AusBonsai

Got this Juniper last year for the bargain price of $20 and did a demo on it at our show last year. Although pleased with the results, the more I looked at it the more unhappy I was with the foliage being far away from the base and making the tree a little to long, taking some proportion away from the beautiful trunk. I didn't get around to doing anything to it and it sat on the shelf and grew freely. I was due to do a demo at Bimer club so took the opportunity to 'fix' the tree. Happy that the foliage is now a little closer to the trunk, but looking at the pics you don't get to see the movement of the trunk as well as you do in the flesh. This may be the angle of the photo so I will check it tomorrow and take a better photo or tweek the trunk and update it if required. I love this trunk and I will do some carving to refine the tree and fix the reverse taper in the lower part of the trunk as well jin the old trunk on the right.

Cheers

Tony

nice, how did you get such a great specimen for only $20? ill like to get my hands on some juniper stock like this.
anyway, you've come out with some great results there. the tree will need to fill out quite a bit first i think before you go on with any more work on the tree. i think you need to extend the bottom branch to the right a bit to continue the flow of the trunk and enhance the movement and then grow the left branch out a bit to balance that. but once the tree has filled it should look great.

Hugh

Couldn't believe it myself Hugh.

Owner just didn't like it and wanted it gone. Originally only wanted $10, but I only had a 20 and was more than happy to part with it.

Will grow the tip a little longer but probably leave the left branch where it is to avoid symetry. Want to do some more bending to the crown also as it has to much curve. Thanks for your comments.

Tony

nice movement, nice work, very nice price

yes i agree with the crown, maybe bring it down slightly closer to the rest of the foliage

hugh

Tweaked it a little and changed the angle for photo to how I would like it in the pot. You can see the movement of the trunk better now. Also put on tidier guy wires so they are not tied to the jins that I want to work on. Put better movement into the crown to remove the curve as well. Plenty of refinement to come as the foliage grows. This is straight Procumbens, the old variety, so the foliage is more coarse. It will need plenty of pinching to keep it compact.

Tony

Hello Tony,
Firstly thanks for the detailed info, and I look forward to attempting some of these techniques this year, amazing what can be acheived with patience and some knowledge. I also love the tree, wow.

Cheers Panda

Hi Tony
Great demo - you must be pretty good that was a big crowd yesterday. I think the tree looks much more powerful in the bark than in the photos


Tony

I must say, you have done a great job. My two cents are that the "side view" is my preferred front, an more compact and dynamic tree! Look forward to seeing what pot you choose for it!

Thanks for the comments guys.

Panda, it takes the first step to make a journey.

Bougy, thanks and nice to meet you. Photos don't always show what you want them to. Maybe if I was a better photographer

Jarrod you make a good point. I also like the side view as it shows the movement of the trunk in the photo. That movement comes to life 'in the bark', as Bougy put it, from the front. The side view does not work as the front because the tree comes straight at you, and cuts back on itself without any flow to one direction. I will 'commision' my first pot from a local potter, Maree, who has a design I like in a size that doesn't fit. Refined yet rustic. Round semi cascade depth in a sesame/sand colour.

Will show it again when I refine the carving.

Tony

Makes sense Tony, the problem with bonsai is that doesn't always lend itself to 2D photography. The pot sounds lovely, and great to see local artists getting used.

Well I got keen and decided to start the carving today and spent some time in the workshop with the carving tools. The easiest way is just to post a series of photos of before and after of different shots and then the end result. There will be some more refinement to do later as the wood weathers, but I am happy for now. What do you reckon?

Tony

nice work on the dead shari. i do like the new branch placement alot better now, it fits in better with the tree. cant wait untill you get this one into a nice pot one day.

Hugh

Tony, Thanks for the demo and keeping the troops happy. I'm sorry I missed a good afternoon. Can you order a similar pot for me, or let me know the details. I have a sad tree that would get a boost from a new pot.
Happy bonsai,
Bruce.

Looks good Tony. The carving seems to have taken the weight (visually) out of the thick kink as you mentioned on the day.

AG