AusBonsai

There are some thick cardboard pads under the clamp claws. It will still dent to an extent, but not as badly as if there were no pads. I can't remove the clamp anyway, to get that bend I took a wedge from the trunk. Clamp comes off, bend goes away and huge hole in trunk, then tree dies.

I took the trunk bender off yesterday as it no longer requires so much tension now that the wedge excision is healing. The wedge bend is now being supported by a guy wire.



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That sucker coming from the roots will not be a gumball cultivar. it will be the large growing L.styraciflua. I would cut it out at the end of winter if you want to keep it for growing on or to use it as a stock plant to graft another Gumball on to it.

Do you mean next winter? I do want to keep it...