On Apr 30, 4:54 am, Jangchub wrote:
On Sun, 29 Apr 2007 21:35:39 -0500, Max Jones no-email.please.com
wrote:

Hi, a friend recently gave me a small bristlecone pine tree. I'm wondering
how it would do as a houseplant?

What soil should I plant it in? How often would it like to be watered? How
slowly will it grow?

Thanks!

Max

In my opinion, based on my knowledge of bonsai (not that yours is a
bonsai) any pine trees must live outdoors in order to get the chill
hours necessary. This tree is the oldest living tree that we know of
and it grows very slowly. There is no way to provide enough sun for
it through a window. You can try it, but I'm certain you will not
have a healthy plant.

When growing large pines in containers, it does help to use some
bonsai techniques- especially root pruning on soil change-outs. The
Bristlecone isn't going to demand enough from the container it's in to
wind up dwarfed in any significant way, however. It will put up with
indirect light- the Snake, White, and other ranges in The Great Basin
aren't sunny all year round, and most of the young trees are buried in
snow for a few months a year. The ones I've seen in the area usually
get started between a couple of boulders.

By the time mine needs a bigger home and better conditions, I'll be
back in the carbon cycle.