Design idea's for Maple

[markglanville11]

I am relatively new to Bonsai and am very keen to have idea's of how best to develop this JM.


Thanks

 

[AshleyMammal]

Lop 90% off the top

(I'm no expert and still class myself as a beginner) I'd do a trunk chop as it looks like you've got a thick base and maybe some nice taper low down. You may need to add another, continuously diminishing, section or two of trunkline. I'm not sure of your location/climate so can't advise on best season to do the chop.

I'd aim for a small powerful tree - about quarter of the size it is currently. Chop it then let it grow.

 

[FreshAirSunshine]

Can you give some zoomed in pics of the bunch of leaves/branches down towards the base? If those are coming from some decent branches I suspect you’ll be recommended to aim for a shohin smaller tree.

 

[dbonsaiw]

Welcome aboard. It looks like your trunk is in potting soil, so that will need to be fixed when the next opportunity for a repot comes around. At that time, you will want to start to arrange your roots radially so your tree begins to grow as a bonsai. The first thing you need to determine now is how tall you want the tree to be, as that will dictate some of the next steps. Use a 1:6 to 1:10 ratio of base of trunk to height of tree. So, for example, if you want an 18" tree and looking for a 1:6 proportion, you will need a 3" trunk at the base above the nebari.

The question is how do you get there. The "quickest" way is to just let the tree grow to almost the size you want and eventually chop it back to grow out again. This will leave you with larger scars to heal. If you want smaller scars, and perhaps more movement, you can cut and grow on a more frequent basis. This will take longer to achieve the desired thickness, but leave you with less scars.

My two cents is that you lose nothing by cutting next year, but it will take a while to grow back what you cut off if you change your mind. Why not just learn to care for the tree, let it grow and learn more about bonsai? Make a decision next year when you are more informed and more skilled. I say this because I killed and mangled so many trees in my eagerness to just get going. The truth is my trees just needed to grow.

 

[FreshAirSunshine]

Can you give some zoomed in pics of the bunch of leaves/branches down towards the base? If those are coming from some decent branches I suspect you’ll be recommended to aim for a shohin smaller tree.

Maybe air-layer off the top and make the shohin. It’d be great to get some focused pics down there! Could be a two-for-one tree

 

[markglanville11]

Can you give some zoomed in pics of the bunch of leaves/branches down towards the base? If those are coming from some decent branches I suspect you’ll be recommended to aim for a shohin smaller tree.

 

[markglanville11]

Welcome aboard. It looks like your trunk is in potting soil, so that will need to be fixed when the next opportunity for a repot comes around. At that time, you will want to start to arrange your roots radially so your tree begins to grow as a bonsai. The first thing you need to determine now is how tall you want the tree to be, as that will dictate some of the next steps. Use a 1:6 to 1:10 ratio of base of trunk to height of tree. So, for example, if you want an 18" tree and looking for a 1:6 proportion, you will need a 3" trunk at the base above the nebari.

The question is how do you get there. The "quickest" way is to just let the tree grow to almost the size you want and eventually chop it back to grow out again. This will leave you with larger scars to heal. If you want smaller scars, and perhaps more movement, you can cut and grow on a more frequent basis. This will take longer to achieve the desired thickness, but leave you with less scars.

My two cents is that you lose nothing by cutting next year, but it will take a while to grow back what you cut off if you change your mind. Why not just learn to care for the tree, let it grow and learn more about bonsai? Make a decision next year when you are more informed and more skilled. I say this because I killed and mangled so many trees in my eagerness to just get going. The truth is my trees just needed to grow.

Thanks for your advice. Yes , I probably need to stock and time!

 

[markglanville11]

* take stock and time!

 

[markglanville11]

Welcome aboard. It looks like your trunk is in potting soil, so that will need to be fixed when the next opportunity for a repot comes around. At that time, you will want to start to arrange your roots radially so your tree begins to grow as a bonsai. The first thing you need to determine now is how tall you want the tree to be, as that will dictate some of the next steps. Use a 1:6 to 1:10 ratio of base of trunk to height of tree. So, for example, if you want an 18" tree and looking for a 1:6 proportion, you will need a 3" trunk at the base above the nebari.

The question is how do you get there. The "quickest" way is to just let the tree grow to almost the size you want and eventually chop it back to grow out again. This will leave you with larger scars to heal. If you want smaller scars, and perhaps more movement, you can cut and grow on a more frequent basis. This will take longer to achieve the desired thickness, but leave you with less scars.

My two cents is that you lose nothing by cutting next year, but it will take a while to grow back what you cut off if you change your mind. Why not just learn to care for the tree, let it grow and learn more about bonsai? Make a decision next year when you are more informed and more skilled. I say this because I killed and mangled so many trees in my eagerness to just get going. The truth is my trees just needed to grow.

Thanks for your comments, it seems like great advice and is much appreciated. I'll take my time!