Flat-top Bald Cypress Bonsai – Starting A New Specimen

by | Apr 30, 2021 | Bald Cypress, Care, Most Recent, Styling, Wiring

flat-top bald cypress – how to get started

the bonsai files

Sneak Peek

The flat-top Bald cypress bonsai is the fastest to create from scratch. That’s because you get to take advantage of the tree’s apical dominance.

Flat-top Bald Cypress – How to Get Started

I’m convinced that there are two distinctive main styles for Bald cypress bonsai, the classic pyramidal style and the so called “flat-top.” The flat-top style is nothing more than a representation of the older specimens you see in the swamps. Once a BC grows to its natural mature height limit (genetics and all that jazz), the lower branches mostly die off and what you’re left with is a gradually spreading crown that reaches its natural limits.

I’m also convinced, though I’ll certainly get plenty of argument, that certain specimens lend themselves more to the flat-top style than others. For my money, the trunk height to trunk base ratio for the flat-top needs to be bigger to emphasize the height of the tree. It’s supposed to be a fully mature tree, after all, and they tend to get quite tall. Also, the pyramidal style bonsai can be grown from a tree with a nice fat trunk base and only end up at a 6 or 8 to 1 ratio of height to base. The pyramidal, or “Christmas tree” shape also produces the forced perspective that fools the brain into thinking the tree is very tall. This isn’t able to happen the same way with the flat-top, thus the need for a bigger base to height ratio. The tree on the right has a 2.5″ diameter trunk near the soil, and it’s chopped at 26″. So we start off with a height to base ratio of 10 to 1, and by the time the crown is developed we’ll be closer to 12 to 1. (Yes, I hear some of you thinking, that violates a bonsai rule! I suppose it does, but the tree needs to look right and this is how it’s done in my book.)

So if you’re still humoring me, let’s get started with a fun rhyme: in bonsai, less is always more, until it’s not anymore. You’ll often find yourself confronted with trees that are just a mass of branches, foliage and confusion. A bonsai is a representation of a mature tree in nature, not an exact duplicate of one. So we want to boil down our trees to their essence, and that means getting rid of a lot of foliar mass the tree went to a lot of trouble to grow. But that’s okay, the tree won’t mind (with BC, they continue to push trunk buds for quite some time until you finally convince them you’re right).

So here’s the first pass on editing down this BC to a more useable form. I was able to remove all of the lower branches that were trying to grow upward – I don’t need to fight those branches when I have some already growing horizontally.

We also need to keep in mind as we shape our trees that just because we’re doing bonsai doesn’t mean we can ignore all of the natural rules of the road. What I mean in this case is shown in the photo – namely, that empty space on the right side of the trunk near what will be the new apex. When branches get shaded out in nature by those above it, they die. I have seen the same phenomenon in bonsai. I might be able to keep a branch below the crown of this one alive, but it just wouldn’t make sense for it to be there. So I removed all of them.

Here’s the tree after all the high-falutin’ wiring I did to it. That’s right, one wire for two branches, a trim on the left side to “cool” that branch off and push the energy to the right, and a few turns for both. I’ll wait to wire the lower branches until they’re tougher and less likely to snap off – made easier by the fact that I don’t need to convince them to lie flat.

 

The last chore for today is to carve down the trunk chop. I did this with my spherical knob cutters for the rough work, then I used a carving knife to smooth the whole area. This is especially important at the edges, where the callus is going to start swelling before you know it. I want it to roll smoothly over the chop, and eventually to not look like anything at all but a continuation of the trunk line.

I’ll post updates on this tree as the work progresses. By next spring, I should be able to move it to a bonsai pot.

Let me know what you think.

Portrait Time – Hawthorn, Oak, Elm

by | Apr 24, 2021 | Care, Elms, Hawthorn, Most Recent, Oaks, Riverflat, Water Elm, Willow, ZPC

portrait time – hawthorn, oak, elm

the bonsai files

Sneak Peek

There’s nothing like the combination of spring, sunny weather and nicely developed bonsai.

Portrait Time – Hawthorn, Oak, Water-Elm

Well, after the winter we had it does your heart good to see your trees responding to spring. Here’s my Riverflat hawthorn, 10 years in the making.

The next step for this one is a hard-pruning, but I’ll wait until next year when it’s time to repot again.

“Rip van Winkle” is finally leafing out. I thought it would be nice to catch him while his leaves are still tiny. They’ll get somewhat bigger, but the leaf-size reduction has been gratifying (that part has taken some years).

This one has also been with me for 10 years.

 

And here’s the newcomer, a very large Water-elm I potted this year. I’ve only had it for a few years now, but in another two it’ll look like it’s been in training for a decade. Lovely tree.

Let me know what you think of these guys.

Coming Attractions – American Elm And Live Oak

by | Apr 17, 2021 | American Elm, Care, Elms, Most Recent, Oaks, Potting, Styling

coming attractions – american elm and live oak

the bonsai files

Sneak Peek

It’s very uncommon to see American elm and Live oak bonsai. There are reasons for the dearth of specimens. Here’s one of each I’ve started on the bonsai journey.

Formal Upright Bald Cypress – Development 101

It’s relatively easy to find American elm seedlings to harvest and grow on for bonsai. It’s not at all easy to find larger specimens in the wild to collect – at least that’s been my experience. While American elm is a very fine bonsai subject, you don’t see many of them. I frankly don’t know why this is, considering their qualities.

Here’s a specimen I’ve been working on for a few years now, that I pulled up as a seedling and potted. It’s been trunk-chopped a couple of times to build movement and taper, and naturally it’s grown out vigorously each time. I like the way this one’s looking, so why not prune, style and pot it?

These are easy to “take in” when it’s time to shorten the ranging branches that grow way out. Some quick snipping is all it takes.

 

A little wiring helps get those branches in the right positions.

I like the way this Lary Howard pot goes with the tree. Nice pot design, and since American elm will usually give a bright yellow fall color that will be something to look forward to considering the pot color.

 

Live oak bonsai are as rare as hen’s teeth. I’m not sure if this is because they are very hard to lift from the wild successfully (when you can find them), or it takes some years to get a good design going. Regardless, who could resist the species as bonsai?

As near as I can tell, the secret to successfully lifting Live oaks from the ground – and I’m working strictly from material I’ve been growing for 10 years from acorns – is to take them out of the ground about 10 to 14 days before they change leaves in spring. That means a March 1st collecting date for me. While I’ve had very poor luck lifting the species in late winter or summer, every specimen I’ve lifted on March 1st has lived. Here’s one of two I harvested this year. It’s going to make a classic Live oak style Live oak bonsai; here are the first steps.

If you study Live oaks in nature, the older ones tend to look a lot like octopuses in their branching. The trunks are short and stout, and divide off into two, three, four, or more leaders. Those leaders then have branches that grow off of them and snake outward, often dropping down to the ground (and I mean on the ground). They make quite a show.

You can see how I intend to make this tree into a classic Live oak. I have main leaders that point upward, and I have the beginnings of branches that emerge from those upright leaders but droop over. While I intend to keep the ends of those dropping branches pointed upward – toward the sun, for stronger growth – in time I plan to bring the outermost points as close to the soil surface as I can.

 

Here’s a final shot of this one for today, showing the nice barky base and good flaring roots. I’ll let the tree grow out to get strong. By summer it’s going to be full of new growth. The chop point will stay as-is for this season, but next year I’ll get in there and carve it down so the rolling callus will close off the wound as the leaders thicken.

Let me know what you think. Any Live oaks on your bench?

Formal Upright Bald Cypress – Development 101

by | Apr 16, 2021 | Bald Cypress, Care, Most Recent, Pruning, Styling

formal upright bald cypress – development 101

the bonsai files

Sneak Peek

To begin with the beginning of a formal upright BC (or most every style), you must do one thing….

Formal Upright Bald Cypress – Development 101

I have found that the collected formal upright Bald cypress is much less common than the informal upright. I suspect this is because the smaller specimens we collect tend to struggle somewhat in their competition with the very large trees they grow beneath. There’s certainly nothing wrong with trunk movement – in fact, it’s a lot easier to make a good informal upright bonsai than a formal upright. The trunk movement imparts a sense of age and persistence.

That doesn’t mean we shun the formal upright. We just recognize the extra challenge of making the bonsai look like a tree.

So this guy is a member of the Class of ’21. I knew from the get-go that I was going to hang onto it to train, for some obvious reasons. The trunk character and taper are outstanding. Add to that a terrific root base, and there’s no doubt this is going to be a great bonsai in a few years.

Here’s a closeup of the base. Those flaring roots are present all around the trunk, and they give a strong impression of age and stability. Notice that they are also buttressing roots, meaning they flow naturally from the trunk and terminate in the flaring pattern. This is ideal, and is uncommon in a tree this small (trunk base 3.5″).

 

The first chore for today – and today’s work is simply to rebalance energy – is to thin out the shoots in the lower part of the tree. They aren’t all necessary, and I want to be sure I give the more suitable choices as much room to run as possible.

Here’s where we address BC development 101. You can’t help but notice the incredible number of shoots that have emerged in the top of this tree. For those of you familiar with Bald cypress, the term “apically dominant” is well understood. There are few species (none I can think of offhand) as apically dominant as BC. It’s hard-wired into them to want to get as tall as possible, as quickly as possible. When we collect these specimens, we’re removing the top 80% or more of the trunk and all the branching that does with it. Despite the fact that we’re also removing 80% or more of the root, the tree wants to get tall again. I didn’t count them, but I’m guessing there are 20-30 shoots within the top two inches of trunk. Almost all of them must go! This is one of the key secrets to developing BC bonsai.

 

This is the end result of today’s work. I now have a leader selected. It will continue the trunk line below it, and I’ll let it run until it has thickened sufficiently to then be cut back again to repeat the process. That is likely to happen by summer – we’ll see. After that will come an angle chop at the transition point, carving and eventually a nice tapering transition that isn’t noticeable.

In addition to having a single leader to focus all of the tree’s apical dominance, I have also forced energy into every shoot that wasn’t cut away. This energy will be naturally distributed by the tree, from the top down. That’s the battle that we always have to fight when making a formal (or informal) upright Bald cypress bonsai. Eventually, when the tree has been fully developed, the apical dominance will be much less pronounced and much easier to control. But it never completely goes away.

When does the tree get its first wiring? Most likely I can start by the end of next month, for those branches sufficiently hardened off.

Let me know what you think of today’s work. Do you have experience making BC bonsai from bare trunks?

Bonsai Odds & Ends – Rip, Swamp Maple, Ginkgo, Surprise

by | Apr 10, 2021 | Care, Flowering, Most Recent, Oaks, Willow, ZPC

bonsai odds & ends – rip, swamp maple, ginkgo, surprise

the bonsai files

Sneak Peek

Spring is in full force, and there’s lots going on around here. Today it’s worth checking in on ‘Rip van Winkle’ the Willow oak, the Swamp maple and Ginkgo I potted late, and a surprise.

Bonsai Odds & Ends – Rip, Swamp Maple, Ginkgo, Surprise

This was the before photo in my last blog – a little Swamp maple in too small of a pot that needed more room. Not looking too bonsai-y.

It’s been two weeks, and this little guy has obviously survived the late repotting. There’s a lot of work to do on this tree, but with more growing room it’ll be easier to do that work and have the tree respond well.

 

Ginkgo potted late.

Bag on ….

Bag off ….

Another success story – surviving the late potting.

 

I almost titled this blog “They don’t call me Rip van Winkle for nuthin’.” I can almost always count on this Willow oak to come out last – even after all of the Water-elms have broken bud. Sure as shootin’, this guy is finally waking up. In about a week it’ll be full of new shoots that I’ll be starting to pinch back.

Now for something of a surprise. Last year, in the course of my day job, I was walking a field with a firm doing a Phase I Environmental Assessment, and in a stand of trees noticed some pale orange fruits lying all over the ground. I immediately knew they were native persimmons (Diospyros virginiana). I have never seen one in the wild, though they certainly are around, and that’s most likely because I don’t collect trees in the areas where they grow at the time they’re dropping fruit. I gathered as many of the fruits as I could carry, then last fall I planted them in a pot to let them cold-stratify over the winter. I’ve ended up with a couple of dozen sprouts. Now we see how well they grow, and ultimately what I can do with them. A pleasant surprise ….