about how many you can do at once. I've only ever done a few, but I've seen others on TH-cam doing a dozen or more at once. Sorry about the beaver problems... I have no idea about that. I've seen trees before with a thin sheet metal collar, is that for beavers? Perhaps if you cover it with something they can't chew through?

[@Dream.big.dreams]

@@willbreeze397 Thanks for the reply. The metal sheet idea is a great idea! I never thought of that and it is perfect for me, because I purchased 2000 pounds of thin aluminum sheet metal that was at my local Restore. I had planned to use them for roofing and siding, but I can sue some of them to save my trees from the beavers! I will be air layering nine 1.5” redbud trees all from the same trunk. It is growing in a place that I don’t want it to grow, so my goal is to move it. If it works I will post the video so others can do the same.

[@thegreenmanalishiyamadori371]

Good work- I cant believe this massive and fast grow of roots...in my place it took sometimes years to layer...
why not cutting the top of the marcott beforehand to make it easy to handle?
Greetz from Germany 🙋🏻‍♂️
What climate do you live???

[@willbreeze397]

Deutschland! Das is toll! I hope I got that right 😀
I’m on the west coast of Canada in Langley. It can sometimes get up to 35 Celsius in the summer, but high 20s is pretty normal.
I think this tree is just a very fast growing type. Having a lot of leaves above probably helps too. I’ve done smaller trees that are much slower.

[@thegreenmanalishiyamadori371]

@@willbreeze397 in Germany we have sometimes over 40 Degrees without rain for weeks
and trees stop developing and get rid of leaves...thats hard climate to airlayer🤷‍♂️🙋🏻‍♂️

[@thegreenmanalishiyamadori371]

4:59 Did you say :Scheisse!???
I understand that as a German😂😂😂

[@willbreeze397]

@@thegreenmanalishiyamadori371 I’ve been trying to learn for years, but that’s the only word I’ve learned 😂

[@thegreenmanalishiyamadori371]

@@willbreeze397 oh, Shit🤣🤣🤣

[@Antonio-jg8vp]

Ola desde chile. Cuanto tiempo tardo en echar rises ese acodo asta el momento de cortarlo..

[@willbreeze397]

Hello! I cut the bark May 20th and cut it down June 30th. So about 10 weeks?
It can take longer, so it’s a good idea to peel back the plastic and check if there are roots before cutting it down.