Trident maple hollowtrunk?

[lennard]

I got a few trident maples that was field grown by a lady from Johannesburg, RSA. She dug them, chopped them and worked the roots every year for, I think, 5 years. 3 of them have very nice nebaris and taper but one or two of them have........nothing.

After seeing one of Walter Palls hollow trunks I was thinking in that direction with one of them that has nothing. I used the die grinder to work of the wood to the nearest growths:

The front?

Front January 2011.jpg

The back?

January 2011 back.jpg

From above:

From above January 2011.jpg

My questions:

Should I go ahead with the hollow trunk or are there any other options?

If I should go ahead where will the lines of the hollow go?

Should I seal the wound?

Any other comments or advice welcome.

Lennard

[kcpoole]

I like the "back" picture as the front Nice root showing and nice line out of the ground.

Are you wanting a short tree? If so, get some early wire on the branching to set it and develop as a small Broom style?

Yes I would seal the wound.

Ken

[lennard]

I like the "back" picture as the front Nice root showing and nice line out of the ground.

Are you wanting a short tree? If so, get some early wire on the branching to set it and develop as a small Broom style?

Yes I would seal the wound.

Ken

Thanks for the reply.

I do want the tree as short as possible - I am not a very big fan of too big bonsai, (They have to be moved around and old age is coming!)

I have also looked at the back side of the tree and did see the possibility. Using the back side the chop will not be visible if it is used as the front.

Will a wound as big as that grow over or should I still do the hollow trunk - the tree will have two possible fronts then.

Lennard

[shibui]

Tridents heal quite quickly for me, esp when sealed. Your 'back' view also appeals to me as a good option.

[Andrew Legg]

Hey all,

I have heard of a technique of sealing a large trident wound and then covering with tin foil to keep it cool and moist. I was told to tape on the foil with some insulation tape and that this significantly helps healing times. Aparrently the taped foil also keeps the cambium scar nice and flat.

Never tried it, but thought I'd throw it out there all the same.

Cheers

[lennard]

Hey all,

I have heard of a technique of sealing a large trident wound and then covering with tin foil to keep it cool and moist. I was told to tape on the foil with some insulation tape and that this significantly helps healing times. Aparrently the taped foil also keeps the cambium scar nice and flat.

Never tried it, but thought I'd throw it out there all the same.

Cheers

I have also read about this somewhere on the net but I can not find the website.

I will try this on this tree and see for myself if it works.

Thanks for the replies.

Lennard

[Andrew Legg]

Hi Lennard,

Did you experiment with the tin foil thing? Any results to speak of yet?

Cheers,

Andrew

[Luke308]

I wish i could get my hands on a field grown maple with a trunk that size

The idea of sealing, then using foil sounds very logical, why didn't I think of that?

Good luck with the hollow trunk, IMO there is nothing better than a large majestic maple with a hollow trunk