AusBonsai

yer. i think that the tree is a bit tall to be that thin

fair call mate, height to width ratio, i think it comes into design of the tree myself, following the rules of bonsai to a "T" i dont always do but i dont know who sticks to the rules all the time. anyway appreciate the comment and feed back.

any one else?

I also really like your second option there!

You could almost (with the air layering), if your get some powerful roots happening, create a lovely little Mame pot bonsai, if you thinned the sides of your apex air layering.

although I'm not entirely certain on the scale of your juniper. so it might be far too big for such a desgn

Jordy wrote:I also really like your second option there!

You could almost (with the air layering), if your get some powerful roots happening, create a lovely little Mame pot bonsai, if you thinned the sides of your apex air layering.

although I'm not entirely certain on the scale of your juniper. so it might be far too big for such a desgn

hey mate thanks for the input as for mame yes i think it is a little big regarding an airlayer. the top if airlayered would come out shohin size bout 15-20cm.
but is would still come out quite nice.

i should give size details shouldnt I..lol

Height from top of soil- 550mm approx.
width at widest point of foliage-450mm approx.
trunk at base-35mm approx.
nebari spread-120mm approx.

hope that helps
if i choose to go with the air layer it will bring the tree down to about 350-400mm in height, width will obviously stay the same

Wow, that really IS a big tree! very well done with the price!
with the taper on that trunk, there is no way you could have walked away

ah well, you'll be able to get a nice sized bonsai from the apex anyway. just not Mame obviously!

yea its up there mate and i am happy with the size of it, there wasnt gonna be no walking away lol. i only get to go to a bonsai nursery maybe once every 2-3 years. so i have to make the most of it
and for a juniper there is some taper on it, alot of junipers this size you find have an even thickness all the way from top to bottom.
(thats for nursery stock)

all up with the pot it cos me $175. juni was $120 and the round pot $55 which is a good sized pot to. as you can probly tell from the photo, it has some depth to it. which is a good thing and the drainage hole is excellent, its not just a couple of small 15mm holes. its one 50mm hole right in the middle! great drainage! which junipers need by the way

as this one was setlling into its pot over the past few weeks, i have started to notice the nebari on the surface and for a juniper i thought wow, it is pretty neat for one, especially when this one was pot bound. i thought i might take a few snaps of it and show what sort of nebari can be achieved on a juniper.
now its not perfect but its a pretty good start to get going with maybe a couple of grafts and it will be quite nice
i know there is a couple of thicker roots there but i think that gives juniper an appeal to the style that they are

regards jamie

just talking to pup recently he mentioned this tree. now i have been thinking about taking the top of as you may have seen the virtuals. i would like to airlayer it as i think it would have some good movement in it to. so here is the close up and the trunk line. red lines are where i would think the layer should be done and the yellow line shows where the branches are, it is hard to tell but they are in an awkward position to get a layer onto? tips and advice would be great. i just cant see a way around it right now.

thanks people

regards jamie

Hi Jamie how thick is that trunk at that point. It looks rather thin less than 10mms. I should not be a problem.

yes pup, the trunk at that point is about 10-15mm probly more to the higher end of the approximate. the biggest trouble is where those branches coming out from underneath it will make it awkward to get at with plastic to hold the sphagnum. i was thinking a 600ml coke bottle cut in half to suit aswell, would something like that work???

jamie111 wrote:yes pup, the trunk at that point is about 10-15mm probly more to the higher end of the approximate. the biggest trouble is where those branches coming out from underneath it will make it awkward to get at with plastic to hold the sphagnum. i was thinking a 600ml coke bottle cut in half to suit aswell, would something like that work???

Yes that would work the branch will also give you something to sit the coke bottle on. Remember to keep what ever medium you use moist.

Good luck

thanks for that pup, that gives me a bit more confidence in doing it, and i just bought a bag of long sphagnum moss, so that wont be a problem keeping it moist, i am very anal when it comes to things like this. i have just done a couple of airlayers for the first time on an elm and a trident using plastic sheet and found it awkward, so i think i might try the coke bottle. would you recommend chopping the moss up some?? i did tear it up with the other two layers i done recently but think i could of gone more, it seems to be in long strands, i dont have much experience with layers thats all. and another question if you dont mind, how long does it normally take for an airlayer to strike on a juniper??? it is squamata, you probly already knew that though.

thanks mate.

regards jamie

jamie111 wrote:thanks for that pup, that gives me a bit more confidence in doing it, and i just bought a bag of long sphagnum moss, so that wont be a problem keeping it moist, i am very anal when it comes to things like this. i have just done a couple of airlayers for the first time on an elm and a trident using plastic sheet and found it awkward, so i think i might try the coke bottle. would you recommend chopping the moss up some?? i did tear it up with the other two layers i done recently but think i could of gone more, it seems to be in long strands, i dont have much experience with layers thats all. and another question if you dont mind, how long does it normally take for an airlayer to strike on a juniper??? it is squamata, you probly already knew that though.

thanks mate.

regards jamie

As this is early spring using the ring bark method cutting up the spag moss putting a layer of soil on top. Should take 6-8 weeks. As they say in the classics don't quote me it could take a bit longer. Just do not let the medium dry out keep it moist not for 1 minute. Remember at least the trunk thickness if possible a bit more, and make sure there is no green on the wood, where the hormones go.
As before good luck Pup

well, the layer on this one hasnt taken, i am pretty sure of that, all the bark looks wrinkled even though there is green underneath it, a sure sign it is dead or dying with the wrinkles, and the foliage has gone brown nearly 90% of it.
i am tepmted to leave it on for a while longer but dont think it is work it as i reckon she is gone...

pic in a minute.


jamie

ok here are the pics, as you can see the foliage aint to flash.. and the bark is all wrinkled, what has surprised me is the bark down near the cut is still smooth and fresh like nothing has happened.

heres pics, my thoughts are its dead, i will leave it on if others think so but i dont think you will

let me know.

jamie