Sounds like a wood build is going to be your best, read most flexible, bet. Though I do feel like a round is it's future and I'm into getting the shape right ASAP. Depth too, 5" seems oceanic!
Though, it's kinda hard to tell anything about these stylewise without a game plan.
Got a drawing or anything?
I feel like these fit kinda nicely into this idea about a layer Shibui was talking about here. Not meant to be discouraging, just pointing out the mindgame you must work to overcome.
I noticed our local had carried regular acer Palmatum this year. They are not grafted. Would this make decent bonsai material?
www.bonsainut.com
They're large, cheap...$18 is a go ham price BTW, pretty interesting....
The problem is there isn't much cohesiveness to any design possibility.
I reckon too, and this is probably the most important conundrum to overcome with this particular material...
Here's a new concept worthy of a Resorce.
I believe you have to always be thinking about Horticulture and Design in every minute.
Think of it like a DNA Double Helix....In 2d for simplicity's sake.
View attachment 432454
One leg is Horticulture, one Design.
Something like and Elm has a nice tight spiral that never really gets away from itself.
Juniper on the other hand, particularly ones in this state, have an overly wide spiral, which corresponds to the level of difficulty/length of time it's going to take to safely bring them back together, where you will find this cohesiveness of design and safe horticulture practice.
These trees have you sitting on the widest part of the widest helix possible.
It's important to be comfortable here, seeing that next crossroads where things mesh again, but understanding it should take a long time to get there.
I reckon you CAN jump the Hort leg to a small pot for design, but you have to remember how long it will take the top design to meet it with Horticulture.
You CAN jump the Design leg on top with a severe cut or bending work, but you have to remember how long it will take to horticulturally confine the roots to a small pot for design.
Personally, well factually actually, the only unknown is the roots, so I always decide to ignore the top design, completely, in order to KNOW what the roots are doing, and align(goal wise not physically) them to fit the long game plan, where you can continue to knowingly nurture them towards the end goal.
The problem with taking suggestions on what to do to the roots is that it is currently an unknown, an unknown with the possibility of 2 extremely different scenarios that could easily spell life or death.
Let's say those trees have been sitting on a weed barrier outside of top water range but within range of wicking up puddled water, all the good feeders to keep you safe will be within the bottom couple inches of the pot.
Let's say they were sitting within top water range and since they no longer fully wet through to the bottom, you have enough feeder roots in the top half inch to cut everything below that off.
The fastest way to "correct" is through educated observation.
The important thing to remember is you're on the wide part of that helix.
I have never been so wide on the Helix, this that has to do with Juniper strength coming from bunched foliage. I think it's because as top relates to bottom......(I believe it's preprogrammed as a mirror image and changed only because environment is never perfect) since juniper have a direct relationship with foliage and root, I believe the more sparse the foliage on top, the easier it is to accidentally cut a root associated with the section of top most healthy, thereby killing the tree, or worse, the planned design.
So it may prove a bit more risky for you to go ham.....
But since I started repotting with 100% tops (as defined by a perfectly healthy nursery tree, yours are like 65-80) and leaving them in full sun watering daily like nothing happened, except they are in the future size and shape pot already, I haven't had any failures.
View attachment 432462
View attachment 432463
I don't consider how much root is removed as the risk.
I consider the Repot the risk.
So setting yourself up for a second, or step down, potting is foolish IMO.
Growing new roots outside the final pot zone is necessitating their future removal which brings risk back to killing associated top with future repots.
I really don't see any lack of growth in the tops, plenty to style.
Well except for where they are neglected, and you can see my order of favoritism in that pic, the ONLY reason any are hurting is due to neglect nothing else.
Except for that one in the training basket that I SUPERHAMMED, straight effrooted, and thrown in small DE cuz it's "bad" and all I had. It grew best. Go figure.
I'd effroot the shit out of one at the next full moon. If it dies, I'll owe you a pot! But you gotta try one the next full moon too!
Sorce