Japanese maple (Shindeshojo) 2019

[Warpig]

So what do you do? When you are new to bonsai and you know you need to move to better material, but you still have that old nursery stock sitting there? You make long term plans.

Now, the thing about long term plans is they involve alot of parts. So first you must look at the parts as a whole to find where to start. Ok im done thinking out loud. I'm just trying to say where I'm coming from. I guess I'll start this in the order i think they should be addressed in. Let me know if im wrong. Oh yea the leaves.... she's fine right? *buy shade cloth


Yea there's a lot of work to do.


At some point we are going to have to air layer, for sure. The reason i say it first is to keep in mind it has to happen at some point.

The most important thing is it needs to grow! Which means in the ground grow. For at least 2 to 3 year. It is in need of a repot too. Heres my thought to make a whole new tree.

.

Let it grow out as it is in the ground long enough to turn that first left branch into a 2nd trunk. Then air layer just below where the trunks meet as the new ground line and start building branch structure and leaders from there.

 

[0soyoung]

Yes, shindeshojo needs some shade. It doesn't need to be in the ground to GROW! though. Just about all varieties of Japanese maple grow well in pots and just about all commercial production in Oregon and Washington is done in pots. Ground growing usually makes for a gawd awful nebari,

However, your post creates an interesting idea, if you have a time horizon of 5 to 10 years AND if it is still grafted onto a generic root stock (as it appears to be to me). Plant it in your yard on the north side of your house and where it will be protected from winds. Plant it at a slant so that the graft line is above, but parallel to the ground line. The reason is that oftentimes cultivars will spontaneously ground layer themselves at the graft line when they are buried. So, after the tree has been in the ground for a year or two, the roots have moved out, away from the trunk, and you can make a box around the tree base to accomplish this without suffocating those roots (they must get oxygen!). Let's say you plant it now. You would make this box around the graft union in 2021/2 and may have enough cultivar roots by 2024/5 to 'harvest' the cultivar on its own roots (otherwise the girdle routine will be required). Once 'harvested' the explant could be screwed to a board and secured by the board into a large shallow pot or a grow box. Of course it could be secured by wires/sticks over the new cultivar roots only if the tree is not unwieldy and the roots are thick and strong enough.

This leaves you will little to nothing to do, other than tend it, for at least 3 years. After that it should be quite vigorous. You can begin sculpting it, even air layering a few branches, if you want. I do structural pruning in spring 'as buds swell', cutting back no further than a visible bud. You can do this or something similar to guide the growth without reducing its vitality - once it is leafing out, let it go for the whole season.

Nevertheless, you won't get any taper in the trunk without heavily pruning it , but you don't want to do this until the thickness of the initial trunk segment, coming out of the ground, is as thick as you want for your intended bonsai. It won't thicken much until the stem from it is nearly as thick --> this is how we get taper. Exactly when this happens is in your hands.


Its just an idea for you to consider.

 

[Warpig]

It is a interesting idea. But it would leave the whole trunk line.

Was the plan to go for a twin trunk a sound one? It just seems like thats the of the options i see.

 

[JudyB]

Yes, shindeshojo needs some shade. It doesn't need to be in the ground to GROW! though. Just about all varieties of Japanese maple grow well in pots and just about all commercial production in Oregon and Washington is done in pots. Ground growing usually makes for a gawd awful nebari,

However, your post creates an interesting idea, if you have a time horizon of 5 to 10 years AND if it is still grafted onto a generic root stock (as it appears to be to me). Plant it in your yard on the north side of your house and where it will be protected from winds. Plant it at a slant so that the graft line is above, but parallel to the ground line. The reason is that oftentimes cultivars will spontaneously ground layer themselves at the graft line when they are buried. So, after the tree has been in the ground for a year or two, the roots have moved out, away from the trunk, and you can make a box around the tree base to accomplish this without suffocating those roots (they must get oxygen!). Let's say you plant it now. You would make this box around the graft union in 2021/2 and may have enough cultivar roots by 2024/5 to 'harvest' the cultivar on its own roots (otherwise the girdle routine will be required). Once 'harvested' the explant could be screwed to a board and secured by the board into a large shallow pot or a grow box. Of course it could be secured by wires/sticks over the new cultivar roots only if the tree is not unwieldy and the roots are thick and strong enough.

This leaves you will little to nothing to do, other than tend it, for at least 3 years. After that it should be quite vigorous. You can begin sculpting it, even air layering a few branches, if you want. I do structural pruning in spring 'as buds swell', cutting back no further than a visible bud. You can do this or something similar to guide the growth without reducing its vitality - once it is leafing out, let it go for the whole season.

Nevertheless, you won't get any taper in the trunk without heavily pruning it , but you don't want to do this until the thickness of the initial trunk segment, coming out of the ground, is as thick as you want for your intended bonsai. It won't thicken much until the stem from it is nearly as thick --> this is how we get taper. Exactly when this happens is in your hands.


Its just an idea for you to consider.

An interesting idea Oso.

@Warpig, read this line in his post again...

Plant it at a slant so that the graft line is above, but parallel to the ground line. The reason is that oftentimes cultivars will spontaneously ground layer themselves at the graft line when they are buried.

 

[0soyoung]

That is a possibility. You would need to layer it right below where the two branches divide. You could do that starting next spring.