Brian Underwood
Chumono
This is my only Japanese Maple clump, which I named Shi (death), for a couple reasons. The center main trunk died years ago, and four more smaller ones were grown around it. I contemplated for a long time whether to remove one of the trunks and make it conform to the "rules," and not be a 4 tree clump. The number four is not only considered bad luck in Japanese culture, but I've heard the word actually means death, which I thought an appropriate name for a tree that has incorporated so much death in its image.
I acquired the tree two years ago from a club member who traded it to me for some carving work. He said he didn't know what to do with it, but as soon as I saw it I had an image in my head of what I wanted it to be. I hollowed out the main dead trunk and wired the whole thing, then let it grow for a couple seasons.
Yesterday I started cutting the tree waaay back as it had gotten really overgrown. I noticed the cuts were bleeding profusely, to which my teacher said "cut the roots, then it won't be able to bleed as much (if it has fewer roots to pull water up)." So, I was forced to do some root work and re-pot the tree. I was planning to just pot it back into the anderson flat from whence it came, but I found this amazing pot in the back of Jim's studio. I had to have it. Sadly, it was quite expensive, but very well worth it in my opinion, and fits the tree nicely. Jim later told me that the pot was from his earlier days as a professional potter and is about 35 years old, with some great patina, signed "Gremel."
Once in the pot the tree was cut back further and re-wired again. It still needs more wiring and the rest of the season will be a process of growing the places I need larger/longer and cutting back the others. I will also be carving some more of the dead areas and applying some wood hardener once I get it where I want it.
Enjoy!
I acquired the tree two years ago from a club member who traded it to me for some carving work. He said he didn't know what to do with it, but as soon as I saw it I had an image in my head of what I wanted it to be. I hollowed out the main dead trunk and wired the whole thing, then let it grow for a couple seasons.
Yesterday I started cutting the tree waaay back as it had gotten really overgrown. I noticed the cuts were bleeding profusely, to which my teacher said "cut the roots, then it won't be able to bleed as much (if it has fewer roots to pull water up)." So, I was forced to do some root work and re-pot the tree. I was planning to just pot it back into the anderson flat from whence it came, but I found this amazing pot in the back of Jim's studio. I had to have it. Sadly, it was quite expensive, but very well worth it in my opinion, and fits the tree nicely. Jim later told me that the pot was from his earlier days as a professional potter and is about 35 years old, with some great patina, signed "Gremel."
Once in the pot the tree was cut back further and re-wired again. It still needs more wiring and the rest of the season will be a process of growing the places I need larger/longer and cutting back the others. I will also be carving some more of the dead areas and applying some wood hardener once I get it where I want it.
Enjoy!
You could also call it "4444" , which, from a Chinese language perspective, could be interpreted as something like “death to the fourth power" ... I don't know about Japanese, but at least in Chinese, which is a tonal language, it's a play on words and "4" only sounds similar to "death" or "die" (difference being in the tone) but close enough for the number to be considered unlucky. Classic.
