WavyGaby
Shohin
Hello,
I got this Grey Owl pre bonsai from Bella Bonsai in November 2019. I wanted to work/learn and Larry, the owner, was kind enough to teach me his methods and pay me with trees. My first task the summer of 2019 was to trim and wire a batch of large grey owls like this. My hands were all beat up from working these guys but i enjoyed the process! After several days of work, I decided on this one.
I trimmed it severely to try and find some direction. They tend to like severe cut backs. However, not much direction was found except this cool trunk line, haha
In spring 2020, I downsized the pot. In August or Sept 2020, I cut back hard again and made some jin. I still wasn't satisfied with the shape but it kept going
December 2021, I finally made some severe bends by literally breaking the upper main trunk sideways (on purpose) to get it near where I wanted. This is not a good angle of the bend as it's actually the straight part shown and rhe bend moves back. However, you can start to see some direction and the excess growth areas are gone.
In April, I wired and trimmed again. I applied lime sulfer to the shari and jin over winter. I'm really liking the progress. They are tough as nails and the rule of no more than 1 assault per year doesn't seem to apply
Here is is today after growing back from the trimming in April
I have a guy wire rig to bring the upper part left. I'm excited to repot in a bonsai container in early spring 2023.
Let me know your thoughts and experiences with grey owl. I know the color is not traditional but it's really grown on me and I am proud of its progress. The sea foam like color pops out compared to other junipers which inthink makes it cool. The foliage is course but I think it can me managed.
I got this Grey Owl pre bonsai from Bella Bonsai in November 2019. I wanted to work/learn and Larry, the owner, was kind enough to teach me his methods and pay me with trees. My first task the summer of 2019 was to trim and wire a batch of large grey owls like this. My hands were all beat up from working these guys but i enjoyed the process! After several days of work, I decided on this one.
I trimmed it severely to try and find some direction. They tend to like severe cut backs. However, not much direction was found except this cool trunk line, haha
In spring 2020, I downsized the pot. In August or Sept 2020, I cut back hard again and made some jin. I still wasn't satisfied with the shape but it kept going
December 2021, I finally made some severe bends by literally breaking the upper main trunk sideways (on purpose) to get it near where I wanted. This is not a good angle of the bend as it's actually the straight part shown and rhe bend moves back. However, you can start to see some direction and the excess growth areas are gone.
In April, I wired and trimmed again. I applied lime sulfer to the shari and jin over winter. I'm really liking the progress. They are tough as nails and the rule of no more than 1 assault per year doesn't seem to apply
Here is is today after growing back from the trimming in April
I have a guy wire rig to bring the upper part left. I'm excited to repot in a bonsai container in early spring 2023.
Let me know your thoughts and experiences with grey owl. I know the color is not traditional but it's really grown on me and I am proud of its progress. The sea foam like color pops out compared to other junipers which inthink makes it cool. The foliage is course but I think it can me managed.
