Wind and Fire

[Pup]

Not sure how this will be recieved but it is with the best intensions.

This is one of my trees that I have been struggling with for a while about six months ago I decided on doing what a lot of people say we should so I did.Styled it in what I percieve to be Australian style.

This is a Melaleuca linophylla sbspp, collected from the mid west of WA Eneabba area.
It is fire and wind blown.

450mm high spread 650mm in a Pat Kennedy pot.

Hope you like.Cheers Pup

EOS 650D0828.JPG

[Damian79]

Hi Pup
Love it. Love it. Love it.
I think we should see more "Australian style" trees.
Our Native trees are unique and should be styled so.
Just my

[Isitangus]

Undeniable australian. Love it

[Paulneill]

Very nice pup good work!

Do u actually burn the trunk to get it to turn black?

[Pup]

Very nice pup good work!

Do u actually burn the trunk to get it to turn black?

Yes I use a blow torch it is very affective, I have used this method to encourage new growth on some of my trees.
I used this on the tree Mrs pup and I donated to the National collection.

You have to be careful and protect foliage, I use wet cloth.

Cheers Pup

[Drac0]

Excellent tree Pup. I think the pot really sets it off, giving it the 'harsh brown land' look.

Cheers

[Fluorine]

Stunning. I'm inspired. Thanks for sharing.

[milly.abrahams]

Hi Pup
Great tree and pot combination. I really love it.
Milly

[Steve B]

It fundamentally challenges my understanding and appreciation of bonsai - first glance and it's almost too much for me to take in.

Move in to the details and everything is done beautifully (no surprises given the artist!). The burn charring varying around the live branch compared to the rest. The pot, planting angle and moss is mesmerising - it's straight out of that scrubby Eneabba countryside (without the flies!). The weight of the foliage pad sitting seamlessly in with such a sparse setting - getting that to look natural would have been painstaking? There's some kind of optical illusion at work - it's very stylistic to look at initially, but it then defies you to think it's not a plausible natural tree as you move onto the details.

I like it. Not because it has that instant appeal of bonsai that's a cunning balance of perspective and proportion. It works and I don't really understand why - and that's my challenge. I do know I'll end up spending a lot more time looking at this one trying to nut it out. There's something important about this tree, but for all the words here I can't tell you what.

[Jason]

Simply amazing Pup. You really do portray the aussie style beautifully Everything in that picture just works so well

I really hope to put the 'aussie style' into my natives as well... I just hope I can do it as well as you

[GavinG]

Wonderful. Very strong design, and tells a story or six. Steve said it well: "It works and I don't really understand why - and that's my challenge." That's why I'm on this site.

Thanks for posting.

Gavin

[DavidWilloughby]

Hi Pup,

A lovely tree and pot combination that as has been said, could tell a story. It seems so simple, yet is very profound.

These words are not mine, but from a member of IBC and I think its very fitting for this:

It's like when you first try Chocolate, you don't know what it is but must have more...

Cheers

David

EDITED for grammar/syntax.

[rudy]

That's fantastic. True living art.

[Paulneill]

Pup can you please explain a bit more on how burning the trunk helps growth.
Does it help trees bud on old wood ? And which trees does it work on ?
It an interesting subject I know some seeds need fire to germinate !

[Pup]

Pup can you please explain a bit more on how burning the trunk helps growth.
Does it help trees bud on old wood ? And which trees does it work on ?
It an interesting subject I know some seeds need fire to germinate !

Hi Paul, I do not have any scientific data to show why or why not. It is from observation of the bush, and how it regenerates after fire has swept though.
My first was an area near where I live where pine trees grew along side natives.
After a fire went though six months later all the natives were shooting back the pines were dead.

In 1988 at my first public demo I styled a Melaleuca golden gem, I used the blow torch to create Australian jin and shari, the tree was shooting back along the burnt area within in two weeks.
So since then I have used this method.

I would like to point out though if you burn the wood to what I call a hard burn it will seldom regenerate, so I am careful to produce a soft burn which goes just past singeing the wood.
The difference is like when our indiginous tribes used the wood to make tools and weapons they burnt the wood to a hardness to make weapons and cooking utensils.
Cheers Pup