[Category 1] Port Jackson Fig

[alpineart]

This is a ISHITSUKI or Vertical landscape of Port Jackson figs .Originally 3 seedlings were purchased about 9 years ago from a nursery , i kept 1 for myself and the other 2 were given to my Neices as gifts .Over the first Winter the frost killed all my figs however the girls lived in Melbourne and their's survived .

Over the next 7 years Nicole and Megan used these Potted plants as cricket wickets , originally they were using foam rubber bats and balls .They progressed into the real Mc Coy cricket gear except for the wickets. The trees took a pounding having branches smashed off continuously .I potted them into 250mm round pots in 2006 placing a rock in each to stabilize their "wickets" not for any other purpose .

On the 9 / 4 / 2009 both girls decided i should have them back because they didn't want to look after them .I potted them into cheap bonsai pots and and returned home with them . On the 11 / 4 / 2009 i decided to cut loose on them and removed the damaged foliage and branches and try my hand a propagating the cuttings . A restyle took place on 1 tree due to the major damage the other was salvaged .

On the 24 /3 /2010 after careful consideration a decided to put together this Ishitsuki , Saikei or Penjing in my words " Vertical landscape ".I chose the main tree from the 2 returned "The cliff dweller" restyled and 9 of the branch cuttings that were taken on the 11 / 4 / 09 . The vertical landscape rock was designed and constructed by me along with the tray it resides in .

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Height overall is 1000mm
Width of main tree is 400mm
Height of the tree is 300mm
Trunk diameter is 50mm
Weight is around 24 kg
Time in training in the current position is 6 days
Vertical rock and tray by Ian Bransden "Alpineart"
Styled and designed by Ian Bransden "Alpineart"

[nealweb]

Wow! amazing, beautiful. How do the trees survive? How can they get enough water? looks stunning

[alpineart]

Wow! amazing, beautiful. How do the trees survive? How can they get enough water? looks stunning

Hi nealweb the pedestal was custom made with pockets to locate roots of the plants . Each crevice was packed with a mix of spagnum moss and soil prior to embedding the individual roots into them then a muck mixture was placed over the top and Moss added for a finishing touch .Water as per normal bonsai .Cheers Alpine

[anttal63]

My hat off to you my friend!!! That is beautiful!!!

[Jamie]

My hat off to you my friend!!! That is beautiful!!!

couldnt say it better myself corker!

[Will_IslandBonsai]

WOW! Who said bonsai can't be fun! Well done!
Will

[Shannon]

Love your rock work mate!!

[AndrewM]

That looks great
I like the way you got the moss to stick vcery nice

[Bougy Fan]

Love your work Alpine. How did you make the pedestal and oout of what ? Remember we will all want to have a go so detailed descriptions would be helpful

[alpineart]

Thanks fella's , its amazing what you can do with a little bit of inspiration followed by motivation and a chainsaw , angle grinder , hammer and a few other trade tools . Bugger me i didn't use any Bonsai tools .The rock is a trade secret however it is made out of modern building materials using everyday carpentry tools ,yep i carry a chainsaw in my tool kit.Cheers