Cutting Down a Big Maple

[Smoke]

See all the details at the Bunker

 

[MACH5]

Al this will be such a nice tree one day. Very nice pic up with beautiful clear and aged bark. The only thing I am not crazy about is the nebari but I know you mentioned this at the Bunker.

 

[Smoke]

Thanks, I will posting a huge picture crazy article about Yosh either tonite or tomorrow. The nursery is three acres of almost nothing but maples. Wait until you see what my friend got. I did not see it and am kicking myself in the butt for not seeing it. The price he got it for was unbelievable. I figure that I will ground layer it this spring right below the soil line. I can't wait to get it out of the can. Its been in there 20+ years with no repot.

Wait until you see some of the rough barks! Trust me I'm goin back....

 

[MACH5]

Wished I had something like that around here. Although I have yet to see the place Bob Pressler recommended up in Connecticut.

Sounds pretty exciting and dangerous to the wallet! Look forward to seeing what else you pick up. Those rough barks sound good!

 

[JudyB]

This will be a large tree right? I'll have to go check out the bunker now...
excellent looking movement.

 

[Cadillactaste]

I love the movement and grace this has with just the bare bones showing. I am looking forward to watching you take this tree to the next level. Enjoyed the link as well...

 

[Poink88]

My take...

 

[barrosinc]

Thanks, I will posting a huge picture crazy article about Yosh either tonite or tomorrow. The nursery is three acres of almost nothing but maples. Wait until you see what my friend got. I did not see it and am kicking myself in the butt for not seeing it. The price he got it for was unbelievable. I figure that I will ground layer it this spring right below the soil line. I can't wait to get it out of the can. Its been in there 20+ years with no repot.

Wait until you see some of the rough barks! Trust me I'm goin back....

I am really interested in how the ground layering works out! In Chile we basically only have landscape nurseries, and this skill seems like a must to me! And I don't really know how to do it.

This tree will look good I have no doubt about it!

 

[MACH5]

Max it should not be a problem. I have air layered a couple of 4" thick trunks and they have produced roots much in the same way as a thinner branch. I have given them much more time though to develop enough roots to sustain the tree. Hopefully I will start a new thread next spring when I separate the one I have in the works right now.

 

[tmpgh]

Thanks, Smoke. I especially liked that you took the time to give detailed shots of your cuts for taper and use of the grafting knife over on your blog. That's the sort of technique I know I needed.

I like the direction you chose for this tree. What was the original height? Also, can you speak to why you've decided to cut the smaller trunk to where you did? Looking at it, I might have taken it to that first branch on the left as the new leader. I would be worried about the canopy of the larger trunk shading out the apex of the shorter trunk. Without a 3d perspective of the tree, it's hard to judge if that would be the case, obviously. I'd appreciate it if you had time to walk through the decision, though.

 

[Smoke]

My take...

Thanks, Smoke.
What was the original height? Also, can you speak to why you've decided to cut the smaller trunk to where you did? Looking at it, I might have taken it to that first branch on the left as the new leader. I would be worried about the canopy of the larger trunk shading out the apex of the shorter trunk. Without a 3d perspective of the tree, it's hard to judge if that would be the case, obviously. I'd appreciate it if you had time to walk through the decision, though.

Quotes from the text of my blog;
"Once the tree is home I can start to really study it and decide on what I wish to take off and what I will keep….for now. All my decisions today are safety cuts. These are cuts I do to induce backbudding before cutting to the place I really want to take it back to. I treat these cuts like any other and dress them properly since many times I am fine with this first decision later and just keep what grows next year".

"All safety cuts are made blunt. They are dressed and sealed. These are cuts that I know I will shorten later after back budding. If this were a trident I would just cut it back with little regard for health knowing in the spring it would bud everywhere. These are not tridents and are palmatums and have to be treated with a little more care than a trident. These trees are more likely to dry out and drop branches unexpectantly."

Hopefully this will clear up some of cloudiness of my thinking. The trees height before the cuts was about 7 feet from the ground including the nursery container.

$225.00

 

[Smoke]

Another reason why some of the stubs seem long and not really fittig into the whole scheme of things is because I have felt like I wish to keep the trunk splitting off in two's on its way up. The main trunk splits into two, then the trunk on the left splits into two and then the trunk on the right splits into two.

If I were to chop off the trunk on the right pair like Dario shows it emphasizes the "C" in the right trunk. It also ruins the "pair" style of the tree. Not a huge thing but at least I can see how it will look when more branches are there and how they respond rather than removing all choices now and be stuck later trying to glue them back on.

Nothing to dramatic in my thinking, just a nice rounded canopy denoting two trunks and a round profile. A rough idea:

 

[A Random User]

I appreciate your explanation of safety cuts...
Often I find that especially when someone is newer to bonsai,
Not trying to insult anyone here, that the growth pattern of material
Is often not properly taken into account, before cutting. And often
It is not thoroughly understood that sometimes even with material
That might easily send out new buds, that it is sometimes better to do
These type of cuts in stages, cutting back to the first growth up on a branch.
Allowing for new growth to pop closer in before cutting back further. Giving
one a much better chance of assuring new budding and less of
A chance to losing the branch in its entirety.

 

[tmpgh]

Smoke, I'm sure your thinking wasn't cloudy. My understanding of it was. Thank you for your explanation. After reading what you said and looking at your photo again, I see exactly what you mean.

Good luck with it. I look forward to seeing how it develops.

 

[Don Blackmond]

See all the details at the Bunker

I love the Bunker, Al. You put out a wealth of information. Too bad BT died and the data vanished.

Keep doing what you do just the way you do it.

 

[Smoke]

I love the Bunker, Al. You put out a wealth of information. Too bad BT died and the data vanished.

Keep doing what you do just the way you do it.

Get ready for my new thing there....Throwback Thursday. This is where I dig deep into the archives of just not bonsai about me, but bonsai around the state and what I have found and kept. Many cool surprises around the horn.

 

[Smoke]

This was just pruning. Yes, this is the opportune time of the year to prune a maple. This is not chopping the tree, which I would do in spring. This is just a hard prune of which most trees get pruned in the fall, for hundreds of years domestically.

 

[jquast]

This was just pruning. Yes, this is the opportune time of the year to prune a maple. This is not chopping the tree, which I would do in spring. This is just a hard prune of which most trees get pruned in the fall, for hundreds of years domestically.

Thanks for posting this Smoke and couldn't agree with you more. I was told last week that I likely killed some of the nice branching on my Coast oak being that I pruned it in the fall.

 

[Smoke]

I repotted this thing for this season. When I did I felt I liked the other side better. Branches kinda swoop out and greet you. It was put into this giant pot to grow this year while I look for a pot for later. It is taking its time pushing the leaves. The buds are swelling but I am really getting itchy to see what it looks like. I went by the nursery where I got it and none of the trees there have leaves yet either. all my maples are pushing leaves now so this one will be slower I guess.

I do have buds popping on old wood which is encouraging. As I feed it more this year I am sure it will gain even more strength and push even more next year. I removed 75 percent of the root mass that was in the can. No pain no gain. The last photo shows a branch I cut off yesterday that I did not like.

 

[Smoke]

I got home late tonight had to stay while others worked so I could lock it up. I did make it home to water. I took this shot since the leaves are the most fabulous color. I could just sit and watch the leaves come out. based on buds on old wood this thing will be making leaves for the next few weeks while shoot are elongating. This tree blows my skirt up....

I can't wait to see a full canopy next spring!