NZ Mountain Totara

Many moons ago whilst walking through the Central Plateau, I noticed a prostrate totara that wasn't nivalis (podocarpus totara nivalis, snow totara), or at least didn't look quite like other podocarpus nivalis I'd seen through the area. It had a 'bluer' hue to it and was more upright in form compared to the snow totara, (with a heavier trunk). I thought it a potential cross between nivalis and podocarpus laetus (mountain totara/Halls totara).

This tree was a gnarly 'beat-up-from-snow-&-rock' type beauty and wore it's snaking deadwood wounds proudly. I'd had better take a cutting for the future, replicate this ancient beaut in a somewhat smaller form as it were...

The cutting took, and a few years later it was planted out in our growing fields. We let it grow relatively unhindered in ground for many years, and lifted it in winter '22. Roll up to Autumn '24, and we gave the totara its first styling, as below.

Mountain Totara, initial styling, 2024.

Whilst the tree was in ground we took cuttings off it to produce more of this fantastic variety, and there are now perhaps 30 to 40 bonsai spread throughout Aotearoa originating off of the above Mother tree. Pictured below is one such offspring, after it's first styling...

Mountain Totara frown from cutting, initial styling.

Deadwood detail.

Fast forward to August 2025, and we can have a look at how Mother Mountain Totara has progressed from last years first working...

Mother Mountain Totara, 2025.

Detail.

Foliage is beginning to fill in, and we've managed to repot it into a smaller container, however it's still a touch large, and we'd like to get it into a local handmade vessel, so we'll keep an eye out over the next year...

The tree has progressed well, and is indeed starting to take on the feel (and look) of the gnarly specimen from which it was originally grown (at least from my mind's memory of how the tree looked in the wild many years back). Good times.