AusBonsai

archie1979 wrote:Hey Alpine I was just checkin out your method of trunk bending with copper tube. I think I might give it a go with my cedar that I have pretty much decided on turning into a literati.

nice job on the maples

Archie

Hi Archie thanks for the compliment , if you intend to bend your Cedar cover the bark as any mark in the trunk from wire will be there for ever and a day.It actually increases the scar every year.Cheers

all set for a good outcome

Looking good, Alpine. How many seedlings did you use? Can this technique be used with other species? I know figs would work well. What about fukien tea trees? I have one that is about 6 feet high and still pencil thin. If I cut it into smaller pieces and struck cuttings, could I do this with it?

Glenda

Glenda wrote:Looking good, Alpine. How many seedlings did you use? Can this technique be used with other species? I know figs would work well. What about fukien tea trees? I have one that is about 6 feet high and still pencil thin. If I cut it into smaller pieces and struck cuttings, could I do this with it?

Glenda

Hi Glenda , Thanks i like it for sure . At a guess around 60 from 2mm to 8mm thick average was 4 mm .I imagine almost any plant could be used , if the grow the must fuse together if they have a restaint placed around them .Cheers Alpine

glenda,

most species will work for this that are fast growers, i believe fukiens will work just fine! i wouldnt mind getting my hands on some decent size fukien aswell but there is very little in the way of quality stock. so it generally goes that they have to be trained and grown on from smaller stock.

good luck with the fukien, there should not be a prob getting them to strike and you shouldnt have a prob getting them to fuse


jamie

Hi pineart,

It is interesting...i seen it in books..
Is it really necessary to use that lot of maples? did you scar all ?
can you post the evolution so i can see if i can do it here with some figs?
Thanks!

amazonida wrote:Hi pineart,

It is interesting...i seen it in books..
Is it really necessary to use that lot of maples? did you scar all ?
can you post the evolution so i can see if i can do it here with some figs?
Thanks!

figs will work a treat mate, possibly even a little quicker if anything with your climate i have been wanting to do this with figs aswell, just havent been able to get enough saplings!

amazonida wrote:Hi pineart,

It is interesting...i seen it in books..
Is it really necessary to use that lot of maples? did you scar all ?
can you post the evolution so i can see if i can do it here with some figs?
Thanks!

Hi Amazonda , i used all the maples to fill any opening in the surrounding base .Icould have used less but it would take longer for the maples to fuse together .If i was to leave a space i could be waiting 2-3 seasons for then to grow together . I dont find it necessary to scar or damage the trunks as pressure from the bandage is enough to force the growth sideways thus fusing to trees together .

Certainly will be updating , i have twisted ,plaited and spiraled a large quantity of seedlings and will post as soon as the leaves drop so each method can be clearly seen .Cheers Alpineart

Very inspiring work

Orion wrote:Very inspiring work

Hi Orion , its a very inspiring and motivating site .Cheers

A few progression shots of the fusing process of the Trident whips .There is certainly plenty of foliage on all of the trainers .It will be necessary to strip the leaves and remove then reset the wire and string to prevent bark damage The tree 2nd from the right is the Japanese Maple wrap . A quick count of 48 wrapped trunks should give a bloke something to hack and chop into Bonsai trainers .Cheers Alpineart

Well its time to take these out of the oven , surprisingly it was very easy to remove . After a close inspection i noticed the slater bugs had made a home along with a Red Back spider .I have chosen to remove the trunk to alleviate the problem .It didn't fuse to the stump , however the whips did fuse together in certain spots .More-so where the wire was .It was wrapped with twine then a single wire was wrapped over that then planted out .The twine rooted due to our very wet weather we had over Summer however the wire held it firm .With the stump removed i have added an extra 30 whips then wired the whole thing back onto itself .Some of the side shoots were used for the future branches these were basically wired in position .The whole exercise was well worth the effort and some valuable info learned .I have another batch of whips to try another approach to this fusing caper. The size of the trunk is 500mm high and 130mm at soil level .Cheers Alpineart

Not much fusing going on there from the photos alpine.

Going to watch this one

Kne

Hi KC, plenty of fusing going on , the brown trunks have fused well , the green ones are the added whips from this morning .Mind you i did a little damage removing the stump , however it didn't collapse when i applied the stitching base wire so its all good . Don't expect to see a flush smooth trunk in the first season , its not that quick in this process ,it may take several seasons to completely fuse and smooth out . i'm happy even if your not.Cheers Alpine

Nice work!, I think its good to try different methods even if some frown upon it. Any chance in seeing it now in its spring glory?
Thanks