JBP- what to do?

[missybonsai]

Wow how come your photos come out so big?

Haha i use photobucket

[The Specimen]

You are a young wise owl still i dont get it.. care to share

My uploads are quite crappy in comparison

[Tony Bebb]

Good on ya Missy

A year is about average for a lot of Bonsai artists. Don't worry about being lazy, everybody needs contemplation time.

Use the extra length as leverage to put a bend in the trunk half way between the future jin and the first 2 branches that will make the design. That would be to the right in your first photo. That will give it more character and suit the drop branch nicely.

Should grow well now. Keep us posted.

Tony

[missybonsai]

You are a young wise owl still i dont get it.. care to share

My uploads are quite crappy in comparison

Umm thankyou Photobucket lets you upload the photos, and then provides a "link code" for every photo, and you can use either a full size image or a smaller image. Obviously i use the large image option, you then simply copy and paste the code into your message. Photobucket is free and private (if you choose it to be)

Good on ya Missy

A year is about average for a lot of Bonsai artists. Don't worry about being lazy, everybody needs contemplation time.

Use the extra length as leverage to put a bend in the trunk half way between the future jin and the first 2 branches that will make the design. That would be to the right in your first photo. That will give it more character and suit the drop branch nicely.

Should grow well now. Keep us posted.

Tony

Thanks for the encouragement and further advice Tony, much appreciated So i should bend the trunk to right? How much of a bend do you think, a gentle curve or sharp angle?

[missybonsai]

I have also noticed on this black pine that it has mostly two needles from the one point, but it also occasionally has three needles from the same point. Is this nomal? Sorry can't remember the terminology for where the needles come from

[Tony Bebb]

Hey MissyB

Black Pine is a 2 needle pine, but they can throw 3 here and there. The needles come from the sheath, and when you pluck the needles and leave the sheath, you can still get a shoot from there.

Tony

[missybonsai]

Thanks Tony! Yes the sheath is the word I was looking for

After trimming this tree to start training for the design, one of the branches sprouted about 5cm behind the original foliage. Once this bud has developed some, would it be safe to cut all the way back to this? It would help get the foliage closer to the trunk and redirect energy to the bud, but I am just concerned about the tree dying back and losing that branch altogether.