Chio-what-thus

So after the bonsai workshop last weekend there were a few unsold plant stock leftover. The owner told me I could just have them and one of them was a sticky looking chionanthus virginicus, white fringetree. I had fully planned to toss it and didn't even want to haul it home because I thought it was junk.



Tonight I was like, all right, fine. I'll practice on it. I'm thinking bareroot it and separate the stems and make a little forest. Why the hell not? So I start digging away the soil and quickly find huge roots under the soil as well as discovering all the trunks are fused.



Ok, now I'm liking this guy! A little trimming and a little wiring and I think it's got some potential.



That ramrod straight upright might end up going bye-bye in the end but I think this is a good starting point and we'll see where it goes from here.

Where do you plan to go with this? Can you draw a picture or post an image of another bonsai that you want to use for inspiration for your styling?

Kinda hard to tell this early, I'll need to see what lives and where it wants to go in the future but I'm thinking something like...



or...

When young, fringe tree is very straight, with long internodes. Mine is a good 4+ feet tall. It will get shortened this year after repotting. They will probably always be reluctant to create fine branching. Flowers are really interesting.

Interesting. Even if it doesn't work out it will be a good learning experience for me.