First Juniper Bonsai (pruning/wiring/potting)

[co_staki]

Hi folks,

Quite new to this group and also quite new to Bonsai in general; have taken a considerable interest only this last year and finally took a leap on this Juniper I've had for a short while - thought it time to have a go and upload my progress here for some feedback & advice!

So here is what I started with; purchased from Ray Nesci's Bonsai Nursery in Dural for about $45.00 - I thought it had some good shape and a decent enough trunk to at least learn on and work with:

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Another angle:

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Top view:

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As I mentioned, this is my first time really wiring a Juniper (or any tree for that matter) so I just got right in there and started with the thicker branches making sure to wrap a solid loop around the main trunk before working my way outwards:

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At this point and after wiring a few more branches, I realised I should pinch/clip off a few more needles & branches from around the trunk to make it easier to access & wire:

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After considerable pruning/shaping:

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In preparation for placing this tree in to it's first bonsai pot, I removed it from the nursery pot and raked the roots loose before removing an amount of roots (not many progress photos at this point as this stage was quite messy) - in retrospect, I think I may have removed more roots than I should have as I vaguely remember reading somewhere that a maximum of 30%-40% is required when root pruning (some advice on this would be great for future reference):

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Better view of some of the wiring (not sure if I got this process completely right but I was able to better control some of the branch direction and change the overall shape of the tree so I must have done something right):

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After potting & some more minor pruning, this is how it looks in the pot:

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Stepping back and taking some time to look at the tree and it's varying branch directions, I was trying to figure out which would be the best "front" .. this is the tree reversed although I think I like the first front better:

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Moving some of the wires around a little and proceeding to wire the finer branches for the finishing touches; some closer shots of my wiring work:

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And finally, after watering and a fair bit of time looking at the tree from a distance, I decided on this front:

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I'm pleased with the overall result considering this was my first attempt - keeping the tree in a shady spot for the next couple of weeks and watering as required.

My overall vision with this tree would be to build on some of the LHS branches - mainly the rear to middle - and work my way up. With the RHS of the tree, I'd like it to become more dense/full while cascading somewhat..

That said, I'm keen to hear what I've done right & wrong and what I should focus on moving forward!

Thank you.

Costa

[Jag001]

Costa,

congratulations on your first tree.

You look to have done a pretty good job on the wiring for the first time out. If I may make one comment, prior to wiring and pruning I would normally study the tree in all aspects and decide where I intended the front to be, this give me focus for how I want the branch structure to look and guide me in pruning and wiring.
cheers,
Jeff

[Kevin]

Hello Costa,

Welcome and well done.

Be careful of 'Reverse Taper' when developing the main trunk.
Reverse taper is caused by too many branches emerging from the same or very near point on the trunk.

Good luck with your little tree and i look forward to viewing its progression.
Kevin

[co_staki]

Costa,

congratulations on your first tree.

You look to have done a pretty good job on the wiring for the first time out. If I may make one comment, prior to wiring and pruning I would normally study the tree in all aspects and decide where I intended the front to be, this give me focus for how I want the branch structure to look and guide me in pruning and wiring.
cheers,
Jeff

Thanks for your comment Jeff, that certainly makes sense and I probably should have spent more time looking at it - guess I got a little excited!

Well noted.

Costa

[co_staki]

Hello Costa,

Welcome and well done.

Be careful of 'Reverse Taper' when developing the main trunk.
Reverse taper is caused by too many branches emerging from the same or very near point on the trunk.

Good luck with your little tree and i look forward to viewing its progression.
Kevin

Hi there Kevin and thank you for the advice; I'll look into 'reverse taper' now and see how I can combat it.

Will post some more photos in due course.

Costa

[Nate.bonsai]

Costa,

For approaching your first tree, you have certainly tackled it from all angles/tasks and approached it with great consideration. I think that this is one of the most important qualities that bonsai enthusiasts need.

Be mindful about root pruning/repotting and wiring all at the same time. Great for demos and Bonsai magazines, but if you have the luxury of time, trees will find it less stressful if you give them some breathing space between operations.

Re wiring, it still befuddles me a lot of the time, but your technique will improve. I have found that Jeff's comment about knowing where you are going before you start helps a lot with planning your wiring so that it goes the right way and isn't all crossing over.

Re your design, my thoughts are that most of your branches appear to be coming from about the same spot and are wired at about the same level. To my eye, the 'direction' or focus of your tree seem to be 'everywhere'. If you address Kevin's comment about removing some of those branches that will contribute to reverse taper (and with your already planned design), then you will likely find that your tree will end up with a bit more of a focused direction.

Congrats on a strong start and look forward to seeing more.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[jezz_39]

I won't comment on the timing of all the work. However, regarding styling, your tree has no apex. Have a browse on Google and observe how junipers are styled, I suggest picking one of the thinner branches and wiring them up to form a top. Currently it is too flat and lacking direction.

[Boics]

Agree with Jezz.
I would also add that you should consider a typical style for this tree.
Have a look / image search on google for "Bonsai styles" this will show you some "themes" to consider.
Juniper lend themselves well to informal upright and cascade styles as a start..
Keep up the good work!

[co_staki]

Thank you all for your comments & advice - very helpful.

It does appear that the majority of branches are coming from the same point and I'll look at removing some to also give some shape.

Let's see what I end up with..

Costa

[co_staki]

26/02/17 Update | After looking at different styles for Junipers, I decided that informal upright is what I'm going for and therefore took a deep breath and removed the main cascading branch coming out of the main trunk with the hope that the remaining branch on the RHS of the tree will become thicker and take the lead.

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I welcome your comments & further advice - thank you.

Costa

[benbonsai]

I reckon you need to wire up those branches and try get some movement in them and bring them closer together