[Natural] Melaleuca Ericifolia - Ryceman3

AusBonsai will be holding regular contests about bonsai in Australia and bonsai with Australian natives. Check here for the current contests.
User avatar
Ryceman3
Aussie Bonsai Fan
Aussie Bonsai Fan
Posts: 2595
Joined: October 19th, 2014, 10:39 am
Favorite Species: Pines & Mels
Bonsai Age: 7
Location: Melbourne
Has thanked: 1041 times
Been thanked: 1535 times

Re: [Natural] Melaleuca Ericifolia - Ryceman3

Post by Ryceman3 »

Thanks all for your feedback and thoughts.
It's always good to hear what others see in your work.
:beer:
melbrackstone wrote: April 26th, 2022, 6:43 pm I like the way you've started to get that flow to the right.
Agreed! The flow to the right I think is very important on this tree for it to make sense. I'm hoping that future dead wood and extension will help to push it a bit further in that direction.
Keep Calm and Ramify wrote: April 26th, 2022, 9:45 pm That's looking great!
Cheers mate! :beer:
dansai wrote: April 27th, 2022, 8:11 am Love this Ryan. Reminds me very strongly of the old Mels I see around here. They usually have only slight movement in their trunks and get more and more movement out onto the branches and end up very twisty. Well done :clap:
I'm glad the tree evokes that spirit/vibe for you Dan, the description you give is the kind of aesthetic I was inspired by so I'm pleased it resonates with you! :yes:
MJL wrote: April 27th, 2022, 8:20 am Yes, I love this too. Our influences are so varied - like their natural habit - I can’t help but be influenced by the twisting, turning, gnarly trunks on the Mornington peninsula … they almost worm across the ground and through the dunes … influenced by the sea winds and perhaps reflecting their roots underneath the sand, search for water … and yet others grow almost bolt upright or at an angle - somehow in a rush to find the sun.
Hi MJL, long time no see!
I couldn't agree more, plenty of variation in the way our natives grow in their natural habitats ... which makes sense given that Australia has such a variation of climates and landscapes. Great trees in the wild and as bonsai indeed.
GavinG
Aussie Bonsai Fan
Aussie Bonsai Fan
Posts: 2213
Joined: April 26th, 2010, 11:47 pm
Favorite Species: Maple
Bonsai Age: 0
Bonsai Club: CBS
Location: Canberra
Has thanked: 456 times
Been thanked: 228 times

Re: [Natural] Melaleuca Ericifolia - Ryceman3

Post by GavinG »

Nice refined work all over. Interesting complex structure, and refined fine trimming. Although it may reflect trees in the wild, it is also a strong composition in its own right - well done. Do you know how long they live in the wild?

Gavin
greg27
Aussie Bonsai Fan
Aussie Bonsai Fan
Posts: 821
Joined: August 28th, 2019, 7:52 am
Favorite Species: Olive & Eucalypts
Bonsai Age: 2
Bonsai Club: SA Bonsai Society; VNBC
Location: Adelaide
Has thanked: 608 times
Been thanked: 452 times
Contact:

Re: [Natural] Melaleuca Ericifolia - Ryceman3

Post by greg27 »

Nice tree, nice pot, nice moss, nice photo. Nice!

And best of all, nice progression thread. You've done a great job at showing all the steps between a stick in a pot to a nice bonsai.
longd_au
Aussie Bonsai Fan
Aussie Bonsai Fan
Posts: 340
Joined: July 31st, 2013, 9:59 pm
Favorite Species: Maple
Bonsai Age: 5
Bonsai Club: None
Location: Melbourne
Has thanked: 20 times
Been thanked: 61 times

Re: [Natural] Melaleuca Ericifolia - Ryceman3

Post by longd_au »

It's amazing how much change this tree has undergone since the beginning and in such a short time. Nice work.
-----------------------------------------------------------
Dennis
A journey full of experiments
User avatar
Ryceman3
Aussie Bonsai Fan
Aussie Bonsai Fan
Posts: 2595
Joined: October 19th, 2014, 10:39 am
Favorite Species: Pines & Mels
Bonsai Age: 7
Location: Melbourne
Has thanked: 1041 times
Been thanked: 1535 times

Re: [Natural] Melaleuca Ericifolia - Ryceman3

Post by Ryceman3 »

GavinG wrote: April 27th, 2022, 12:59 pm Nice refined work all over. Interesting complex structure, and refined fine trimming. Although it may reflect trees in the wild, it is also a strong composition in its own right - well done. Do you know how long they live in the wild?

Gavin
No idea Gavin, hopefully it lasts for long enough that all this effort was worthwhile!! :P
Thanks for your kind words. :beer:
greg27 wrote: April 27th, 2022, 2:47 pm Nice tree, nice pot, nice moss, nice photo. Nice!

And best of all, nice progression thread. You've done a great job at showing all the steps between a stick in a pot to a nice bonsai.
Thanks Greg, nothing in bonsai is ever really finished until it dies so I hope the progression continues for a bit longer.
:beer:
longd_au wrote: April 27th, 2022, 6:16 pm It's amazing how much change this tree has undergone since the beginning and in such a short time. Nice work.
Cheers Dennis. I'm glad that a lot of people seem to like this tree, it's quickly become one of my favs.
:beer:
terryb
Aussie Bonsai Fan
Aussie Bonsai Fan
Posts: 559
Joined: April 29th, 2016, 3:44 pm
Bonsai Age: 4
Bonsai Club: SA Bonsai Society; VNBC
Location: Adelaide
Has thanked: 521 times
Been thanked: 199 times

Re: [Natural] Melaleuca Ericifolia - Ryceman3

Post by terryb »

Awesome R3, you certainly have a knack for styling and this tree is looking fantastic.
Beano
Aussie Bonsai Fan
Aussie Bonsai Fan
Posts: 1373
Joined: January 22nd, 2012, 12:31 pm
Bonsai Age: 3
Location: Adelaide
Has thanked: 10 times
Been thanked: 114 times

Re: [Natural] Melaleuca Ericifolia - Ryceman3

Post by Beano »

This is my favourite so far!


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
LeeBee73
Aussie Bonsai Fan
Aussie Bonsai Fan
Posts: 14
Joined: June 8th, 2022, 1:13 pm
Favorite Species: All
Bonsai Age: 0
Location: Adelaide, SA
Has thanked: 84 times
Been thanked: 5 times

Re: [Natural] Melaleuca Ericifolia - Ryceman3

Post by LeeBee73 »

I just wanted to say as a complete novice to bonsai I find your work in just 3 years to get a result like this breathtaking. I have been an avid gardener for many years, and really love natives but as I get older I am thinking I need to scale back a tad, which got me thinking about bonsai.
I hadn't really thought about natives and bonsai, but a friend showed me some images and after a play on the internet, somehow I got here. I'm glad I did. There is a lot to take in from some of the amazing things people are doing, but this especially is quite special and inspirational. Wow.
I know what I'll be looking through for a while now!
User avatar
Ryceman3
Aussie Bonsai Fan
Aussie Bonsai Fan
Posts: 2595
Joined: October 19th, 2014, 10:39 am
Favorite Species: Pines & Mels
Bonsai Age: 7
Location: Melbourne
Has thanked: 1041 times
Been thanked: 1535 times

Re: [Natural] Melaleuca Ericifolia - Ryceman3

Post by Ryceman3 »

LeeBee73 wrote: June 8th, 2022, 1:31 pm I just wanted to say as a complete novice to bonsai I find your work in just 3 years to get a result like this breathtaking. I have been an avid gardener for many years, and really love natives but as I get older I am thinking I need to scale back a tad, which got me thinking about bonsai.
I hadn't really thought about natives and bonsai, but a friend showed me some images and after a play on the internet, somehow I got here. I'm glad I did. There is a lot to take in from some of the amazing things people are doing, but this especially is quite special and inspirational. Wow.
I know what I'll be looking through for a while now!
Many thanks for the kind words LeeBee73 and I’m glad you got something out of it. Inspiring people to get into bonsai and look to natives as a great option to create them definitely makes the efforts worthwhile.
Enjoy your bonsai journey!
:yes: :beer:
User avatar
Ryceman3
Aussie Bonsai Fan
Aussie Bonsai Fan
Posts: 2595
Joined: October 19th, 2014, 10:39 am
Favorite Species: Pines & Mels
Bonsai Age: 7
Location: Melbourne
Has thanked: 1041 times
Been thanked: 1535 times

Re: [Natural] Melaleuca Ericifolia - Ryceman3

Post by Ryceman3 »

Repot for this mel today, and I decided on a change of pot.
Similar modus operandi to the other recent native repots I've done, I'll let the photos tell the story.
Probably trimmed back another 5-10% from what is shown in the photo with the root pad to get it to sit low enough. It actually has more room in this pot though, so I expect good growth over the next 12 months.
Tree is coming on well I think.
:beer:
MelRepot05 IG_02.jpg
MelRepot05 IG_03.jpg
MelRepot05 IG_04.jpg
MelRepot05 IG_01.jpg
You do not have the required permissions to view the files attached to this post.
User avatar
Ryceman3
Aussie Bonsai Fan
Aussie Bonsai Fan
Posts: 2595
Joined: October 19th, 2014, 10:39 am
Favorite Species: Pines & Mels
Bonsai Age: 7
Location: Melbourne
Has thanked: 1041 times
Been thanked: 1535 times

Re: [Natural] Melaleuca Ericifolia - Ryceman3

Post by Ryceman3 »

After a spring trim. Not a significant amount of change from the last post in Feb after the repot, but just to keep the whole thing updated.
Slowly but surely ...
:beer:
Mel_EricC IG_02.jpg
Mel_EricC IG_01.jpg
You do not have the required permissions to view the files attached to this post.
boom64
Aussie Bonsai Fan
Aussie Bonsai Fan
Posts: 1105
Joined: November 11th, 2009, 9:03 pm
Favorite Species: Almond
Bonsai Age: 2
Location: South Coast NSW
Has thanked: 274 times
Been thanked: 394 times

Re: [Natural] Melaleuca Ericifolia - Ryceman3

Post by boom64 »

Enjoying the run of Ericifolias Ryceman ,all looking great . Cheers John.
User avatar
Ryceman3
Aussie Bonsai Fan
Aussie Bonsai Fan
Posts: 2595
Joined: October 19th, 2014, 10:39 am
Favorite Species: Pines & Mels
Bonsai Age: 7
Location: Melbourne
Has thanked: 1041 times
Been thanked: 1535 times

Re: [Natural] Melaleuca Ericifolia - Ryceman3

Post by Ryceman3 »

Update after another summer cut back for this tree.
The natives have all been growing quite prolifically in the wet lead in to summer we've had. Slowly getting them all back into shape. The more advanced they get the longer it takes though!
:beer:
MelEric02 IG_02.jpg
MelEric02 IG_01.jpg
You do not have the required permissions to view the files attached to this post.
Post Reply

Return to “Current Contest”