This is one of the few i have worked on over the past week. They were basically shaped in the trunk by winding them around a bamboo stake 2 years ago , then allowed the grow on for that season and the stake removed .
This sets the movement into the trunk without damaging the bark as in most cases with wire as they can thicken very quickly being a younger tree .
Still basically at the pot plant stage i trimmed off the access foliage/branches in order to open up the tree and expose the trunk line .
From there i removed the needles to assist in the wiring process .
With all the unwanted needles out of the way i tip pruned the branches and begin to wire them into position . Because the trunk was pre shaped there is no need to re-wire the trunk .
The new apex requires wiring and shaping . This plant is about 5 years old and has been a pot plant from day one .
No root work has taken place , so come Winter it will be worked and re-potted into a bonsai pot .This will no doubt slow down the growth to a more compact shoot and needle length ,
This plant has been trimmed only from a basic trunk to a shaped trainer ,
no wire will be placed onto this specimen . I will allow it to run free for another season to thicken up the trunk and branches .Both these plants are typical of nursery stock without the trunk movement allowing a low cost entry level into a quality trainer with a little bit of training and styling .They are basic trainers and one must start somewhere .
I intend to do a few experiments with this plant , straightening the trunk into a formal upright for one and possibly slashing to trunk to see if the results turn out to be that of an aged Cedar . Can’t hurt but try these things , i don’t plan to kill it just pre age the trunk itself . . With all these tasks done its onto the next 2 Cedar’s .
Cheers Alpineart