Im going to try my hand at a shimpaku tanuki

[bilbocannon]

I found this deadwood in the backyard when i moved into my current rental property.

What do you think?

As mentioned i think i will try shimpaku, any suggestions for other types of tree are welcome.

The bottom left hand side is snapped off. I was going to re attached im just not sure on which orientation yet.



This squamata tanuki is my inspiration
Which i saw today on ebay.

 

[bilbocannon]

I just need to by a dremel and some shimpaku and i am ready to go.

 

[Adair M]

See if you can get some shimpaku whips.

When you carve the groove in the dead wood, try to made it wider on the inside, keyhole shaped, so when the shimpaku trunk thickens, it really locks itself in.

Looks like a fun project!

 

[bilbocannon]

See if you can get some shimpaku whips.

When you carve the groove in the dead wood, try to made it wider on the inside, keyhole shaped, so when the shimpaku trunk thickens, it really locks itself in.

Looks like a fun project!

Good advice cheers. My local bonsai shop has hundreds of smallish shimpaku so getting them shouldnt be an issue.
Should i preserve the wood in anyway 1st? If so what with?

 

[Adair M]

Good advice cheers. My local bonsai shop has hundreds of smallish shimpaku so getting them shouldnt be an issue.
Should i preserve the wood in anyway 1st? If so what with?

I've never done one, so I'm really stepping out of school here... But yes, I would think you'd be wise to remove any sources of future rot up front. White vinegar will kill off mold and algae. Scrub it with a tooth brush.

Even better would be to pressure wash it. I suppose you could use a regular pressure washer if you do it before you put the shimpaku on.

Then, while it's wet, paint on lime sulfur. Applying the lime sulfur while the wood is wet makes it absorb into the grain better, rather than it sit on the surface and look like paint.

 

[bilbocannon]

I've never done one, so I'm really stepping out of school here... But yes, I would think you'd be wise to remove any sources of future rot up front. White vinegar will kill off mold and algae. Scrub it with a tooth brush.

Even better would be to pressure wash it. I suppose you could use a regular pressure washer if you do it before you put the shimpaku on.

Then, while it's wet, paint on lime sulfur. Applying the lime sulfur while the wood is wet makes it absorb into the grain better, rather than it sit on the surface and look like paint.

Awesome! Looks like im going to have to get some lime sulfur now. I cant wait.

 

[Craigm]

yeah man definately have a go and a bunch of Fun at the same time.
This is a small one I did a couple of years ago, it's no longer in this container but slightly larger.
I would do everything suggested but lime sulphur after it has all taken.

 

[bilbocannon]

yeah man definately have a go and a bunch of Fun at the same time.
This is a small one I did a couple of years ago, it's no longer in this container but slightly larger.
I would do everything suggested but lime sulphur after it has all taken.
View attachment 111037

View attachment 111038

Very nice.

 

[LeonardB]

I've never done one, so I'm really stepping out of school here... But yes, I would think you'd be wise to remove any sources of future rot up front. White vinegar will kill off mold and algae. Scrub it with a tooth brush.

Even better would be to pressure wash it. I suppose you could use a regular pressure washer if you do it before you put the shimpaku on.

Then, while it's wet, paint on lime sulfur. Applying the lime sulfur while the wood is wet makes it absorb into the grain better, rather than it sit on the surface and look like paint.

Adair is right on point but first before power washing, very gingerly poke around the base with a long sharp needle to identify punky wood.
It may be that a piece of rotting wood may still have character and add to the total look of the piece and you wouldn't want to throw it away just yet ( power washer would just blow rotten wood to dust ). The rot can be stabilized with a plastisizer ( from beneath ) leaving the top exposed wood available to lime-sulphur or what ever you choose. The stabilizer also prevents further rot from pieces sitting on the soil as well ( moisture can't penetrate the wood anymore).

 

[Adair M]

When you cut your groove in the deadwood, try to make it bigger on the inside. So the when the whip thickens, it locks itself in. Like of like a dovetail joint.

Also, shave the whip on the side where it will contact the deadwood. That way, the whip won't build new wood on that side. It will build new wood on the outside. When the whip builds new wood on the side next to the deadwood, it tends to push itself away from it.

The deadwood should be a very hard wood, of course.

And finally, try to make it so that you can see where the live portion comes out of the soil. If it's all on the back, it looks more "fake".

 

[M. Frary]

fake

 

[Adair M]

That's what "Tanuki" means.

 

[just.wing.it]

Any updates?
Did you give it a go?

 

[hemmy]

That's what "Tanuki" means.

Trickster, although I'm not sure why he has such a "pair"

 

[M. Frary]

Trickster, although I'm not sure why he has such a "pair"

View attachment 132173

They are probably swollen from getting kicked in the crotch for tricking the wrong person.

 

[LeonardB]

When you cut your groove in the deadwood, try to make it bigger on the inside. So the when the whip thickens, it locks itself in. Like of like a dovetail joint.

Also, shave the whip on the side where it will contact the deadwood. That way, the whip won't build new wood on that side. It will build new wood on the outside. When the whip builds new wood on the side next to the deadwood, it tends to push itself away from it.

The deadwood should be a very hard wood, of course.

And finally, try to make it so that you can see where the live portion comes out of the soil. If it's all on the back, it looks more "fake".

Rather than "fake", couldn't we concede that an interesting piece of deadwood has been used to add interest to a planting? How many times have you seen yamadori deadwood so skillfuly carved and whitened only to have the live portion seem to be an afterthought.
I have been thinking about this for quite a while now and believe that with the right presentation, the deadwood only serves to enhance the living portion and even helps to frame the piece.
With 5 or 6 presently in the works, I would like to bring the phoenix graft to light as another "American bonsai" art form and give it the recognition I think a well done specimen deserves.

 

[LeonardB]

I found this deadwood in the backyard when i moved into my current rental property.

What do you think?

As mentioned i think i will try shimpaku, any suggestions for other types of tree are welcome.

The bottom left hand side is snapped off. I was going to re attached im just not sure on which orientation yet.

View attachment 111034 View attachment 111035

This squamata tanuki is my inspiration
Which i saw today on ebay.


View attachment 111036

Hello,
Before trying the juniper you may have better luck using a whip from the same species as the deadwood. If it is an interesting plant, then having the deadwood of the same tree could give a more natural look.
Try and find examples of this in the wild to model after and you may surprise yourself with the results. Alot of talk about how "fake" tanuki is. Matching like species of "live", and "dead" wood makes the project that much more convincing.
Hope this helped, good luck.
Leonard

 

[Adair M]

Hello,
Before trying the juniper you may have better luck using a whip from the same species as the deadwood. If it is an interesting plant, then having the deadwood of the same tree could give a more natural look.
Try and find examples of this in the wild to model after and you may surprise yourself with the results. Alot of talk about how "fake" tanuki is. Matching like species of "live", and "dead" wood makes the project that much more convincing.
Hope this helped, good luck.
Leonard

Leonard,

This shouldn't be considered an "American Bonsai" thing. It's been done for a long time.

I've seen some good "Phoenix Grafts" and some bad ones. The good ones don't look "fake", and take a close examination to determine that they are tanuki.

 

[LeonardB]

Adair,
I see your point and agree ( to a point ).
My consideration is the best examples still tend to be Japanese ( generally ). With all the yamadori deadwood in the field I thought it seemed wasteful to just let them rot into obscurity. Why not better to try and develop worthy tanuki ( preferable over all the dead trees generated by so many of us over the years ). Maybe just conceit that I could try to do something better?

 

[Adair M]

Oh, I have no problem with you making tanuki. In fact I posted several suggestions on how to make "better" ones. (Or at least avoid some of the issues that detract from the poorer ones.)

Good luck with your project!