AusBonsai

Well done Watto, the variegated leaf is pretty!

cheers Anthony

What an excellent thread. Well done Watto! In the early photos - the one from March 2012 number 006 - it shows some incredibly complex branching —almost knotted - is that still part of the tree - hidden by the leaves and structure or did you work on that somehow?


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Nice tree Watto. Must say I love the photo of the "back" of the tree. Shows some beautiful dead wood features and great gnarly branches.

Its time for an update on this one.
In 2019 I decided on a new look and put that plan in place. Although the plant looked OK I wanted a more dramatic expression of the trees beauty. My plan was to work on it over the 12 to 18 months and then show it at the Goulburn Bonsai Society exhibition this year. After Covert-19 hit I was only progressing slowly but the local society has decided to put the exhibition on this year (official announcement very soon) so I got to work and this is the result. Very different to the previous look but a good face lift is just what it needed I think.
By the time the exhibition comes around I hope that the foliage fills in/out a bit to close the gap between the jins and the top of the foliage pad.
Comments are always welcome.

I really hate how this site handles images. This is too cool to look at sideways.

Love your work Watto.

I like that you've gotten more variegated foliage developed now, and the shape in the new canopy looks great!

Thanks for switching the images around Greg! Much easier to see.

Thanks Greg for your effort and skill. I must admit that the images looked OK to me when I posted it but I appreciate your kindness.
After the re-style I had a think about another "front" and this is the other option. (I hope this comes out the correct orientation)

Much better front

Im also voting for the second option

Robb and Squat Jar you are not making my job any easier. The 2D photos sometimes do not tell the whole story, but in any case here is another version I had considered before settling on the one I currently have.

I prefer first photos of front - not just because of the beer bottle. The dead would is great but to my eye - overpowering the tree in the later photos ... that said, I like 360 degree trees and that fact that there is variation in opinions is great because of the options - as an owner you can rotate and not get bored with one front.


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Watto wrote: ↑September 6th, 2020, 6:54 am Robb and Squat Jar you are not making my job any easier. The 2D photos sometimes do not tell the whole story, but in any case here is another version I had considered before settling on the one I currently have.

Incredible and unique tree mate! I'm growing a hedera helix myself at the moment so it's been a thrill to see ones like yours, much further in their long and arduous trunk thickening journey! I love the last pic as the front since it shows (in my opinion) the best combination of trunk line and dead wood. In saying that, the canopy pales in comparison to the powerful trunk from that angle and you'll most likely have to do a major grow out and styling of the foliage mass.

oh one more thing, do you find it ramifies and back "buds" ok? I hear that in earlier stages they're stubborn but older material assumes a more shrub/tree like behaviour more suitable to bonsai.

keep at it watto, keen to see future progressions

Thanks Yosh,
I don't have any issues with back budding, I cut and it throws out new shoots. I find this a very interesting bonsai because it looks OK from several different "sides" but there is not one dominate "front".
A few of the jins are now becoming very brittle so it will soon have another development session.