Help with a farmadori tree

Backwardsvg

Shohin
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Hello I have what I believe is a sugar maple. I collected it from my cousins farm field. It looks as if it was hit by lighting (I know it wasn’t looks more like wind or something cracked the top off)
I collected it last spring and it has this new growth. It is a larger tree about 3.5 feet tall. I don’t want to lose the character of the top but not really sure on what to do with it. This fall/ winter I plan on light wiring. Next spring I plan on doing a repot and soil change out.
thanks for the help!
 

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Shibui

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You can make your own bonsai in whatever shape you want but keeping a tall, skinny trunk just because it has a natural dead bit at the top is not my idea of attractive. I prefer bonsai that look like real trees not sticks.
Larger size bonsai certainly suits maples with larger leaves like this one but larger bonsai really need thicker trunks to make them look aged and impressive and it will take a few years to achieve that here.
Certainly agree that a change of soil is imperative for the ongoing health of the tree. The soil looks decidedly soggy in that bucket. I hope there are plenty of good sized drainage holes in the bottom.
I suspect your problem with what to do is because there is so little to do anything with just yet. Let it grow for now to regain strength and to produce more in the way of branching. Prune occasionally to promote even more new shoots and branches. Only when you have some structure to work with can you start to wire and prune to achieve a tree shape. The waiting part of bonsai is probably one of the most frustrating things but we need to learn patience while we wait for trees to respond in their own time.
 

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Shohin
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@Shibui i always love your feedback! I guess beauty truly is in the eye of the beholder. I love the look of the dead top even if it is not exactly what may happen in nature. But you never know maybe a large maple gets broken off who knows!

Yes I know this was not the best pick up but it was get plowed or taken. I have become the misfit tree collector as I hate seeing people just plow them.

it will be a long road for this tree but I was interested if anyone had a cool vision of it as for now it’s been in the bucket just sitting there forgotten last year. We’ll see how this year goes with a bit more care and tlc
 

Shibui

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I love the look of the dead top even if it is not exactly what may happen in nature. But you never know maybe a large maple gets broken off who knows!
All natural trees are subject to storm, pest and disease, etc so somewhere there will almost certainly be a large tree with a broken top. Whether it happens often or whether it looks attractive is another thing entirely. More than happy for anyone to pursue any bonsai style even if some others won't like or approve so keep going with your vision as long as you are happy to do so.

Yes I know this was not the best pick up but it was get plowed or taken. I have become the misfit tree collector as I hate seeing people just plow them.
This may not be the best strategy for acquiring a great bonsai collection. Maybe less emotion could result in better stock to develop but any trees like this will give great opportunities to learn how trees grow and what techniques provide good results while not costing the earth for the lessons.

it will be a long road for this tree but I was interested if anyone had a cool vision of it as for now it’s been in the bucket just sitting there forgotten last year. We’ll see how this year goes with a bit more care and tlc
It seems to be very easy to create a grand virtual design for any stick in a pot. The problem is the trees don't always co-operate by growing to match the design. We can make some predictions about what may grow after a certain procedure is used but I certainly prefer to defer most planning until there is at least some structure to work with and provide the bones of a future design.
Good luck with getting some more growth and branching to give inspiration.
Waiting for the trees to develop is always the most frustrating part about starting out in bonsai but there does not seem to be any alternative apart from finding or purchasing advanced stock to work on.
 

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Shohin
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So I have found that this is a sugar maple. The leaves are staying absolutely tiny. Has anyone else worked with this type of tree? Is this just for a bit and they will continue to grow out? I know last summer they were extremely large but right now they haven’t grown at all past this size?
 

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