Driftwood Style

[BGM1971]

Hi
I have just got hold of some nice driftwood from a pet shop. It is meant to be for an aquarium, but I thought it was to nice to waste on fish!
Anyway, I haven't tried to do a driftwood style planting before and would like to know if anyone can give me some guidance.
One of the main problems I'm having at the moment is with preparing the driftwood. Some websites and books say to use a wood preservative on it and some say don't. I have also been told to give in a coat of sulphur/lime.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks
Brad

[Jonden]

Over the years I have done a few driftwood stye trees, it depends on the type of wood you are using as what preparation is needed. Mallee root and Mangrove require no preparation as they are very hard rot resistant wood.
Make sure that any wood that you use is sound and very hard as it will deteriorate fairly quickly even when it is treated if it is softwood. If you treat with neat lime sulphur, leave it for a couple of weeks out in the weather then wash it down completely before using, it will need to be re applied every couple of years to maintain protection, also do any carving before treating.I have also used Earls wood hardener and soaked the wood in it, this keeps the natural colour of it better, I am not a fan of stark white driftwood that lime sulphur produces, even though you can add colour when applying to soften the look. (India ink or oxide can be used.)
I have used various methods of attaching trees, nails through the trunk and into the wood, stainless steel screws, cable ties and I have some of the Gorrilla glue that Peter Adams uses, but I havn't tried this yet.
Go with the direction and flow of the wood grain when positioning the tree and keep it in close contact with no gaps between, of even carve out a groove to fit the tree in.
Good luck
jonden

[Pup]

BGM is it possible to tell how soft the wood is. If it is Mallee root it should be OK if not it will need treating with at least lime sulphur.
It is best to do this first. so you are not touching live tissue with the Lime mixture.
I use Yates garden Lime Sulphur straight from the bottle.
With a small amount of Sumi or Indian Ink to take the stark white look away. Also for fixing I use cable ties to bring it tight to the trunk.
Then Pure Brass screws or nails, or stainless steel. Never use steel as it rust's causing problems even death.
It will come into contact with the phloem and xylem. Even galvanised will rust eventually if it is wet all the time.
Hope this is of help.
Pup

[BGM1971]

Hi
Thanks for the advice.
So Lime Sulphur will bleach the wood but does it also protect it? I don't know what type of wood they use in aquariums, but it seems to chip fairly easily!
If I use some wood hardener like Earls wood hardener, does it need to be sealed?
While researching this subject, I have come across several people suggesting the use of a water sealing agent, such as Thompson's Water Seal.
http://www.thompsonswaterseal.com/produ ... ?prod_id=1
Is this needed as well, or should I just use the Lime/Sulphur solution?
I hope someone can help with these questions.

All the best.

Brad

[BGM1971]

[stymie]

You will find that wood hardener and waterseal are both sealants in their own right. No furthyer treatment is needed. If a slight sheen remains on the surface when dry, this can be removed with a gentle sanding if you don't like it.
I use the product described here which doesn't leave a shine and enhances the natural grain without bleaching:-
NATURAL BONSAI DEADWOOD PRESERVER
Preserve deadwood of deciduous & broadleaf Bonsai Trees without the unnatural white colour associated with Lime Sulphur. This benign product has been extensively tested on our own Bonsai Trees for more than 10 years.
Fully preserves wood whilst retaining the natural colour. Will not damage foliage. Soaks into the wood to reach into inaccessible places. Brush onto seasoned dry wood during spring & summer.

That is fine for driftwood and tanuki styles as well as deadwood on the tree. Eat your hearts out. Its distributed over here by Kaizen bonsai.

[mick]

Hi.
Would love to see how your driftwood is going BGM.
I got hold of some yesterday, and am going to atemp to do a driftwood style as well. Did you use the lime sulphur?
I have read an article in a book that uses cable ties to attatch the tree to the drift wood.
Cheers
Mick

[PeterH]

I too have tried this style in the past. I found that long term in a pot the wood below the soil surface would rot and this was due to leaving the end grain of the wood unsealed.

In Dan Bartons Book he shows a method of sealing the end grain and at the same time creating a base as a means to tie it to the pot.

I have simplified his method and use fibre glass resin to do a similar job.

The one shown here was done in an ice-cream container. I mixed up the resin and poored it into the container to about the depth of 15mm. Placed about 4x 5mm stones in the bottom and then the wood on top, moved it about so as to remove air pockets. It took about 10min to semi cure (depending on amount of hardener). I then cut out the exess areas before it fully cured.

Peter

[BGM1971]

Hi
I still haven't had a chance to do anything with my driftwood yet, but I thought I'd let you have a look at the pieces that I purchased.
I will be using Lime/Sulphur, but as to how much, I'll make that decision as I go.
I will be carving out a channel in the wood to sit the trunk of the tree onto so that as it grows, the two will become one.
I still haven't decided if I will be using a wood preserver after I do the Lime/Sulphur, but I have purchased some Thompson's Water Seal.
http://www.thompsonswaterseal.com/produ ... ?prod_id=1
If anyone has used this, I'd appreciate hearing about the results.
Any thoughts on my pieces of driftwood?
Thanks
Brad

[Jamie]

some nice potential there mate!
a couple of the right junipers and they would be hot stuff!