AusBonsai

Here is one of my trees. I wouldn't buy it for training to be a bonsai if not for this comp. It has absolutely no taper and little movement. The only good things about it is I guess - flexibility and dense uper folliage and elongated trunk. I probably was too strict on myself when choosing the materials!

G,day Kvan Good choice although, I would have gone with the juniper Pup

stymie wrote:The young or new section in the competition is for material which has been lifted from the ground or obtained from a nursery but has not been 'worked' as a bonsai before. It may have been cut back at sometime during its life but not styled.
This is how I visualise it.
Something previously trained in a different style to Literati/Bunjin would be expected to be entered into the old or worked section.
Perhaps the sections would be best named NEW and WORKED to clarify this? Brett, you have the breakdown - What do you think?

I think the headings we have at the moment are New stock and Aged styled stock.
Hopefully Steven gets a chance to make a new section for us to post the entries in by the new month. I have sent him the current topic headings with editing rights so I will send these along as well and see what he comes out with.

Pup wrote:G,day Kvan Good choice although, I would have gone with the juniper Pup

Thanks Pup for the encouragement. Any chance you know what type of juniper this is? My guess is squamata.

kvan, looks like squamata to me should be good for literati. will be quite flexible but dont go to far at once. i know this from experience you will be thinking gee this is bending well then CRACK! it goes.

the foliage will change from needle like to a more softer nearly shimpaku like foliage, its hard to explain so i will tahe a couple of pics for ya

here is the squamata foliage Kvan. two mature and one juvenielle.

as you can see the juvie is more needle like and the mature is more scale like.

these pics were taken all from the same tree. the one in my avatar.

jamie


ps. and on top of everything else it looks like we will be-able to start work on the trees this weekend!!!

Thanks Jamie, very interesting to know. The one I have got spiky folliage now.

yea mate, the spiky foliage will stay for years. it only comes into mature foliage with the age of the tree. i think.

i have a couple of squamatas that are at least 10 years old and they still have juvie folaige. i have tried everything to get them to the mature folaige but it dont work. its just a time thing.

the tree i took the pics of i would say is at least 15 odd. if not more. it still shows juvie foliage on the younger branching. so i dont know. maybe i am doing something wrong?

thats my theory on it any ways


jamie

kvan,

just thinking on a design aspect of your stock i think you have some great potential there for what we are after. you have the makings of something that could very well be an intersting bunjingi, we will get further into it when the contest/discussions start but i have a few ideas for ya on that one

jamie

Hey all I have a young Shimpaku that I have just purchased a few weeks back & was stuck for ideas. I think this might be a good opportunity to try something new in styling (for me anyway) I guess it won't have the look of old bark & will probably only stand about 300-400mm tall, & will still be heavily wired, but should be fun. Been doing lots of sketching but nothing that really works yet, it is pretty hard . Hopefully it will set up for a nicely developed Literati in the future . I'm looking around for another stock plant to use but no luck at them moment. Looking forward to seeing everyone's trees & techniques and styles. I think it will be a educational experience...hehehe

Cheers all

You are not alone Ryan, I always thought literati is dead simple and not interesting at all. That's completely different now. Just like yourself, I tried quite a few sketches and still haven't satisfied yet. It is surprisingly difficult. The good thing is I am very interested in this style now. I'm sure that I'll learn a lot through this. Also if you're stuck, just post questions here and I'm sure that heaps of experienced guys here will be more than happy to help.

Jamie,

thank you in advance. I've found your ideas very helpful from previous posts/projects. Hope to hear more of those soon.
Cheers to all.

]

ONLY 4 four more sleeps.
CANT count three more sleeps

Pup wrote:]

ONLY 4 four more sleeps.
CANT count three more sleeps

to right there pup getting keen as for this
are you ready for the onslought of questions and pictures of stock trees and which way to go about things???

i am so looking forward to getting to work on this and writing up progressive posts for it
i think i might have to go and get another shimp though, i couldnt resist using that last one i got when i posted my twins trees, i thought i would use it for this but after seeing my girls trees was a little bit inspired lol.

Ryan1979b wrote:Hey all I have a young Shimpaku that I have just purchased a few weeks back & was stuck for ideas. I think this might be a good opportunity to try something new in styling (for me anyway) I guess it won't have the look of old bark & will probably only stand about 300-400mm tall, & will still be heavily wired, but should be fun. Been doing lots of sketching but nothing that really works yet, it is pretty hard . Hopefully it will set up for a nicely developed Literati in the future . I'm looking around for another stock plant to use but no luck at them moment. Looking forward to seeing everyone's trees & techniques and styles. I think it will be a educational experience...hehehe

Cheers all

education in the style is the key to this excersize mate it will be a good learning experience for all.
and your tree is similar in size to the one i got saved for the comp. but i am probly gonna go get the last one they have at the nursery just to have a second shimpaku option.

regards jamie

There coming to take me away today haha hehe

Pup - if I only have two sleeps and start at 00:01 hours on 011109, is that cheating?
Watto