Dancing Lady Hinoki Cypress.

[Vance Wood]

I hope you guys will forgive me posting another thread about this Hinoki Cypress, but I think there may be a few that get some value out of a thread about a tree that has been under constant development and frequent changes over a twenty-finve year time span.

I joined the Four Seasons Bonsai Club in 1993. In 1994 I did my first Demo. I did that deed using this Hinoki Cypress that I picked up at a nursery for $6.99. on sale. I did the demo in July of 94, and yes the tree was repotted. Un fortunately I do not have a picture of the tree any earlier than 2003.

 

[Vance Wood]

By 2008 it was time to chase after this tree again. The was and is a nice Tokonome pot that just does not work with this tree. So it was time to put it in a brown earth colored pot but still no cigar. I came to find out that the tree had survived in-spite of me and it might be worth trying to save and develop.

I think you can notice that the tree was and is much more full the trunk is broader and the foliage pads are starting to show signs or running away with the design. So the tree was placed in the
Chinese pot and it was restyled, though not drastically, it was restyled.

 

[Vance Wood]

By 2013 the tree was starting to take on a more wild and refined look and it was placed in a Sara Raynor Pot where it has stayed for a number or years. This was the first of the major restyles that I actually took the time to document everything relevant to the tree I could remember. I was starting to drag the style downward and thinning out the over grown pads making it look more like a dress than a shroud..

.

 

[Vance Wood]

If there is one thing I have learned from this tree is the fact that they truly are never done. We have a tendency to be lazy and will leave a design idea sitting on the table because we are both too lazy to go all the way with it and we are too timid to remove sometimes vast proportions of tree to achieve that goal. That is however what happened this year. I think I have finally found the finished plan for this Hinoki and that is also when the name "The Dancing Lady" came to me. I discovered this aspect of the tree while I was looking up at the underside of the branches as it was tunining on the truntalbe after I was able to finally detail the apex, the long time bug-a-boo problem with this tree. That has been a problem in that it was too full earlier and too sparse recently in that it needed to be reduced down but reduced down to what?

 

[ConorDash]

Thanks for sharing, this looks great and shows a good progression history

 

[Vance Wood]

I appreciate your oppinion and point of view. It is possible to make all sorts of judgement calls on material and the fact that it took twenty-five years to get this seven dollar piece salad to start looking like a bonsai, and that would be correct. However it is not often said that the problem was really not wholly the material as much jas it was the artist that created it. I think I have changed as much or more than the trees I now create. More about that latter if the sbject comes up.

 

[Underdog]

Inspired by this. Im learning on one now. Thanks again.
Mark

How about a quick summary of what these trees like? How much sun. How wet. Etc...

 

[Guy Vitale]

Thanks for sharing Vance great looking tree, I picked up a rather large Hinoki last spring after spending the previous winter watching Bjorn's Bonsai Art of Japan videos on You Tube and saw the spectacular Hinoki Cypress they feature. Of course this one was significantly more than $7 and considering I had never worked on one was very nervous. I envision it being very full with well developed pads. If ever you make it across the border to Windsor, look me up, I'd love to pick your brain on it. The first image is after thinning it out, the second image is after initial wiring this spring, the third image is my inspiration. I need to take an updated picture with this year's growth, it's filling in nice.

 

[Guy Vitale]

Oh and not to hijack your post, just wanted to expand on the Hinoki discussion, I feel it's a very seldom discussed tree as bonsai go.

 

[Vance Wood]

I don't have the time to put together a care guide at the moment but I wanted to invite you to our club's show this coming weekend. If you're interested let me know. I am going to show this tree.

I'm back. One major reason Hinokis are not cultivated as bonsai so much is because the like more water than most conifers used in the art. As such they kind of throw a monkey wrench in the system where they need to be watched individually and not managed as a member of a group. I use the same mix I use for Pins with a bit more composted Pine Bark Mulch. Red lava, Pumice if you can find it, Turface or some sort of calcined clay and a bit of #2 or #3 sand blasting sand or swimming pool filter sand. The sand is not a necessituy but it helps keep things lose.

I know there are a lot of growers that do not use any organics and consider Pine Bark Mulch an organic. I have been using Pine Bark Mulch for over thirty years and with good luck. Use of the lava and the sand and yes Pumice will keep the Pine bark from becoming compacted and retaining too much water.

I think the advantages of Pine bark are good enough to use it where the reasons for not using it seems to be more an effort to acquire the approval of others than to help your trees. But you asked so I am telling.

I water mine as often as I water my Pines but many people would say I water my Pines too much. In the kind of heat we have had lately I water at least twice a day, sometime three times. I don't keep them in totally full sun but kind of a dappled shade with full sun early in the AM and late into the PM. I have been fertilizing once a week with Miracle Grow, or MirAcid, or what ever I can find. I have been even known to toss some Osmicote on them.

 

[Guy Vitale]

Sounds good Vance, I will be at the show set up on Friday, but regretibly will miss the show itself this weekend as my family vacation coincides with the show days. I'll have to post an updated picture tomorrow, but my Hinoki is growing like a weed which is fine as I want it to push more growth before I thin it out and refine the tree more. I keep it in full sun, water and fertilize very heavily. I've recently switched over to a more inorganic soil of lava rock, Growstone, Turface, cherry grit, and yes some decomposed pine bark, can't see removing it from the mix completely, but no more than 15% of my mix.

 

[Vance Wood]

Look forward to seeing you there.

I have downloaded another picture of the Hinoki that was heavly back lit. It shows the nature of the trunk. This is in response to a conversation in a PM where I cannot download pictures.

 

[Potawatomi13]

Look forward to seeing you there.

I have downloaded another picture of the Hinoki that was heavly back lit. It shows the nature of the trunk. This is in response to a conversation in a PM where I cannot download pictures. View attachment 112580

Looks so good and better than first 2 pics. Love the pot.

 

[fredman]

Beautiful. The lady has aged very well

 

[petegreg]

Cool, cool tree. The development, the styling, the bark, eth seems to be mastered.

For care and pruning I 've found this article interesting:
http://bonsaiwonders-art.blogspot.sk/2008/01/taming-hinoki-cypress.html?m=1

 

[Dorian Fourie]

Love the tree Vance.

I have a small hinoki that is only 3 years old but it is great to see a progression on how a tree can change. If I look back at the pictures of the huge change it has made in those 3 years it is good to know that there is a bright future ahead.

 

[sorce]

This is a great representation of your,
"Pretend you are nature", philosophy.

It worked!

It went from a young tree in a pot, to a really old beautiful specimen.

Thanks for sharing!

Sorce

 

[Guy Vitale]

Thanks for sharing Vance great looking tree, I picked up a rather large Hinoki last spring after spending the previous winter watching Bjorn's Bonsai Art of Japan videos on You Tube and saw the spectacular Hinoki Cypress they feature. Of course this one was significantly more than $7 and considering I had never worked on one was very nervous. I envision it being very full with well developed pads. If ever you make it across the border to Windsor, look me up, I'd love to pick your brain on it. The first image is after thinning it out, the second image is after initial wiring this spring, the third image is my inspiration. I need to take an updated picture with this year's growth, it's filling in nice.

Updated picture as promised, boy do I need to learn to take pictures. The first image is this spring, the second was just this morning. I'm not sure it translates well in the pictures, but it's put on some great growth this summer, this should make further styling and pad development a bit easier.

 

[Guy Vitale]

Look forward to seeing you there.

I have downloaded another picture of the Hinoki that was heavly back lit. It shows the nature of the trunk. This is in response to a conversation in a PM where I cannot download pictures. View attachment 112580

Looks great Vance looking forward to seeing the tree in person on Friday.

 

[Guy Vitale]

Cool, cool tree. The development, the styling, the bark, eth seems to be mastered.

For care and pruning I 've found this article interesting:
http://bonsaiwonders-art.blogspot.sk/2008/01/taming-hinoki-cypress.html?m=1

Good article, I read it a while ago when I started my Hinoki Cypress.