[NATURAL] Melaleuca - terryb

[MJL]

I really like this. As Redsonic says - looking very natural already. Noting your uncertainty of the species early on... this amateur reckons Moonah for sure; along with your and others more recent thoughts. That being the case - great growth in a short time. In my experience - it doesn't back bud easily and you've managed to keep it quite dense which is good and will provide more options to evolve shape and design in the long run.

[terryb]

Thanks for your comments Ryceman3, Redsonic and MJL. I was quite surprised how much it had filled out when I compared the current photo with the last update. Didn't notice the small changes happening day by day.

In my experience - it doesn't back bud easily and you've managed to keep it quite dense

The trees I've seen in the parks and gardens here in SA are all quite dense; a local varietal thing? I have another which I cut quite hard and it did back bud but they also seem to back bud if you let them go for a bit.

[juan73870]

really beautiful bark on that trunk
looking forward to seeing this one progress, looks great

[terryb]

October update

28x20.jpg

Have not done much to this tree over the winter period. I have it positioned where it has to "reach" for the sun which is helping with the directional growth.

28x20_2.jpg

The lower branch didn't have much taper, so I cut it back about 3 weeks ago. I now have a bunch of new shoots I can work with.

28x20_1.jpg

The branch on the right hand side was left as a sacrifice and I'm trying to decide whether to shorten it, turn it into deadwood or remove it When it is moved out of the way, the windswept look is more evident.

It is starting to move now that the weather is warming, so I will cut it back soon and begin working on the foliage.

[Ryceman3]

Nice... good growth!
I like the idea of jinning the sacrifice... I would strip it back then wire and bend the jin into a line that compliments the rest and leave it to “set”.
Love the mels!

[terryb]

April update.

18iv21_1.jpg

The sacrifice has put on quite a bit of growth since the last update but I've kept it out the way so the rest of the tree can be seen. As I mentioned previously, this will be jinned.

18iv21_2.jpg

Like my other entry, I think there is too much foliage, so will keep working on that before the final update. The bottom branch will also be jinned at this stage. Will need to also find a pot for it.

21iv21_3.jpg

A close up

[melbrackstone]

Looking good Terry!

[MJL]

... along with jinning the sacrifice - also consider a deep concave cut ... the way the bark grows on these Moonah will make a nice little filled hole/lumpy thing much like appears in this photo


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[terryb]

Interesting effect. I wonder how this damaged occurred?

[MJL]

Hey Terry - I will probably get corrected by more knowledgable folk but I don’t think it is damage per se. Just the ravages of time and elements on coastal Moonah trees. I say that because most of them at the golf course and at other coastal locations have this interesting bark/growth.


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[terryb]

October update:

As with my other entry, I have held back repotting into a bonsai pot for a couple of weeks. The tree has responded with good growth after removing the sacrifice branch and it is looking a little too full at present. I think I will reduce the number of branches further so that you can see through the branches a little more. I have a back secondary branch that comes off the lower primary which is adding to the chaos and I think I have decided to remove it. A trim to define the foliage and a little more wire is necessary. Unfortunately the storms we had on Thursday broke one of the upper branches, so I will need to sort that out as well.

31x21.jpg

[terryb]

The final update.

Finally got this into a new pot after the last update, however, it didn't appreciate the repotting and promptly lost a bunch of branches. One way to get past the procrastination of which ones to remove I guess. It has been gaining strength since then and I haven't done much to it for fear of weakening it further. Nonetheless the sparse foliage on the end of bare branches gave me the windswept look I was going for.

In the first photo you will see a thinner back branch coming off the lower thicker branch. The foliage of this branch is obscuring the rest of the structure so i have pulled it away for the second photo. Come spring, I think I will transition the lower branch to this one, cut it back and then develop a rear foliage mass down low almost where the small tuft of foliage is now, I'll shorten the end of the lower thicker branch too. Will try some deadwood and see if I like it or not. Will probably also cut the rest of the tree back hard and try and compact the foliage a little more.

24iv22_1.jpg

24iv22.jpg

I like to echo the sentiments of those that have posted before me and thank Rory for the competition. It forced me to work on the tree and now I know a little more about this species and how it react to various techniques. Look forward to taking it to the next phase of development.

[Ryceman3]

I really like the vibe of this tree… lots of subtle bends and random movement that seems to work well from my aesthetic perspective. Plenty of potential to make something dramatic I think!
I’m tipping that’s a Luke Parsons pot just from the visuals… suits it well!

[MJL]

Yeah lovely stuff here Terry …. So many trees on the golf course have this form - isolated, wind effected, sparse … love it.


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[Rory]

Thats really cool, and has a fantastic natural vibe.