Collected Pyrus In Progress

[Steven]

Another excellent progression Mr Fly!

I wait with baited breath for the next installment.

Regards,
Steven

[FlyBri]

I wait with baited breath for the next installment.

Thanks Mr Steven - here it is...

The experiment continues! Bwaahahahahaaa!

Ahem. The first thing I needed to do was to try to find all the live bark, which meant spending a goodly amount of time with a scalpel on the low side of the wound (I already knew from looking that all the tissue on the upper side was alive).

Pyrus_Jan_10_05.jpg

By the time I found the live tissue on the lower end, I had exposed quite a cavity: a cavity which looked a lot like a bored elephant seal from the other side. It was then that I got some indication of exactly how far the turnbuckles had moved the trunk...

Pyrus_Jan_10_06.jpg

Pyrus_Jan_10_07.jpg

In order to safely work on the tree, I covered the soil in wet towels and strapped the thing down in a prone position.

Pyrus_Jan_10_08.jpg

It was then that I began the job of rectifying the damage that I had done, but I have yet to process the photos, so you all can wait...

Thanks.

Flyenstein.

[Jarrod]

I think this is similar to how I plan on removing a bulbus area on the red pine I am usin in the literti comp. Though I plan on boring through the centre and squeezing. We will see how I go.love you work mate. Very industrious!

[Jamie]

pic 07_10 definately looks like something having a yawn... but what it is i have no idea

nice work fly. look forward to seeing more


jamie

[FlyBri]

Morning folks!

So, having exposed the hideous beast, it was now time to perform a rhinoplasty. Using a sharp blade, I carved back all of the offending tissue so that it better matched the line of the trunk. It is hard to show in the photos, but now that all that growth has been removed, there is a deep hollow that is big enough for me to fit the tip of my little finger into. The only thing holding the tree together at this point is a thin bit of heartwood and the healed bark on either side of the wound.

Pyrus_Jan_10_09.jpg

Pyrus_Jan_10_10.jpg

How to deal with the hollow and the weak point it has created?.. I figure that I used a novel technique to create the injury, so I might as well use a novel technique to repair it... I began by drilling some tiny holes into the smooth wood.

Pyrus_Jan_10_11.jpg

I then mixed a small portion of automotive body filler ("bog") and placed it into the hollow, working it carefully to ensure that it got into every crack and crevice. I also tried not to allow the filler to come into contact with living tissue or flaky bark. The bog begins to cure instantly, and within about 10 minutes I was able to easily carve away the rubbery excess with a scalpel blade. Note that I have trimmed the filler so that the bark sits proud of it all the way around the wound.

Pyrus_Jan_10_12.jpg

Pyrus_Jan_10_13.jpg

After the filler had cured fully (overnight in this case), I used a fine Dremel bit to hollow the edges of the filler, re-exposing the growing cambium all the way around the wound. By doing this, I hope to allow the bark to easily roll over the filler without bulging too much.

Pyrus_Jan_10_14.jpg

Pyrus_Jan_10_15.jpg

Pyrus_Jan_10_16.jpg

I then removed the patient from the operating table.

Pyrus_Jan_10_17.jpg

Since taking the last photo, I have tried to further ensure that the bark makes a smooth transition over the filler by wrapping self-adhesive silicone tape very firmly about the wound site. I will be referring back to this whole process in future, as looking at the tree now, I suspect that further intensive bending (straightening) of thick branches will be necessary to achieve a presentable line.

Thanks for your time.

Fly.

[Jarrod]

Not what I thought you were going to do. I expected you to try to press the flap down against the hollow to minimise the time it takes to heal.

Good work. And once again, very industrious!

[kcpoole]

Very cool Fly
No what are you going to do with the next bend above that one you just fixed?
Kinda looks out of place now with the thick branch going to the right in the last photo

Ken

[FlyBri]

Now what are you going to do with the next bend above that one you just fixed?
Kinda looks out of place now with the thick branch going to the right in the last photo

Gday Ken & Jezz!

You're correct Ken - needs more work up top now. I've done a nasty virt of one potential solution, where the brown line I've drawn is the new leader.

Pyrus_Jan_10_17(V).jpg

Updates as they come to hand.

Thanks fellas!

Fly.

[Jamie]

fly that is brilliant! i can see this working well and you will not lose strength at all with the way you have done this! i can see live tissue eventually growing over it and you will have a nice little feature there

great progression!


jamie

[kcpoole]

Hey fly do you think the next 2 bends are too tight? I do. They are not in the flow of the rest of the tree for my liking
I am surprised with your penchant for cutting things off, you did not consider cutting back the upward growing branch as the new leader?
See my even quicker and dirtier virt

Ken

[Bretts]

Nice work Fly but may I suggest Vise glue instead of body filler next time. It will do everything the body filler did. Also this can come in contact with live tissue no problems and I am not sure the body filler will add any strength!
You could also add some bark to the outside to cover it up while healing

[FlyBri]

Morning folks!

It is with some dismay that I post this update. It would appear that this Pear is yet another victim of exposure late afternoon sun on our hottest days: the bark on the lower trunk has been almost completely killed on the RH (west) side, leaving a strip of deadwood all the way up the back of the trunk... (I have 2 Tridents and a Lilly Pilly which display bark damage in exactly the same spot in relation to the afternoon sun - see below.)







Anyway, here are the photos of the Pear's base:

Pyrus_Aug_10_01.jpg

Pyrus_Aug_10_02.jpg

At first, I attributed the death of the bark to my treatment of the tree in the past year or so, but now I think otherwise. In the second photo, there is a patch which has been dead at least one year longer than the surrounding tissue: rot has already had a good hard go at the wood under the dead bark here.

Oh well... It's nothing that a Dremel and a complete re-design won't fix... If anybody needs me, I'll be hiding under a pile of sawdust.

Thanks.

Fly.

[Bougy Fan]

Hi Bri
Great progression - shame about the end result but I'm guessing there will be a phoenix rise soon. I had a question about the fantastic turnbuckle idea - is the non eye end that you push with a custom thing you made ? It's amazing how you can look at something a hundred times and never think of a different use. And I even have some big clamps that use at work that I reverse occasionally

Hope there is a happyish ending


Tony

[FlyBri]

I had a question about the fantastic turnbuckle idea - is the non eye end that you push with a custom thing you made ? It's amazing how you can look at something a hundred times and never think of a different use. And I even have some big clamps that use at work that I reverse occasionally

Gday Tony!

The 'non eye' you mention is indeed a custom job. I simply cut the eyelet with a hacksaw (or was it a Dremel with a cutting wheel?) and gently bent the two ends into the open position. I then filed off the burrs to make a smooth finish.

Well, I've spent a bit of time in the shed with my drill and Dremel. Here are some results so far...

Pyrus_Aug_10_03.jpg

Pyrus_Aug_10_04.jpg

Pyrus_Aug_10_05.jpg

As I said before I don't like how the carving at the top makes a point that looks so weak in a strong trunk.

I agree with your sentiments here Brettles, but now that the lower portion of the trunk is largely dead, I have little choice but to carve the whole thing out. I reckon I'm going to need to take a lot of visual weight out of the top of the tree and try to encourage a lot of lower branching on the trunk. I may even look at layering/chopping off the entire top and creating a much shorter tree.

Anyway, the Dremel is calling my name...

Thanks.

Fly.

[Bougy Fan]

I love it so far - am going to have to give a dremel a go soon. Two questions - what kind of screws do you use (material) for fixing hardware to trees and is your dremel a fixed one or has a handpiece ? I was at the big red B yesterday and htey had a guy doing as demo - the handpiece type looks more useful. Any input ?


Tony