I have come up with tentative styling plan for my Juniper -

[ADO]

Hi again,
You may recall in a previous post regarding me chopping off one or more lower branches on my Shimpaku. After some more thinking and visualizing, I may have come up with some options for styling.

The first photo is my Juniper now, after some wiring to put movement in the trunk.

Juni 1.jpg

The second is a virtual of what I think looks good…

Juni Virt 1.jpg

It would necessitate the removal of the two lowest branches because I feel that they don’t fit into the overall look of the tree and distract the eye away from the upper foliage.

I think this is a nice style showing off an interesting trunk and a good canopy of foliage which to my mind looks pleasing to the eye. The apex is triangular shaped in this virt.

By contrast, the second virt retains the first branch on the right. I don’t think this design works because that branch takes away from the rest of the tree and distracts the eye away from the flow of the trunk and upper foliage.+

Virt 2.jpg

In the end it is up to me, but I would really like some experienced eyes to have a look at this for me. any comments, suggestions etc would be most welcome.
Cheers
Adrian

[Craig]

Hi Adrian , mate don't do it, you will almost definately regret it later . To be harsh, your virts do nothing for me , you'd be far better off not trying to rush the progress of this or any other trees you have, it'll only end in tears. Leave the Shimpaku as is and learn how to care for them first, Buy other trees to work on instead of revisiting each tree weekly,

[kcpoole]

Big bare sections of trunk are a no no.

The idea, is to bring the foliage as lose as practical to the base and trunk
the first branch should be 1/3 the way from the base to the tip, and all other branching from that one up

Ken

[harry]

I do not understand Lose and close to the trunk as possible with the first branch 1/3rd up and the rest from there.

I have seen many very fine trees with the first branch definitely not 1/3rd up, so we usualy work with the material we have as best suits what we are aiming for.

ADO I would do as Craig says, and leave it be for a while. After noting what you did with your Ficus. At least with virtuals you have the option of putting them back, after.

Just my Harry

[ADO]

thanks for the advice guys. I guess patience is the name of the game.

Might lock the Shimpaku in a box so I can't get at it

My tree remains unscathed and and from this day forth I'll let it be and just look after it for now. its still nice to look at
In the meantime I have a few other garden tasks to attend to and i'll be scouting for more stock whilst on holidays.

have a happy New Year

cheers

Adrian

[LLK]

Hello Adrian,

Don't put your tree in a box just yet, there is work to be done. Look at the junipers on http://www.artofbonsai.org/galleries/juniper.php and especially at the Shimpaku bonsai. You will see that the underside of the branches is clean. The foliage on your tree looks like prize winning broccoli, because you have left on the foliage underneath the branches. If you take a good look at those branches, you will see that the foliage grows all around it, upwards and downwards. The downward foliage has to be removed, so as to leave the underside clean and reveal the structure of the branch. That is what adds to the beauty of the Shimpaku bonsai. You can do the removing either by pinching off the unwanted foliage, or cutting it off. Once you have done that, you will get a better idea of the structure of your juniper, and you won't be in such a hurry to cut off major branches.

Lisa

[ADO]

Hi Lisa,

thanks for taking the time to reply and also the link to those beautiful Shimpakus. Makes me realize just how many worlds away I am from those and also how much my little tree has to grow! !
I'll start pinching out those unwanted foliage at the bottom so they look less like "prize winning broccoli" and more like a pre-bonsai tree. I assume if I cut with shears the leaves at that point will go brown? Though i suppose being underneath it may not matter.
Anyway, at least that is a start and will slow things down a bit and allow me to think about the process.
I'll get progress pics up when I can.

Cheers

Adrian

[kcpoole]

I do not understand Lose and close to the trunk as possible with the first branch 1/3rd up and the rest from there.

I have seen many very fine trees with the first branch definitely not 1/3rd up, so we usualy work with the material we have as best suits what we are aiming for.

Just my Harry

I meant Close. Spelling Mistake
"The idea, is to bring the foliage as lose as practical".
Meaning that foliage on the ends of long trunk like a Pompom as ADO's virt showed is not a pretty look, Nor is Foliage out at the ends of bare branches too.

Of course we can have trees where the first branch is not 1/3 they way up, but usually there is a good reason for it where the trees other attributes compensate.

Ken

[ADO]

Meaning that foliage on the ends of long trunk like a Pompom as ADO's virt showed is not a pretty look, Nor is Foliage out at the ends of bare branches too.

Hi Ken, i see what you mean by the 'pom-pom' effect. unfortunately I didn't notice this when I picked it up from the nursery as I was unaware that it wasn't a desirable trait in a stock tree - it was my first tree and I have learned a lot since then. So i guess I am stuck with them for now. I'm not sure if more foliage will grow along those bare parts of the branches.
Still its a lesson learned and one of many I will learn along the way. Bit like life really....

Cheers
Adrian

[kcpoole]

A juniper will most likely Back bud on old wood when you cut back and force new growth. The other option is to graft new shoots where you need them, or to radically bend and shape it to make something useful.

A large trunk on a Juni is always worth it usually, but there is no Quick solution to the problem of bare trunks and branches.

Ken

[Craig]

as I was unaware that it wasn't a desirable trait in a stock tree

Adrian this is why i suggest you just grow a tree without concerning yourself with styling too much. Pinching, repotting, watering, where and how it will backbud, how to pinch/trim , etc,etc etc, theres so much to learn about them without all the bonsai issues,

[ADO]

Hi Craig,

Thanks mate, great advice

have a Happy New Year!