Help ficus styling advice

Forsoothe!

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This is a signal example of what happens when a tree is never pruned for compactness over many, many years. It has gotten to the point of no redemption. Each leaf contributes to the growth of the whole plant below that leaf (between the leaf and the roots). When the leaves are distributed equally along the trunk(s) there is little contribution to taper. Taper is achieved by having relatively fewer and fewer leaves further and further up the trunk. So, now you're left with a long sausage with leaves.

I would go back to ground zero. Disassemble the whole thing and recombobulate the roots so they don't travel sideways a long distance. That's the first incongruity that grabs the attention. Don't necessary remove the rock from its position, if you can, just free the two long sideways roots, rotate the rock so those roots point as vertically as possible, and replant. You will have a sausage pointing up and a companion cascade sausage. Then, reconsider how much of what will be the top to remove. I like cascades that have a strong counterbalance which you have the makings of, here. There is one big utility of long branches: you can wire them to make substantial movement. You can't do that with short branches. You will have lots and lots of castoff pieces, so you could grow a whole separate forest. I'm partial to forests. And figs.
 

Leo in N E Illinois

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@walton1993
You are relatively new to bonsai. You want to keep enjoying this tree. I would recommend styling in a way that more or less preserves most of the tree. No need to go back to bare stump. Anything you cut off can be used to make cuttings, these can become your future experiments in bonsai.

I would use this view as your front. It hides the ugliest of your roots. The roots on this side are not bad.
59610481-49DF-4186-8DE3-13899A5F5953.jpeg

In terms of pruning, I would prune back to roughly the length of my lines. Give or take a few leaf internodes. Key is to make the tree sweep to the right.

All in all, just the prune back will immensely help make your tree look more "tree like".

Inked2Inked59610481-49DF-4186-8DE3-13899A5F5953_LI.jpg

There is a very good wiring tutorial on Etsy by Colin Lewis, you should seek it out. It is free, just need to register on Etsy. I can't tell from your photos, but I think most of your wire is not doing much, the tutorial will help you improve your use of wire. Practice on a few branches cut from landscape trees, then try again on your Ficus.

This Ficus of yours has the potential to become very pleasant, a nice bonsai. Resist the advice to disassemble the whole thing. It really isn't that bad. Think of a tree on a cliff reaching for light out over a canyon or over a lake. I don't usually take the time to do a virtual, I did because I like this tree. Forget the nay saying about your roots. They are not that bad.

Hope this helps
Leo

Hope this helps.
 

walton1993

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@walton1993
You are relatively new to bonsai. You want to keep enjoying this tree. I would recommend styling in a way that more or less preserves most of the tree. No need to go back to bare stump. Anything you cut off can be used to make cuttings, these can become your future experiments in bonsai.

I would use this view as your front. It hides the ugliest of your roots. The roots on this side are not bad.
View attachment 278660

In terms of pruning, I would prune back to roughly the length of my lines. Give or take a few leaf internodes. Key is to make the tree sweep to the right.

All in all, just the prune back will immensely help make your tree look more "tree like".

View attachment 278661

There is a very good wiring tutorial on Etsy by Colin Lewis, you should seek it out. It is free, just need to register on Etsy. I can't tell from your photos, but I think most of your wire is not doing much, the tutorial will help you improve your use of wire. Practice on a few branches cut from landscape trees, then try again on your Ficus.

This Ficus of yours has the potential to become very pleasant, a nice bonsai. Resist the advice to disassemble the whole thing. It really isn't that bad. Think of a tree on a cliff reaching for light out over a canyon or over a lake. I don't usually take the time to do a virtual, I did because I like this tree. Forget the nay saying about your roots. They are not that bad.

Hope this helps
Leo

Hope this helps.

Thank you very much for your input and the time you put into it. Will definitely look into the tutorial you suggested.

I think the virtual looks nice and seems straightforward to implement. I’ll see if I can get to it this week.

Yes, still super new at this and haven’t learned the techniques some suggested such as root grafting(though it did seem interesting).

Appreciate the response.

Best,
Walton
 

walton1993

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It’s close towards the end of the year and wanted to share an update on the ficus :) Some large branches removed and have decided on the front (see pics attached). Unfortunately the pictures don’t capture depth but the branches twist inwards from the main trunk, which I thought was quite nice.

I haven’t done any root grafting. Current plan is to slowly develop windswept style (as if wind is blowing from the left of pic so branches point towards the right).

Let me know any thoughts!
 

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Forsoothe!

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The design is a mixed metaphor and you will have difficulty pulling it off. The plant grew dramatically into the wind before the wind blows the foliage the opposite way. Now, that blows...
 
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