Acer Negundo #3

[Cmd5235]

Time for another one of the best bonsai maple species (sarcasm).

I grabbed this chonker from directly on top of a buried septic tank last November and threw it into a 30 gallon pot for the winter. As such, it had some decent roots to work with. I put it in this growing pot this spring and it has completely filled the pot with new feeder roots, so I’m ready to post this as I feel it will survive.

I know the issues with negundo, and only kept it due to the trunk size. I have two other that I am messing with and extra bench space.

 

[Alexmacrophyllum]

I don't care what people say, that is a substantial trunk and I think they are great material to mess around with. I look at these, Acer macrophyllum and others with bigger leaves as a challenge. And at the very least you have a tree that gets nice yellow foliage and eventually a cool looking winter silhouette.

 

[Ininaatigoons]

That is a great place to start! Nice girth and roots! I can't wait to see progression which will happen very fast with this species. I could be fool hearty thinking it's 2/3 done trunk if you chopped it to the bigger branch. What is your plan for it? On one hand there's not much movement. On the other hand exaggerated movement is not always necessary. On the other hand Acer Negundo is a crazy fast grower and you could chop low get serious movement and taper within a decade.

 

[Cmd5235]

That is a great place to start! Nice girth and roots! I can't wait to see progression which will happen very fast with this species. I could be fool hearty thinking it's 2/3 done trunk if you chopped it to the bigger branch. What is your plan for it? On one hand there's not much movement. On the other hand exaggerated movement is not always necessary. On the other hand Acer Negundo is a crazy fast grower and you could chop low get serious movement and taper within a decade.

I was really waiting to see how it budded out, and it's been a pleasant surprise. I removed about a third of that smaller trunk today, I'll reduce it again but it's too close to the new shoots for me to comfortably cut without damaging them. I'm going to do the same with the main trunk and then just work on foliage pads. Nothing too crazy planned for this tree at the moment. Big thing is going to be wiring later this year once the shoots won't snap off and seeing what negative space that starts to develop.

 

[Eckhoffw]

Time for another one of the best bonsai maple species (sarcasm).

I grabbed this chonker from directly on top of a buried septic tank last November and threw it into a 30 gallon pot for the winter. As such, it had some decent roots to work with. I put it in this growing pot this spring and it has completely filled the pot with new feeder roots, so I’m ready to post this as I feel it will survive.

I know the issues with negundo, and only kept it due to the trunk size. I have two other that I am messing with and extra bench space.

Nice.
If your going to go Negundo, better to go big. This looks great scale wise.

 

[Cmd5235]

Nice.
If your going to go Negundo, better to go big. This looks great scale wise.

Thanks. I have two slightly smaller ones in separate posts on here, but not planning on any more. I’ve had some success with reduction, so we will see. I was just happy to see the sheer volume of shoots in decent places this year, and happy to see feeder roots completely filling the pot after only 2 months.

 

[Cmd5235]

I did some pruning this year (breaking the rules of working on the tree) to get branching with smaller internodes. It’s messy, but I’ll carve it out next spring. Overall happy with the size and vigor of the tree so far.

 

[Cmd5235]

Excited for some heavy pruning next spring. I did a major cut on the top of the tree, counting about 28 rings. I think I’ve identified the front I want to use to hide said cut. I’m going to balance the leader extension and healing (hopefully) without taking away from lower branches development. I’m still new to this species, but it definitely has some apical dominance- not as bad as maybe a liquidambar, but still there. I’m also going to work on that awkward root to the right in the spring- scar it, put some hormone on it, and try to get some feeder roots.

I’ll also have to make a grow box.

 

[Eckhoffw]

Excited for some heavy pruning next spring. I did a major cut on the top of the tree, counting about 28 rings. I think I’ve identified the front I want to use to hide said cut. I’m going to balance the leader extension and healing (hopefully) without taking away from lower branches development. I’m still new to this species, but it definitely has some apical dominance- not as bad as maybe a liquidambar, but still there. I’m also going to work on that awkward root to the right in the spring- scar it, put some hormone on it, and try to get some feeder roots.

I’ll also have to make a grow box.

View attachment 515109View attachment 515110View attachment 515112

Great base on that one!

 

[Cmd5235]

Although it might set the tree back a year or two, a small branch formed next to the leader. I’m probably going to cut it back to that, as it’s in a decent spot, but more importantly, shouldn’t have the crazy curve the current leader does. I don’t think growing out the current design will work visually.

 

[Ininaatigoons]

That thick branch? I would prune it off or use that as the next section. The curve in the leader. I would keep it. Curves moderate or minimize as a tree grows and unless it's a formal upright the curves are what make a tree interesting.

 

[Cmd5235]

That thick branch? I would prune it off or use that as the next section. The curve in the leader. I would keep it. Curves moderate or minimize as a tree grows and unless it's a formal upright the curves are what make a tree interesting.

No, next year I’m going to cut that large thick branch by at least half. I mean the new leader that’s coming from the top.