This was collected from my Mothers front yard back in December 2010 , being close to 90 years of age she is legally blind , however she continues to tend her garden .This was planted too shallow in the ground and continually fell over. Not being able to see it she would trip over the tree and forget to stand it back up .
I mentioned to her that it needed a new home and of course she insisted i have it .
After returning home i potted it into a deep pot and set 3 layers on the upper sections that would have been removed for the purpose of being used as a Bonsai.
I contemplated a windswept style tree , then a cascade, but finally finished up with an informal upright .
Shade cloth mat was used over the pot so it could be rotated numerous positions for the purpose of balanced growth for the layers , without washing the mix out of the container After the layers were removed the trunk was again studied for the best use of the unusual movement.
With all but 2-3 small shoot left it was potted into a 260mm drum pot in an upright position and the shoots wired for a leader and side branches .The removal of the stubs was to a point flush with the trunk , quite large so they will take some time to heal over .
With the growing season very early this year , 
an early trim took place to remove the tips for the start of the ramification of the branches 
the tree has undergone a power feeding process to stimulate buck budding ,
however it hasn’t produced the shoot where they were required so they were removed
a pre trim before the wiring to set a basic informal upright style
which may change to an informal broom depending on the growth habit of the tree
.The base in well over 100mm and the height is now 500mm, a top side shoot has been used for the new leader to aid thickening of the older leader lower down
.My plan is to have a finished tree with a height of around 700mm .A re-pot is on the cards as it will no doubt be pot bound in this pot .
The tooth pick method of root stimulation will be used to improve and re-build the narebri . This will take place as soon as i can located or make a suitable pot or container to allow for the production of the roots . For now it can grow on until such time as i re pot in readiness for the root work. This trainer will be very special as it will have a history and a story to tell being 2 generations old already, yet only 1 year in training
Cheers Alpineart