restoring and old trident

[Jarrod]

Hope you have patience as it is going to be a long time till Craig has had enough of it!

[Scott Roxburgh]

It's all good, Im 24 so by the time Craig is finished with it I'll have finished my apprenticeship in japan and I'll know what to do with it!

[Tony Bebb]

What a cracker Craig. And it has an interesting history.

Not sure if I'd be too worried about the top branching, would even consider shortening a little to round the top a bit. Nice big, even roots. That beautuful moss will fill the spaces nicely.

Enjoy. It's a beauty.

Best Regards

Tony

[craigw60]

Thanks guys, I think I will be keeping this one for a while unless I get hit by a bus. This height of the tree is about the same as it was when it came into the country, I took out some really heavy branches in the crown which had grown unchecked for some years so its going to take a while to re-build that as well as the rest of the branching. I think when the Japanese grow trees for commercial purposes they leave lots of branches on them for the new owners to sort out, thats just a guess but all the Japanese imports I have seen seem to have lots and lots of branches.
Bodhi, I am fully aware of how lucky I am to have this one as its not something I could replicate in one life time although I am sure Scott at the ripe old age of 24 could have one by the time he is 60.
Craigw

[Brian]

Well Craig, I was curious about the tree after you took delivery of it from me. I was a member of BSV for 25 years and lost interest in Bonsai a few years ago.
I'm happy you have the tree and it will flourish under your care. I still have a few trees left that I enjoy, (including another even better big Japanese imported trident ) but cannot ever be inspired to rejoin the bonsai club again.
Good luck Brian.

[craigw60]

Hi Brian, good to see you here. The trident is coming along nicely and has made a bit more twiggy growth, I will be wiring the twigs before to long then it will get repotted, I would like to find a slightly deeper good quality pot for it.
I am glad you still have a few trees.
Craigw

[craigw60]

Just before Hiro's visit my friend Jow was here and he suggested a radical trunk chop for this tree, I had been thinking about a second tree for Hiro's critique night and decided a second opinion on this one would be good. Hiro was very enthusiastic about Jow's suggestion and also picked out a new front. Here is the result.
Craigw

[Jow]

Looks great Craig. It is surely going to grow into an impressive tree.

[Jarrod]

Looking good. Was going say, apex moves in the opposite direction to the first long/main branch!

[Brian]

Craig, good to see my old trident getting the full treatment. I don't like the big course roots on the buttress, that was why I didn't keep it. I know you will turn it into a masterpiece.

[craigw60]

Yes Brian the roots are very chunky, its very old fashioned. If you look at old photos of tridents in Japan lots of them have similar root structures.
Craigw

[Dario]

I think you have made the best choice for the tree in the long run!
Well done Craig, this will be a terrific tree to rebuild And I really will look forward to watching it progress over the coming years
Thanks for sharing it, Dario.

[Gerard]

066.jpg

A "before" photo. July 2012
At Hiro's advanced critique.

I like where it is going craig

[anttal63]

So much better, a great tree !!! Well done fellas !!! Some root grafting would soon give it a little more finess, im sure Jow has reccomended this ?

[craigw60]

Thanks Gerard, I am sure there are plenty of trees all over melbourne with that Hiro touch
Tony I thought you would like this one, Jow and others have recommended root grafts I am in two minds I can produce plenty of tridents with radial nebari but quite like the out of date character of this tree.
Craigw