Not Teds Angophora

[Milo]

Just like to show my Angophora cut back from a 3 metre nursery stock[img]

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[Milo]

Last try[img]

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[mugen]

Love the bark on this tree really nice

[alpineart]

Hi Milo , very nice looking natural native ,I'm slowly get into our natives but they are hit and miss at my place .Thanks for inspiring me to work a little harder .I certainly would like to have a few more established tree's on my benches .

Cheers Alpineart

[cuwire]

Hi Milo

Can you tell us the steps you took the roots through to go from nursery stock to a bonsai pot.

Quite a striking tree.

David

[Milo]

Hi David,
I spent most of last night writing a story on the tree, and between trying to load the photo and saving the file it disappeared. so here we go again.
Like most, I visit every nursery that I pass (if the wife will let me) looking for mature trees (natives of any kind) most nursery's have young stock, I have found a discount nursery that has a lot of mature Gums, 450 mm pots and 2 to 3 metres high , pot bound and cheap. ( and No My secret )
Had to cut the top out of the tree to get it home, but left some branches that I could burn, usually I pot up one size to put a bit of soil around the pot bound roots to hold moisture and set fire to the all the leaves. A bit of Charley Carp and water regularly, With in 6 to 8 weeks it starts throwing shoots form the bottom up, at this stage I cut the top off to about 300 to 400 mm high, rubbed off all the shoots up to about 250 mm. root pruned leaving about a third. and potted into a 250mm sallow terracotta pot. I pick a strong shoot on what I think should be the front between 250 & 350 mm high ( need to consider how high you tree will be when branches develop ) Wiring this shoot lightly up and rubbing all other shoots off, need to keep at it, most of the first season and at the beginning of each growth spurt. ( this seems to apply to most Eucs )
This Angophora, the tag said costata ,( but the leaves are still juvenile to know yet) is at the start of its third year, Last Aug I cut back behind the developing new main branch, and sealed. ( It appears to heal scars - Cuts aggressively.) I potted it into the cheap bonsai pot this August and cut back fairly hard. as well as shedding its bark, its starting to get a growth spurt branch wise. It responds to any fertiliser I have (mostly native)
I would say I'm more a Aust Native enthusiast with a small back yard, than a Bonsai enthusiast, but I appreciate the rules of Bonsai and aim to adhere to as many rules as the Aust Natives will let me.
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Hope this all makes sense
Milo

[cuwire]

Wow Milo

That's a great read and a heap of info - as I read it two root reductions to the last pot.

Will try this myself -- can't resist.

"I would say I'm more a Aust Native enthusiast with a small back yard than a Bonsai enthusiast" --

That statement of yours presents me with a great deal more freedom when dealing with bonsai 'constraints'. Love the natives

Thanks and good luck with the tree.

[siddhar]

I think a series of guy wires might be an easier alternative to lower the branches. I would imagine they'd be quite hard to get movement into.

[nealweb]

Beautiful tree! Well done

[timbrown13]

I love the accent plant, I mean, magpie.

Tim