As always, bonsai creates so many different contentious issues, that this is inadvertently what we may also love about the art.
Man you're so diplomatic. How do you do that?
If this where a conifer then yes I would go this way.
But I live in ericifolia country surrounded by about 100 million trillion of them. They grow upright always. Even REALLY old ones (usually bunjin style but branches up).
Mike, I can see you saying this whilst wearing a cowboy hat and sporting Indiana Jones' branch clippers when you say that:
"SON!... this is Ericifolia country here! We don't grow branches down 'round here." *sputooey (spitting onto the ground)
...on a side note: I get the trait of diplomacy from my father who is a professor. The trait of random idiocy though, is all my own doing.
Rory I style Bonsai naturally, just as they would appear in the wild.
Central Coast, NSW
Bonsai: Casuarina Leptospermum Banksia Phebalium Baeckea Melalueca Ficus
Perhaps Hugh and treeman can post photos of some of the trees they've seen. It would be useful information. I just remember seeing the leptos down on Mornington peninsula for the first time - they are crazy-wild, and until I'd seen them, bonsai shaped like that didn't look "natural" to me. More to learn.
thanks for all the comments everybody! i had a good feeling the tree would spark this kind of discussion.
I should be able to answer everyone's questions and thoughts on the tree in this explanation and hopefully spark more discussion, so here goes.
First of all ericifolia were i live grow very much like the way i have styled this tree, Where this tree came from in fact has been styled keeping in mind the natural attributes of some of the oldest trees in the area. My observations are:
- Long top pieces of dead wood that are sometimes twice the size of the tree, hence why i have created this long piece of dead wood out the top.
- they will be quite straight with subtle movements in the trunk
- often hollows and old dead wood on the trunks sometimes in multiple spots showing were the tree has broken and grown again and again and again.
- The heavy branches will point upwards on lower branches, if they have lower branches ....
- alot of the trees that have the description as stated above; dead wood top, hollows, tall etc. will have only branches originating from the top of the tree that are rather heavy and spill down wards with foliage that then rises up on contorted branches. these are usually the oldest trees and have lost all their lower limbs.
What i am trying to convey with this tree is this image i have described.
Does the styling at the moment exactly show this yet ? not exactly
But am i trying to convey a natural image? Yes most definitely!
what i have set on this tree is the structure in order to set up this image. The branches that are pulled down as well as where the lowest point of the foliage, is will be in the design. However the foliage stepping up the branches will not have flat foliage masses like say a conifer, but rather will be growing up sitting upon the main branches seen now. you can see on the lowest part of the foliage on the right hand branch what the new foliage that will grow will start to be formed like.
Hope this explains it !
Last edited by hugh grant on May 29th, 2015, 7:57 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Tree Makers Making Australian Bonsai
School - Nursery - Store
thanks for all the comments everybody! i had a good feeling the tree would spark this kind of discussion.
I should be able to answer everyone's questions and thoughts on the tree in this explanation and hopefully spark more discussion, so here goes.
First of all ericifolia were i live grow very much like the way i have styled this tree, Where this tree came from in fact has been styled keeping in mind the natural attributes of some of the oldest trees in the area. My observations are:
- Long top pieces of dead wood that are sometimes twice the size of the tree, hence why i have created this long piece of dead wood out the top.
- they will be quite straight with subtle movements in the trunk
- often hollows and old dead wood on the trunks sometimes in multiple spots showing were the tree has broken and grown again and again and again.
- The heavy branches will point upwards on lower branches, if they have lower branches ....
- alot of the trees that have the description as stated above; dead wood top, hollows, tall etc. will have only branches originating from the top of the tree that are rather heavy and spill down wards with foliage that then rises up on contorted branches. these are usually the oldest trees and have lost all their lower limbs.
What i am trying to convey with this tree is this image i have described.
Does the styling at the moment exactly show this yet ? not exactly
But am i trying to convey a natural image? Yes most definitely!
what i have set on this tree is the structure in order to set up this image. The branches that are pulled down as well as where the lowest point of the foliage, is will be in the design. However the foliage stepping up the branches will not have flat foliage masses like say a conifer, but rather will be growing up sitting upon the main branches seen now. you can see on the lowest part of the foliage on the right hand branch what the new foliage that will grow will start to be formed like.
Hope this explains it !
Works for me .
The styling is great and I'd love to see the inspiration too, if possible. Would be much appreciated.
Cheers,
Mo
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
There are many ways to do things, but only one "best" way.
Here is a quick sketch up on photoshop as to how i see the tree progressing, the foliage mass is a little bit bigger in the virt than id see it being but you get the idea. This will be built through ramification sing the structure that i have set which is the back bonsai of the design.
_MG_6141 future virt.jpg
You do not have the required permissions to view the files attached to this post.
Tree Makers Making Australian Bonsai
School - Nursery - Store
hugh grant wrote:Here is a quick sketch up on photoshop as to how i see the tree progressing, the foliage mass is a little bit bigger in the virt than id see it being but you get the idea. This will be built through ramification sing the structure that i have set which is the back bonsai of the design.
_MG_6141 future virt.jpg
That looks good Hugh. If you achieve that look, hats off to you! I first imagined flat pads with all branches pendulous as in shimpaku but this image is pleasing to the eye. In fact I prefer junipers arranged like this rather than some of the very tight dense forms we often see. (maintenece is more involved but worth the trouble I think)
Keep us updated.
hugh grant wrote:Here is a quick sketch up on photoshop as to how i see the tree progressing, the foliage mass is a little bit bigger in the virt than id see it being but you get the idea. This will be built through ramification sing the structure that i have set which is the back bonsai of the design.
Looks fantastic. What time of the year did you collect this? I've got several growing on my property that have some potential. Do you have any tips for caring for the roots when digging?
Love your work Grant, thought provoking as always. I love the species amazed at how quickly and easily they develop.
My attention is drawn to the massive apical jin.(which I do not love) Jins tell a story of age and history but on melaleucas it may be hard to pull off. Soft wood which would deteriorate quickly in the natural environment tells a story of a tree in a transitional stage. An older tree will have lost most of the jin and developed a new crown. I feel that while the jin is large the image portrayed will be that of a tree in transition but perhaps that is the intention?
Q: Why are we all here?
A: Because we are not all there.
hugh grant wrote:I though id share a tree i recently worked on, Its a larger piece of collected material, with fair age to it. The tree, a quietly old Melaleuca ericifolia, the swamp paperbark. The melaleuca species is a gnarly yet graceful tree. These trees grow for a long time in the swamps, reaching high. Over time these trees with there heavy tops are snapped in half and the tree grows again. The repeated process of this leaves a history of dead wood along the trunks and kinked twisted trunks that follows out to low falling branches, the oldest deadwood at the bottom and the newest at the top.
This is the initial styling from raw material, the structure is set, time now will be spent working on developing the foliage and working the tree into a pot.
IMG_6125 copy.jpg
_MG_6141 copy.jpg
Hugh
Hi Hugh,
This is my swamp paperbark I collected 13 years ago and took some years to develop, but it's certainly worthwhile. Not to mention being patient.
It's beautiful material to work with.
Melaleuca.jpg
Cheers
Rolf
You do not have the required permissions to view the files attached to this post.
Sensational work Rolfster, there are several melaleuca called swamp paperbark, m.raphiophylla is common in WA, while m.ericafolia is common in the eastern states. Which is yours?
Q: Why are we all here?
A: Because we are not all there.
Gerard wrote:Sensational work Rolfster, there are several melaleuca called swamp paperbark, m.raphiophylla is common in WA, while m.ericafolia is common in the eastern states. Which is yours?
Hi Gerard,
Thanks , it's m.raphiophylla.... correct.
Cheers
Rolf
Last edited by Rolf on April 30th, 2016, 9:21 pm, edited 2 times in total.
