juniperus communis what would you do ?

[defra]

thnx for the help bonsai nut
so the plan is:
propper repot next spring
Let it grow freely the rest of the season
2018 cut back New growth hoping to enforce backbudding to build New branches ?
and then every year after that remove one of the big branches ?

 

[don b]

One question about the fish emulsion: how frequent do you aply it and like other fert starting spring and until when ?

Junipers may turn brown in winter but they don't go fully dormant like deciduous trees. So you can fertilize year round. I use Cottonseed or rapeseed cakes and apply folliar feed biweekly.

 

[Mike Corazzi]

Junipers may turn brown in winter but they don't go fully dormant like deciduous trees. So you can fertilize year round. I use Cottonseed or rapeseed cakes and apply folliar feed biweekly.

What BRAND of foliar feed do you use? And do you ONLY do it on the foliage or let it drip into the soil?
(or do you mean rapeseed cake on the foliage?"

I had problems with rapeseed cake and ....GNATS !!!

 

[defra]

past Two weeks have been sunny and warm wich is rare this time of year in the netherlands but this One likes it !
showing some fresh growth also some of the Brown parts inside turning back green

still a long way to go but for me confirmation that my threatment of a New pot and misting the hell out of it works

 

[armetisius]

. . . only one thing that bothers me with this tree is that the branches are all growing upwards
i have been told that with old looking conifers the branches supposed to bend down from the trunk they are kinda tough to bend already and more growth means thicker branches which are even more tough to bend any suggestions?

So do Cryptomeria. I would go that route instead of trying to make it into another juniper
make it into "this" juniper. One in the pic gallery that just about matches yours here.

 

[defra]

cool thnx allot didnt know that
maybe not by the "rules" but mosth important to me is that i like to look at it

 

[defra]

kinda late response lol but i was looking at this tree again @armetisius wich one of the pictures in the picture galery are you reffering to juniper styled as cryptomeria?

 

[defra]

Just a little update about the health of this one i does look allot happier than when i got it!

 

[defra]

Looking at the tree daily but still no clue what to do with it besides to thin out the foliage a bit to keep the air light and energy balanced

 

[sorce]

Looking at the tree daily

Good work!

If it stays that healthy...
I'd be contemplating a whackin in a year or so...
And get back to the daily grind!

Sorce

 

[palagaban]

I think this is a juniperus chinensis stricta variety?

 

[defra]

I think this is a juniperus chinensis stricta variety?

It looks allot like it i have two of those but7 i also have another squamata and it looks more like that foliage a little more blueish not 100% sure tough ill have to take a closer look tomorow!

 

[palagaban]

or i could be wrong my man it might be a squamata

 

[defra]

I was impatience but i think tree was healthy enough for some work and i realy want to practice my wireing skills and this one makes a good candidate !

Wrapped the trunk in raffia and wired it with a big wire and also i wired a couple branches this is not the final design but just to practice and open up the tree 's foliage

Im going to try and wire the entire tree as practice and to see what i can make out of it

 

[defra]

Cleaned up some more and wired the primary branches tonight i will try to do all the secondary braches tonight just to get more experience in wireing

Its not the final design and there are a couple branches on wrong places but thats for the future with this session of pruning qnd wireing the goal was to open it up and evoke backbudding and make it look less boring than it was lol kinda like the overal shape but its hard to see on the picture ill make a video later

First growth wich made me think it was healthy enough to be worked:


Result:

Bird eye:


The foliage that came off:

 

[defra]

Dewired yesterday and plucked almosth all the dead needles out last bonsai work for 2017!

I will take this one to a workshop in januari and try to twist up the trunk some more and go for a literati styled tree just because i like to have a literati and this trunk is tall and bendable!

Needle plucking is a bitch on this one its prickly lol

Before :

After

 

[dirk hoorelbeke]

I think it is a stricta. Nice Ork with the cleaning. I see a tall literati in this one (3 branches and a top). Keep the child. Style the top branches with move movement. Long twisting lifelines. Might be interesting.

 

[defra]

I think it is a stricta. Nice Ork with the cleaning. I see a tall literati in this one (3 branches and a top). Keep the child. Style the top branches with move movement. Long twisting lifelines. Might be interesting.

I compared the foliage next to my other stricta looks the same but it realy looks like my other squamata i have too so i cant tell for sure

It sounds like you peeked in my head dirk its the way i was looking at this !

 

[defra]

Tis tree became my first attempt at a litetati styled tree

These were my steps in the preparation process

Step one:
wrapped up the trunk real tight with strong non stretching bandage.

Step two:
placed two 5 mm aluminumum wires allong the lenght of the trunk

Step three:
Wrapped the trunk up tight with raffia and wired the trunk with two 6 mm aluminum wires

Step four:
Wired all the branches and kept looking at it fora while, i covered the unwanted branches with white cloth to get a better idea of how to make the bends and decide on the keepers

Step five:
Wrapped up the trunk in wet towel and keep it wet for a week to help to get it as supple as it can get.

 

[defra]

2016 the tree was bought and looked like this straight as a telephone pole:


June 2017 i wired the trunk for the first time but without any clue of what i was doing ?



This is today i kept most branches on as sacrifice branches but made a virtual where i removed them as i was already using photoshop i also did one with a Nice pot


Virtual without the sacrifice branches


Virtual with bonsai pot



Closeup from the top of tree