AusBonsai

Sorry I don't quite get it. Are those stubs going to shoot back and you rebuild the branches or are they all to be jinned and its just the one live branch now ? Whats the plan

Maybe you should do a quick sketch Greg.

Thanks for the encouragement Leigh, it appears I need to win over the sceptics. I plan to show this tree in 2014 and then it will be dynamic - hopefully???

Neal - the stubs won't shoot back, but they will be jinned (possibly) or removed. If you have a look at the photo with the caption "final design options" there are two drawings that I have based this tree on, and both use just the single branch.
I will try to do a sketch later and post it.
Cheers

You are welcome Greg. Let me help with the sceptics.

There was nothing wrong with the tree the way it was. It was a nice run of the mill, average "hobbyist" bonsai. Kind of typical of many better hobby collection bonsai in Australia. Noel and I saw that the tree needed some drastic action in order to be improved. Like I said before, there was nothing wrong with the way it was, but to make it better, we had to look at long term options.

The first thing that stopped this tree from moving into the next class was it's thin and lanky trunk. The height to trunk width ratio was holding it back, and the way it was heading, this could never have been fixed as long as it was grown as the bonsai that it had been styled as. The obvious option for Noel and myself was to shorten the height. The first branch had so many options in terms of secondary branching, that it was a simple choice to cut the tree back and use this branch to create the bonsai.

What you see in Greg's progression is simply the first step of a few years work. Greg has no intention of keeping the tree like you see it today. Greg needs to nurture the tree and grow the first branch to create a full bonsai, similar to the very roughly drawn pictures on the whiteboard in one of the pics at the beginning of the thread. This will make a shorter tree and will move away from the "bonsai that looks like a bonsai" and move toward the "bonsai that looks like a tree" style.

Hope this helps.

Shortly after the suggestions from Leigh and Noel I did a quick sketch of the intended outcome over a few years, and I have attached a copy of that. No laughing, its just my rough sketch to keep me focused on where I am going with this.

Aha, now I like it. I did see the 'final design' pic but there are 4 tree's on the board and a bloke in the way too so I couldn't figure out the plan but now I see where its going. Looks good! Good luck with it

Watto you did the tree a favour by removing all those branches. Now do it another one and lose the Mondo Grass, and swear to us all "never again". I think you might have used a little artistic license when you sketched the base of the trunk, unless there is something that I cannot see.

Showing the tree in 2014 will be easy. Having the tree show worthy by 2014, that is another thing entirely. What you have done so far is a step in the right direction. Be bold and turn this tree's weaknesses into strengths.

Cheers,
Mojo

Hey Watto

One thing is certain, and that is that you are now committed to the design, so the only way is upwards and onwards. Work on the layers.

Tony

Hi Watto,
I enjoyed the tale mate And I can see where your going with this Watto, and I like the dramatic change. Ballsy too. It was a bit of a shock going to the photo with 1 limb. I saw pines in south Texas that had been so damaged by storms and hard prevailing winds. And the top halves were stripped, split, and slanting.
Thanks,
Pete

Mojo - the young lady (my tree) did not have an attractive bottom and thus it was covered. I have strict instructions from Noel that the mondo grass MUST go, and it will. Next repot, trust me.
I thought all sketches had some artistic licence?
The attached sketch was done in March this year and shows a bit more work on moving the new branch line closer to the trunk. I think this is more in line with my current thinking for this tree, but any ideas are appreciated.

G'day Watto,

I reckon you should make a nice little triangle out of that foliage, with nice layering of branches to achieve this. Hard to describe - maybe I should sketch something!

Yes please.

There was nothing really dramatic or interesting about the original design, to me this would have been the only option for the tree. Well done on the bold move mate.

Keep us posted.

Hey Leigh - where is that sketch you promised?