Big Cedrus Libani

[ricardo]

Hi all went to Bodhidharma's yesterday to look at some tools and just a general squiz
When i spotted this guy wow and at a great price too, i had to have it, so when he said ausbonsai
Member discount it was a done deal.
Now the hard work starts to make a great bonsai from this material it won’t be easy but im up to the
Challenge, any input or advice is always appreciated...
Ricardo

[mickaus]

What would you be using as the front of the tree? I'd really love to see some photos from different angles.

Looks fantastic to me though

[ricardo]

i think the front would have to be the last pic but ill put some more pics up when i can

[mickaus]

I'd really like to see a shot of it rotated 90deg clockwise from the last picture in that series, but then I'm just guessing...

[MattA]

I reckon you should send it to me... I dont have a libani yet & that is a nice piece of stock.

I will put it in the ground for 2-3yrs & just keep pinching the new shoots as they extend. This will add plenty of bulk to the trunk without the tree getting any bigger, it will just fill all those pads nicely

Matt

[Matthew]

It is alittle hard to tell without more pics but id be inclined to do something with that first lower branch in the last pic, i think you could make pads and a apex out of it, remove most the top and jin and shari in time. I really like the small needles and density or put it in the ground for a few years to see what happens but cedars are generally slow growing and trunk fattening takes along time especially without sacrifice branches.

[ricardo]

im in no rush with this one i was thinking about ground growing it
for a while but i might bend it down first? dont no... ill post more
pics sunday arvo

[Gerard]

I am a big fan of the "grow it in the ground" theory, but not so keen for this tree
Cedars can be stubborn, often you can wire a branch into position, wait a year, remove wire and watch the branch spring back in a week. This makes it necessary to rewire.
With this in mind I feel that planning your design for a cedar is critical. Make a plan and get the main branches positioned ASAP then you can wait.
You have great material all you need now is a great plan

(I believe people should sketch thier plans whenever possible)

[ricardo]

i was thinking about trying some sketches im not very good though

[MattA]

Hey Ricardo,

They van be slow to get going but once they have roots down the growth & thickening takes off.

This is my only cedar at the moment viewtopic.php?f=131&t=6331 If you look at the pics from october last year to yesterday, a fair amount of thickening of the trunk has occured & the pads have filled out heaps more even in just that short space of time. Unfortunately i dont have a photo of it prior to going in the ground but there was very little to it.

If you do decide to put it in the ground you will not regret it, just make sure you keep ontop of the pinching once it decides to take off.

Matt

[bodhidharma]

To make the branches set into place you have to TAP the bark of the branch with a small rubber hammer. I used a small wooden hammer and scarred the branches on my Cedar but they set. It disturbs the cambium and callouses the bark which then sets hard, keeping the branch in place. The process, as everything with Cedar's, takes a little while but they dont move once done. I look forward to see where this one goes Ricardo. It has lots of transformations that could happen and i am sure you will turn it into a fine tree.

[kcpoole]

Beautiful stock ricardo
I love the possibilities with the last photo as the front

Ken

[ricardo]

Well I’m leaning towards layering above the first branch still not sure though
I’ll take it into my club and c what they recommend... any tips on layering this
species if i go ahead?