cbrshadow23
Shohin
I was very lucky and found someone with a huge coastal property that graciously allowed for me to collect several Coast Redwoods. I spent 2 days walking their property and digging up trees that I liked. I collected the trees and potted them and plan on leaving them alone (other than watering) for a year to establish roots. So far it's been a bit over 2 months and they're all pushing lots of growth. I'm hoping they're pushing roots as well and that the growth isn't just stored energy in the trunk.
Here's a photo of the trees.
- The tree on the far right (in bonsai pot) was collected about 2 years ago but just happens to be in the photo.
- The (3) trees on the left side were collected from a property that was destroyed by California's Big Basin Fire in 2020. The root system and lower trunk was protected by the soil so the tree lived, but the main trunk is burnt black and I thought it might give a display some interesting character/story. They of course sprouted new growth after I dug them up and are doing well. Maybe I'll make a separate post about those trees.
The tree that I'm interested in discussing is the 2nd tree from the right (tree on the ground all the way to the right). Unlike other trees of this size it has really thick spongy bark all over it. Most of the others, with the exception of 1, have a thinner bark on them. From what I've seen the thicker bark doesn't show up on a tree until it's much larger/mature. I collected this tree when I saw the bark and thought it would be great for a natural looking formal upright. This tree is also pushing a ton of growth in all areas, so hopefully I have options for branch placement. Here are some photos of the bark which looks like it's a couple inches thick. It's spongy to the touch, similar to very large Coast Redwoods. The bark looks very dark in the photos because I recently watered the trees. When dry it has a nice red color to it.
The tree is 43" tall, 7.5" diameter at the base, and 3" diameter at the top cut. I actually have the tree turned to the left in the photos, since tree would have more taper if was turned 90 degrees. We're looking at what I believe will be the left side of the tree.
On to my questions:
1) Why haven't I seen any Coast Redwood bonsai with thick bark? I would think this is a desirable characteristic.
2) Is there anything about this tree that would make it poor bonsai material?
3) Once the tree gets to the 1 year mark I'll work on it. What would you do with the top flat cut? I was thinking I'd either carve it to a point (see the far right tree in the first pic) or use my large trunk splitter tool to peel bark from the top and give it some taper that way.
I left the tree tall with the thought that I could always shorten it in the future if I like. Ryan from Bonsai Mirai has a similarly tall Coast Redwood that I really like.
Any thoughts or opinions would be appreciated!
Here's a photo of the trees.
- The tree on the far right (in bonsai pot) was collected about 2 years ago but just happens to be in the photo.
- The (3) trees on the left side were collected from a property that was destroyed by California's Big Basin Fire in 2020. The root system and lower trunk was protected by the soil so the tree lived, but the main trunk is burnt black and I thought it might give a display some interesting character/story. They of course sprouted new growth after I dug them up and are doing well. Maybe I'll make a separate post about those trees.
The tree that I'm interested in discussing is the 2nd tree from the right (tree on the ground all the way to the right). Unlike other trees of this size it has really thick spongy bark all over it. Most of the others, with the exception of 1, have a thinner bark on them. From what I've seen the thicker bark doesn't show up on a tree until it's much larger/mature. I collected this tree when I saw the bark and thought it would be great for a natural looking formal upright. This tree is also pushing a ton of growth in all areas, so hopefully I have options for branch placement. Here are some photos of the bark which looks like it's a couple inches thick. It's spongy to the touch, similar to very large Coast Redwoods. The bark looks very dark in the photos because I recently watered the trees. When dry it has a nice red color to it.
The tree is 43" tall, 7.5" diameter at the base, and 3" diameter at the top cut. I actually have the tree turned to the left in the photos, since tree would have more taper if was turned 90 degrees. We're looking at what I believe will be the left side of the tree.
On to my questions:
1) Why haven't I seen any Coast Redwood bonsai with thick bark? I would think this is a desirable characteristic.
2) Is there anything about this tree that would make it poor bonsai material?
3) Once the tree gets to the 1 year mark I'll work on it. What would you do with the top flat cut? I was thinking I'd either carve it to a point (see the far right tree in the first pic) or use my large trunk splitter tool to peel bark from the top and give it some taper that way.
I left the tree tall with the thought that I could always shorten it in the future if I like. Ryan from Bonsai Mirai has a similarly tall Coast Redwood that I really like.
Any thoughts or opinions would be appreciated!
. It’s about one hour away
