First Trident

[HotAction]

update spring chop

Well, some of the buds appeared to be pushing leaves, so I went ahead and chopped it. The wood was alot harder than I anticipated, and almost lost an eyeball. I've never chopped anything near this magnitude and it isn't easy to get the results you see in your head. I left some extra branches for extra healing, and in case I messed something up bad.

Dave

 

[mcpesq817]

Very nice work - tree looks much better, and I think you have a better base to work with now.

 

[HotAction]

Very nice work - tree looks much better, and I think you have a better base to work with now.

Thanks for the kind word. I agree the trunk appears much more powerful now.

Dave

 

[HotAction]

a bit of green

We had a record high temp day here, and this tree seemed to like it. I thought you might like to see the newly emerging leaves.

Dave

 

[HotAction]

quick update after a rough cut before winter storage. I will work it in spring, right before it pops.

Dave

 

[xghostx]

you really have a lot to work with as far as branches. Looks like a real good start and a healthy happy tree. Wire it up this winter and pinch and grow in the spring and you will have some nice material in no time. Good luck.

 

[digger714]

Be careful not to have two branches battling for the apex. You will get a large bulge there, and have to chop it again. Go ahead and decide which branches to keep, and which to use as sacrifice, and then cut all else off. Looking good.

 

[HotAction]

UPDATE: for those of you who like this sort of thing...

Well, the buds started showing signs of life, so I got out the cutters, the wire, and the dremel and got to work. I left a couple sacrifices hididng in there, as well as extra length on mostly all of the branches. It is scheduled for it's next training pot on Saturday.

Dave

 

[plant_dr]

I like this sort of thing....

 

[mcpesq817]

Nice progress

 

[Jason]

You have a very nice tree and seem to be making great progress. I was just noticing that your doing all of your pruning in the early spring though. I've always been under the impression that its best to do pruning (especially heavy pruning) on these guys during the summer or in the fall (even early winter) due to heavy sap loses in the spring. I know I mistakenly pruned a branch off of a japanese maple and the thing has been weeping for over a month. Just an observation...

 

[rockm]

Sap loss really won't hurt the tree. Trees don't bleed to death.

Hard pruning in fall is a no-no. It can produce late flushes of backbudding that are killed by frost. Late winter/extremely early spring pruning can be optimum, before leaves break. Hard pruning then can lead to profuse backbudding.

Summer pruning doesn't really do much, as most of the tree's effort is going into extension growth on the new shoots. Generally pinching back new growth in the summer is for shape only.

 

[Jason]

Huh...I'm learning. So your saying optimal pruning time is late winter or very early spring and that fall pruning is discouraged. Are you saying that spring pruning with heavy sap loss is ok then? I read on Harry Harrington's sight that heavy pruning in the spring should be avoided.

 

[Jason]

Here's another for instance....I have some recently potted new ground grown trident stumps. They're wildly bushy but had the roots cut back fairly hard to get into Anderson flats. I thought I'd avoid spring pruning (heavy sap loss). Do some minor pruning in the summer (although I've heard people do heavy pruning then) and then after more established do my heavy pruning in the late fall early winter.

Here is the species guide I was referring to above:

http://www.bonsai4me.com/SpeciesGuide/AcerBuergerianum.html

 

[Dav4]

Actually, with maples, and particularly tridents, you can aggressively prune roots and branches at the same time, and that will result in less sap loss. About 6 weeks ago, I reduced a Japanese maple's root system by 75% and chopped its trunk/reduced the canopy by maybe the same (the percentages of each removed was not deliberately matched, either), and placed in an anderson flat. The tree "weeped" for maybe a day or two, but has leafed out without skipping a beat.

 

[bonsaiTOM]

Hey Dave (HotAction), You going to have your trident at Saturday's club meeting in Utica? It will be the 1 year anniversary since it was chopped. Will be nice for our show table (or maybe the raffle table ).........

Art D. will be repotting his trident.

Looks like we are in for the summer arts festival!

 

[Jason]

Just to add a little confusion:

Peter Adams' in "BONSAI with Japanese Maples":......structural and heavy pruning is best done in August, trees are at a plateau in their growth ......There is enough time for some healing before the frosts arrive."

Vertrees: "....major pruning should be done during the dormant season from late November to early January, well before the sap starts rising...", then "....corrective pruning can be done any time of the year except when the sap is rising..."

America Horticultural Society Pruning & Training Handbook: Prune in Winter when fully dormant: maples bleed sap profusely at other times. Small cuts may safely be made in late summer/early autumn"

Sunset Pruning Handbook: " Avoid pruning is Spring just before and during time of active growth: most bleed sap profusely then"

Sunset Western Garden Book"To minimize sap bleed, make any cuts in summer or early fall in mild-winter areas, or from summer to the end of January where temperatures remain below freezing"

James Harris ( 'The Gardener's Guide to Growing Maples'):" Pruning is best carried out when the sap is falling in late Summer and early Autumn, light pruning can be carried out in the Spring"

George Brown (in The Pruning of Trees, Shrubs and Conifers) says: "....carry out any pruning which is necessary in the late summer or early autumn"

See why I'm confused? Granted a lot of this is climate based and varies but it seems like they all agree that major pruning in the spring is unwise.

 

[HotAction]

Tom, you bet it is coming. I better bring $100 for that raffle Good news about the art festival too! See ya tomorrow!

 

[HotAction]

Chopped in Spring last year...Very heavy winters around here, 160"+ snowfall annually. Kept in unheated garage. If you like the results, feel free to give it a try.


Dave

 

[HotAction]

Is it OK to repot after wiring those branches?

Dave