juniper ideas?

[simonm]

hey,

i recently bough a juniper and was wondering what i could do with it. if any one has any idea whatsoever please post because i have never really done a bonsai and i only got my first book on bonsai yesterday so i am really new and need ideas.

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possible front(above)

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possible back(above)

i have had the tree for maybe a month or so now,

any advice is welcome,

Simon

[simonm]

can anyone help?

[Jamie]

not much pal all ya can do for now is stick it in a grow box or the ground and let it grow out. honestly the best advice i can give ya is once you can keep a tree happy and healthy then spend some money on some advanced stock, what you got there is good to practice wiring on and keeping healthy and learning with, but it needs a lot more growth on it to do anything substantial when you start wiring it you will find it becomes very sparse and not much to it sorry pal. it will work as a formal upright though so maybe practice wiring to get that

another idea would be to go and find some trees and collect them. i know it can be hard to find stuff sometimes but once you start getting an eye for it you will find some great stuff.

being where you are i presume you would have some great deciduous trees


jamie

[Glenda]

being where you are i presume you would have some great deciduous trees


jamie

Especially japanese maples. Love those maples, but too hot where I am!

Glenda

[bonzaidog]

Simon...I think Jamie is right in trying to lead you to other stock that is going to give you more pleasing results once you step back for a good look at what you've done...do you have a Bonsai nursery nearby,or better still,a club in your area? Good first hand guidance is hard to beat,but keep reading,looking,asking and logging on here. ...Regs....Dog.

[simonm]

i am not sure about any nearby bonsai clubs, i will have to ask Jordy about that, i do know of one bonsai nursery however but it is only open on one weekend a month. so finding time to get to it can be difficult.

[Jamie]

i am not sure about any nearby bonsai clubs, i will have to ask Jordy about that, i do know of one bonsai nursery however but it is only open on one weekend a month. so finding time to get to it can be difficult.

i wonder if they are open by appointment at other times. some nurseries are.
i am sure you would have possible stuff to collect though, even in yours or friends yards? maybe aaron could help you a bit i know he finds hawthorns down there!


jamie

[craigw60]

Hi Simon,
If you would like to make your juniper into a bonsai straight away then it would make a great formal upright. Keep lots of branches for the first few years to develop the trunk caliper. Wire all the branches out perfectly flat and pinch the tips.Remember with the formal upright style the trees outline should be a perfect triangle. There are very active clubs in Devonport and Hobart that I know of.
Regards from Craig

[LLK]

Nothing beats doing some reading and looking, when you are a beginner and on your own!
See http://www.bonsai4me.com/ , especially "Bonsai Basics". It will save you a lot of time and aggro.
That juniper looks like "Spartan", which means that it has columnar growth, not ideal for bonsai. However, it
doesn't prevent you using it as a learning tree. Once you have done your basic reading, choose which branches
it would be best to cut off, anfd which to keep. When you have done your pruning, wire them horizontally
and also use wire to give your trunk some movement. Don't be shy about doing some "hands on" learning.
Maybe some of the Tasmanian members on this forum could give you some help and indicate where and what
to buy.
Good luck,

LLK

[bonzaidog]

Oh Yeah!,..and Simon, you've got something most of us would trade all our trees for......your youth!! Don't chuck it in , EVER!,...Dog

[aaron_tas]

hi simon

there are a few things that you can do with your tree, mainly branch selection, but you need to decide which brances to keep and where.

don't just copy images you see, but keep the general look that you want in mind when selecting the appropriate branches.

this would be a great opportunity to learn the bonsai guidelines for styling your tree, john naka has some great step by step guidelines in one of his books (can't remember exactly which one), you know... first branch left, second right, third back etc...

see if you canfigure out WHY and WHEN they use the guidelines, and... why and when your material will allow otherwise.

heres a couple of examples...

formal-full.jpg

juniperformal-upright.jpg

Formal-upright-bun.jpg

[simonm]

thx everyone,
i will give it a try when i get some tools

[Alan Peck]

Hi Simonm. These young Junipers make great trees for learning the art of bending and the basics of cascade style.
They are supple, easily wired and you can turn it into something very different in a short period of time.
Main task then is to work on the pads, so you'll be pinching out in next to no time. You can do all this while it it still in the black pot.
Scan the net or books/mags for inspiration and try to think outside the square, not easy to do for a beginner I know I was one not many years ago, but now I'm looking for that elusive 'style' of my own in the 'art'.
Posted some inspiration for you below to aim at if you choose Cascade.

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[bodhidharma]

Well done people of Aus Bonsai. There has been some great advice given to a newby and you should be proud. I especially liked the trees shown for inspiration. Simon, that tree would make a perfect formal upright and they are one of the harder styles to perfect. Get stuck in and start to wire the branches into position and learn, learn learn.

[Greth]

You could think about miniatures too if you don't want to wait forever to do some wiring and have some fun.