Carving discussion on deciduous trees

[Asus101]

bretts always wanted more than one line from me, so I just reposted my earlier post.

[Jamie]

bretts always wanted more than one line from me, so I just reposted my earlier post.

well i think he got it... and now your back to one liners?

[Asus101]

Sure.

[Pup]

I have read this with interest. When we were in England Peter Chan took us to see tree's that were seven hundred years old. They were Larch a deciduous conifer plenty of Shari and jin and hollows.
He also took us to the Village of Lingfield where there is a hollowed out OAK tree it features in his Book Masterclass. It is 400 years old if the walls of the tree's trunk are not rotten it will stand.
When Mr Fly was here on a visit we discussed my Casuarina his suggestion was to lengthen, the hollow from above.
I have thought about this and I will do it, I have also thought about some of the comments here.
It is always better to consider whether it works better with this styling application or not before you undertake it because once it is done you cannot undo it. I have in the past regretted doing it.
JMHO Pup

Edit!! when I hollow a tree I use Sumi ink and lime sulphur. To darken the wood which is what you see in hollow trunks .
With Natives I use a blow torch also.

[MelaQuin]

You try to avoid taking deadwood to the soil line to minimise the amount of moisture that would accelerate rot. This is often not possible as some natural deadwood goes to the ground... but it is not the best scenario.

Re deadwood on fruit trees... one has only to look through the Japanese photographic bonsai books and feast their eyes on some of the old fruit trees with masses of deadwood. How we would all love to have one of those.

I love carving because it can take a very bad area and turn it into something vibrant with interest. The trick is to know when to stop carving so the carving doesn't overwhelm the tree but balances the design. I've recently done carving on an elm with an extensive deadwood area and it turned out a very good job... only bad part was the tree's correct front put the carving all but out of sight. Still, doing nothing would have left awkward areas and by carving the large dead area I was able to improve taper, remove some ugly spots and while the carving is not seen on first glance, it does add to the tree's value.

There is a case for carving on many trees to merely conceal large branch wounds or reverse taper defects. There are trees that are best handled by merely mildly scoring the cut area to give the impression of wear without actually carving. Carving is the enthusiast's choice and like all other aspects of bonsai, can be done well or ill.

[FlyBri]

Gday folks!

There is no question that deciduous species display knotholes, hollows and deadwood in nature, as a quick Google will show. As such, deadwood should be an important and valid aspect in the design of deciduous Bonsai.

When you carve, do you consider whether it will draw the eye, or effect movement of the tree? How does it fit in with the design?

I think Paul's question above gets to the heart(-wood) of the matter: the most effective carving will be that which is well considered in the context of the design of a given tree. Does the carving fit with the 'story/history' of the tree? Does the carving enhance the tree, or does it seek to define it? Does the carving look contrived or "natural"? (The discussion regarding "Yeah, but does it happen that way in Nature?" is a whole other question unto itself, but it is relevant to this topic.) Such are more questions to consider when looking at deadwood on all types of tree, deciduous species included.

Sometimes though, the material with which we are working absolutely requires some carving due to cultural constraints, as with Twosdale's tree and my Trident (below). In the case of the Trident, sun damage to the lower trunk left a large dead patch, and by the time the bark finally flaked off, the wood had already begun to decompose. The resultant gap in the bark was about 60mm high by 40mm wide, and was unlikely to ever heal in my lifetime, so I carved it out so that the lower hollow runs through to the top of the trunk.



So, looking at the Trident, I'm curious to see what others think in terms of the questions above (both mine and Paul's). I already know the answers (I think ) and will post them up soon...

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In the meantime, here's another one to ponder:



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Good topic!

Thanks.

Fly.

PS: Nice, concise post there MelaQuin! I couldn't have said it better myself (and I didn't)!

[Asus101]

Fly that trident is a perfect example of good use of "deadwood" for the species and the environment it lives in.

[63pmp]

Thanks for the input, I appreciate people taking the time to write out long replies, as it can be very time consuming. Would love to scan some images from my books, but scanners not doing a good job at the moment.

Fly,

I'm anxious to see were you go with your trident. Image 74 of "Classic Bonsai of Japan" shows a single trunk apricot with similar hollow. The carving on the apricot? Is interesting, the three straight pieces of remnant trunk are quite eye catching, a nice tree and good composition.

Asus,

I've not heard that young Junipers wood is not the best for shari, I wonder how this goes with Jow's contorted young junipers?


Paul

[alpineart]

Cut , chop , hack , bend , twist , carve , sculpt ,veneer , graft , split , snap , wire , wrap , trim .Yes most of these things happen in nature but it is not that easy to make it look natural .If you don't like one tree look at another . as with all things practice , practice , practice . You cant expect to get the natural look in your first carve up , the same as your first tree won't look as good as your one hundred and first .Food for thought .Cheers

[Mojo Moyogi]

Junipers over 100 years old will hold extensive deadwood better than young junipers (Kimura claims not to carve any juniper under 100years due to this).

Yeah I'm with Masahiko, every time I go to try and carve a 90yo Shimpaku, I just wanna puke and end up kicking it off the bench

MM

[Bretts]

Thats funny Mojo
This is how you carve deciduous. I wish I had seen this years ago.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5jOekUuc ... re=channel

[Deadwood]

Junipers over 100 years old will hold extensive deadwood better than young junipers (Kimura claims not to carve any juniper under 100years due to this).

Yeah I'm with Masahiko, every time I go to try and carve a 90yo Shimpaku, I just wanna puke and end up kicking it off the bench

MM

Very funny Mojo.... That made my day.

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