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I’ve had this red pine a while now and first worked on it back in 2016. In the 9 years I’ve been growing it it’s been through a few phases and has been displayed, grown out, brough back in, maintained and generally been in and out of the workshop a few times each of the years I’ve owned it.
It’s even had a couple of post about it POST 1, POST 2
More recently it has really outgrown its previous style.
It’s pretty clear from the above image that the foliage has well out grown the trunk size. It feels heavy and makes the trunk seem thin and essentially out of scale.
I’d been thinking a lot about this tree, staring at it each day i was watering, pondering options and playing out scenarios in my head.
I’d always wanted a decent bunjin tree and this tree always seemed half way there, so after much thinking and with a whole lot of needle plucking on the horizon i decided to make the jump. With branch cutters in hand, i began to cut.
I took off the first, second, third, fourth and a bunch more branches as i worked my way up from bottom to top.
After more cutting and some wire i got the tree into its new shape.
I’m pretty happy with the new style. Looking back to the original styling in 2016, i think that this revision fits the tree even more than that first styling. Back in 2016 i didn’t have the growth i would have needed to make the above image so I don’t think it was something i had even considered back then. It really was a case of having to go on a bit of a journey to end up at this style. It highlights how Bonsai change over time and evolve and you have to be open to that to maintain, reshape and move bonsai through time.
It’s really worth actively reassessing your trees and always looking for new ideas and solutions. It can be really rewarding and provide some refreshing change, and in the case of this tree i think that approach has resulted in a better tree!
Of course, now the hunt for an appropriate pot begins………..
This year i finally feel like my pines are thriving after a long period of mediocre growth. This bad growth was due to a number of factors including:
- water pH Issues – Solved by moving to rain water.
- soil mix – I have recently moved to Akadama, Pumice and Scoria and believe this is a good improvement.
- fertiliser regime – This year i am using a two part hydroponic fertiliser and am applying weekly, and;
- strange seasonal variation – We have been in an ‘El-nina’ phase which resulted in cool wet years which even threw my tomato crops off kilter amongst other things
Most of the pines have been grown out last year and skipped de-candling to build their strength and from the below pics you can see they are responding well this year.
The Radiata is a fairly new addition to my garden after not having one for a while. I am treating it more like a Japanese White pine in regards to foliage management and so far am seeing good results. The process is essentially:
- Grow out the spring flush.
- once it stops extending, prune back leaving some of the new candle’s growth.
- New shoots form and grow out
- Thin needles
- Prune back new shoots to two and reduce length as per Step 2.
- Repeat.
I am guessing i will get 2 or 3 flushes per year using this method. So far needles have not come down in size much but as i build more canopy i assume this will slowly reduce the length.
I probably also need to play around with feeding timing but at the moment i am focused on building branching so am feeding heavily. A post for another day.
Another tree that has been worked recently was this Japanese Red Pine.
It was a tree that I styled for a friend that later found it way onto my benches. I really love this little tree and enjoy working it and getting lost looking at it.
The tree had a fairly dramatic first styling back around 2016. The before after shots of that work are in the bloc post below:
It was also displayed at the 2018 AABC national convention where it was in great health and form. It’s the last tree you see in the 6 trees I displayed in the below video:
The work this time around was more of a maintenance styling and of course I forgot to take a before image as i got carried away in the work. The tree like many others had suffered with my poor water issues and has lost a few branches and shoots so I had to be a bit creative to fill the gaps once more. That said, I am pretty happy with how it all turned out and I am looking forward to the next couple of years as the tree develops further.
As per my pervious post, this tree is also a little thin in the canopy. That said I am fairly confident that this will fill in nicely this next growing season. It may be due for a repot also this year so I might see what containers I have on hand to mix up the image a little. Pretty sure I have a nanban style pot hidden away somewhere…. I just need to find it.
This post is about another red pine I worked for a good friend. It’s a tree i had previously styled a year ago that was in need of some further work. The previous work was documented HERE.
This was where I left off last time I worked the tree.
The tree it was ready for a re-pot and I was therefore presented with the opportunity to re-think the front. I decided to stand the tree up slightly and work the foliage around this new angle.
Post styling.
The photo that is missing between the two above photos is that of a tree that had grown very well and had turned into a solid foliage mass. Unfortunately i forgot to get a before pic.
The styling this time around removed a number of branches to re-introduce a sense of openness and lightness into the canopy while the new planting angle introduces some interesting movement into the lower trunk and provides a more dynamic foliage form.
I like how the canopy has been stretched vertically and how the apex is straining to lean over the trunk. I cant wait to see it now that the owner has re-potted it at the new angle. I think it is a good change for the tree.
For those wondering, the arm holding the tree is attached to the ever handsome Evan Marsh. He runs a great blog (much better written than mine) that is well worth a look and chronicles his exploits studying in Japan and else where. It can be found HERE.
Life as always is busy but lately things have been flat-out. I have been juggling a two-year old, full-time work, managing our house’s extension, working customer trees, digging/collecting material and also travelling Australia (Perth, Sydney, Canberra, Bendigo, Geelong and Brisbane) as an AABC tutor giving lectures, demonstrations and workshops. As a result the blog has suffered.
Hopefully I can kick start the blog in the coming months. I have a number of posts lined up and I am sure there will be things of interest to share as the growing season heats up.
Today’s post is a small red pine that I worked for a good friend towards the start of winter.
It is rare to see red pines in Australia and particularly rare to see ones as good as this one. It underwent a fairly major transformation during the styling which in my opinion has set it up to be one of the best red pines of this size in the country (at least from those I have seen). It still needs a little filling out but it’s bones are set for it to grow into a really nice tree into the future.
The material prior to beginning. Nice colour and full growth which left a lot to work with.
The material prior to beginning. Nice colour and full growth which left a lot to work with.
Most of the work during the styling involved dividing the few branches up into multiple smaller pads that were in better scale and harmony to the size of the tree. Those were then used to accentuate the movement and direction of the trunk line.
There is still a number of areas that need to fill in with further ramification but I think it is certainly off to a great start.
After saying that red pines are rare in Australia my next post will be about another taller tree that is also of very high quality. Until then……..
Nichigo Bonsai 