Eucalyptus rubida 'The Deer Stick '

[CraigM]

Nice tree, have a couple small ones growing, nothing great at this stage started as tube stock May 2015.

Think I would try and keep the deadwood and history, and work with the "Other side", branch placement looks better from this side as well.

[Kevin]

Hello Sno,

I love this Euc.
The deadwood is unique and an attractive feature.
It would be nice IMO to have the deadwood stand tall above the trees foliage, although I understand this is probably unachievable.
The juvenile foliage, IMO is also attractive.
Looking forward in watching this Euc develop into a better Bonsai.

Thanks for the update.
Kevin

[Watto]

Please keep the dead wood. It is one of the trees really good features and many old trees in the bush have dead hollowed out trunks/branches (somewhere for the possums to live) and thus this would be a great feature. Its god now, but could be great.

[wattynine]

Cheers Sno' great tree and thank you for the collecting info earlier in the post, that type of info comes in handy.
Watty

[Piscineidiot]

Certainly has a lot of character! To my eye, I can't see why a slight angle change (tilting the deadwood down a touch) wouldn't free up the space necessary for the leader to grow upward naturally. Would seem a pretty low-impact solution in my mind. Mind you, I've no idea whether the root/horticulture situation would allow.

[Rory]

sno! I am going to love watching this tree grow.

Personally I have never had successful experiences with deadwood and gums. I found the wood rots so fast that it deteriorates and becomes more of a hindrance over time. I have to say though, it looks fabulous on your tree.

If you are going for a tree that is shorter than the deadwood it might look odd in the long term.
If you are going for a tree that will be similar in height or taller than the deadwood then it will certainly compliment the tree, provided the deadwood lasts?

Looking at the base of the trunk and the movement after that, it is going to be a cracker of a gnarly looking gum.

[Sno]

Thanks for your thoughts guys . Ok the deadwood stays as is . I was thinking to much about the new growth and where I could take it rather than the the longer term outcome (it's spring and I want to do things ) . Once the tree is properly established I can always start a new leader if need be .
Cheers Sno

[Sno]

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This tree is pumping growth and it feels really stable in the pot so the roots must be mirroring the top .

The tree has some new interesting features .

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I am hoping to not cut it back till next spring , will see how it goes .

[Kevin]

Thanks for the update Sno,

Looking good now, by Spring it'll be a monster - you might need a bigger hand saw.
Great photography too.

Kevin

[Rory]

How is this beautiful piece of material going Sno?

[Watto]

I saw this recently and it is better in the bark than it is in the photos, a really great piece of material.
A good pot and a transfer to my yard would be perfect!

[Sno]

Hi Rory . I took this tree to a native workshop that Canberra Bonsai Society put on to get some idea of its direction . Roger H ran the workshop which was a great session . The expierance has given me a lot of confidence in the way to progress . It's just starting to bud up now after quite a hard prune .

I saw this recently and it is better in the bark than it is in the photos, a really great piece of material.
A good pot and a transfer to my yard would be perfect!

Yeah I know my photography skills need some improvement .i don't know if you would have any more room in your backyard ,what with that forest your maintaining .

I'll post photos of it when I've nudged it into a smaller training pot .

[Sno]

Repotted today . I am quite happy with what I found underground . One root was a bit overgrown . I've put it in a Fergus Stewart pot I picked up at the last Ausbonsai market .

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[Watto]

Wow, looks so much better potter, congratulations. Good root development too, you must be doing all the right things.

[melbrackstone]

What a beauty!