radical approach to an ugly Cedar.

[CK*]

I love the progression of this cedar. Front #1 is my favourite at this stage!
Nice job!

[Wayne R]

My understanding is that movement directly towards the viewer should be avoided. Goes some way to explaining why Japanese don't 'point' when giving directions but 'indicate' with an arm and upwards palm. With this tree and it's many twists and turns, avoiding the 'pointing' issue is best identified in photo #1,

Either way, this tree reminds me of the dragon from the movie 47 Ronin. Dragons are good

[Boics]

#1 or #3 for me.

Looks very cool!

[bodhidharma]

3 all day.

#3 most definitley
nice tree Bodhi

I love the progression of this cedar. Front #1 is my favourite at this stage!
Nice job!

I love the progression of this cedar. Front #1 is my favourite at this stage!
Nice job!

Thank you very much for the input Folks. Always nice to see differing opinions.

My understanding is that movement directly towards the viewer should be avoided. Goes some way to explaining why Japanese don't 'point' when giving directions but 'indicate' with an arm and upwards palm. With this tree and it's many twists and turns, avoiding the 'pointing' issue is best identified in photo #1,

An interesting point as i have heard the tree should "bow" towards you as you approach.

#1 or #3 for me.
Thanks Boics, appreciate the the input.

[bodhidharma]

This tree now has a lovely new pot and a rewire. It has had quite a journey and as i settle in to its refinement i am a little disbelieving as to where this tree started. It has a lot of deadwood on the inside which i will refine later and has thickened quite a bit. Been an interesting experiment.

[Andrew Legg]

Looks cool Bodhi!

[matty-j]

Thats a really nice tree Bodhi
I Really like the base of the trunk behind the second major bend and foliage. It really gives depth to the tree and photo

Cheers
Matt

[fossil finder]

When you have a tree that really does not have a future or you can see no restyling in its current guise then you have a perfect opportunity to experiment with techniques you have read about but never tried. This little Cedar came to me when i took over the Bonsai barns stock and i thought i could move it on for a hundred bucks give or take. It sat and sat and sat. It presented to me a chance to try something i read about in Colin Lewis's "the Art of Bonsai design". It was to insert a wire into a tree to create more movement. I will give a blow by blow description with each picture. I reiterate that this is not my idea but when you start something like this you have to change some things to suit the present situation. The project took four hours and i wish i had someone to help from the start. My wife rescued me about 3/4 of the way through. It is a lot to put the tree through in one hit and i hope it survives its ordeal. Nevertheless, i did learn a remarkable amount about how much you can manipulate a tree and that alone makes it a success.

You missed your calling as a orthopedic surgeon bodhidharma!! Great and documented post! Never seen anything like it but looking at your technique gave me a pretty snazzy idea. I once had a major motorcycle accident where I copped a compound fracture of the femur (breaks out of leg). To mend they inserted a long stainless steel K-nail inside the femur to hold bones in alignment.

Soooo..... what about using one of those really long twist drills (150-200mm x 6mm/4mm) and doing some keyhole surgery? While plant is out of pot insert drill just below soil surface and drill up the center of trunk. Remove the drill, insert wire leaving enough to anchor in the pot. Could also envisage the same principle of drilling used on branches.....I can feel some more experimental bonsai coming up!

Thats a really nice tree Bodhi
I Really like the base of the trunk behind the second major bend and foliage. It really gives depth to the tree and photo

Cheers
Matt

Thanks,All i can say was that it was a lot of fun to do.

Roka..it is a sisal twine that you can get most places. Time will tell if the tree survives or not.

Thanks loads Mick..It is because guys like yourself notice that we try to further our skills to share with fellow enthusiasts.

Kyushu..i will keep you posted on its progress and well being.

Dean..i will keep you posted also. To early to tell.

K.C.. thanks for the link. I remember it well.Glad yours are still going. Hope mine does to

G'day Andrew..the wire was already 4mm and the cut was definitely half way. I think if we also went in from the other side the tree would most certainly die. I think it would work o a thinner tree a lot better. It certainly helped achieving a more radical bend. In the end though it was only an experiment and now i want to see how the tree recuperates.

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[bodhidharma]

Looks cool Bodhi!

Thats a really nice tree Bodhi
I Really like the base of the trunk behind the second major bend and foliage. It really gives depth to the tree and photo

Thanks Gentlemen, appreciate the positive feedback. Helps keep my nose to the grindstone/pruning scissor's.

Soooo..... what about using one of those really long twist drills (150-200mm x 6mm/4mm) and doing some keyhole surgery? While plant is out of pot insert drill just below soil surface and drill up the center of trunk. Remove the drill, insert wire leaving enough to anchor in the pot. Could also envisage the same principle of drilling used on branches.....I can feel some more experimental bonsai coming up!

Hi F.F, Here is the perfect segway into an experiment for you Follow through and have a go and post it here.

[Raymond]

i have no words...

[fossil finder]

Looks cool Bodhi!

Thats a really nice tree Bodhi
I Really like the base of the trunk behind the second major bend and foliage. It really gives depth to the tree and photo

Thanks Gentlemen, appreciate the positive feedback. Helps keep my nose to the grindstone/pruning scissor's.

Soooo..... what about using one of those really long twist drills (150-200mm x 6mm/4mm) and doing some keyhole surgery? While plant is out of pot insert drill just below soil surface and drill up the center of trunk. Remove the drill, insert wire leaving enough to anchor in the pot. Could also envisage the same principle of drilling used on branches.....I can feel some more experimental bonsai coming up!

Hi F.F, Here is the perfect segway into an experiment for you Follow through and have a go and post it here.

You're on bodhi!
I'll see what I can dig up (no pun intended!)

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