My Fat Fir

[october]

*updated pics of cleaned deadwood on page 2*

Hi All,
Picked up this collected alpine fir today. I think there is a lot of potential here. However, there is also a lot of work to be done. I started the work today. I decided to reduce the left, tall straight trunk by like 2/3. The majority of the tree will be created from the right side stump. What might not be very visible is half of that far right side is deadwood. You can see where the stump sort of broke off on the right. Also, I combed out the roots, did some minor root pruning and put it in this grow pot. It was the only pot I had of adequate size and with good drainage. I think this tree will end up being just outside of shohin size, so chuhin size

Rob

As purchased


After the initial work




Possible future

 

[Brian Underwood]

Holy crap! I don't think I would have had the balls to reduce that trunk so much, but for what you want in the end I'm sure it was the right choice. I would probably have attempted to leave the tall trunk and make it the main, utilizing as much as I could, but probably reducing it by 1/4. Good luck with that awesome material!

 

[Poink88]

Holy crap! I don't think I would have had the balls to reduce that trunk so much, but for what you want in the end I'm sure it was the right choice.

I agree, esp on such a nice coniferous material. Good move and good luck!

Rob, you are my "chopping" idol. LOL

 

[Vance Wood]

Just my opinion but I have a couple of concerns that lead me to suggest that you leave this guy alone for the rest of this year.

 

[JudyB]

Another nice one. Good to see someone working with fir too. I've always wanted to try. It was def the right move for the overall tree. Good work, should be a beauty.

 

[october]

Thanks all. There are a lot of things to say about this tree good and bad. First the good. Working with the left would have yielding a very awkard formal upright. Also there there was not much taper. So you would of had an informal with a bend at the bottom and some deadwood on the side. I thought a much more powerful and tighter image could be made utilizing the right as the main part of the tree. I originally wanted to cut off the entire left trunk. However, I did not want to stress the tree any more than necessary. So I decided to leave some and incorporate it into the design. Also the dead wood needs some attention. Not carved at this time, but probably cleaned and preserve because there might be some rot in there. Also, as Vance mentioned. I am planning to leave this tree alone for one year.

Now the bad. What is not very visible in the pics is the color. I cannot be certain, but I am not that happy with the color of the tree. I am hoping that I am wrong, but I would not be surprised if this tree was on it's way out before I touched it. There is another fir at the nursery that looked ok a couple/few months back. However, I thought that tree might have been on it's way out. 2/3 months later, it is dead. I guess we will have to wait. I got this tree at a good price and it has major potential. So I took a gamble.

Rob

 

[coh]

I hope your tree makes it. I had been looking for a fir for a while, and found one last summer (Jim Doyle had one at Bill's symposium). It looked "OK" at first but during the rest of the summer about half of the tree died off. Don't know if it's something I did (probably) or that part of the tree was "destined" to die. I thought about checking the roots but decided to wait until this spring. It's a collected tree (not sure when) in pure pumice so I don't know what I'll find.

Chris

 

[Vance Wood]

I hope your tree makes it. I had been looking for a fir for a while, and found one last summer (Jim Doyle had one at Bill's symposium). It looked "OK" at first but during the rest of the summer about half of the tree died off. Don't know if it's something I did (probably) or that part of the tree was "destined" to die. I thought about checking the roots but decided to wait until this spring. It's a collected tree (not sure when) in pure pumice so I don't know what I'll find.

Chris

I was going to mention that I thought the color of the tree seemed off but it seems lately all I have been doing is bringing up bad news for people. My concern was that it seemed you removed most of the dominant active growth. That concerned me because of the experience I had with a Spruce a couple of years ago where I did the same thing.

 

[october]

I hope your tree makes it. I had been looking for a fir for a while, and found one last summer (Jim Doyle had one at Bill's symposium). It looked "OK" at first but during the rest of the summer about half of the tree died off. Don't know if it's something I did (probably) or that part of the tree was "destined" to die. I thought about checking the roots but decided to wait until this spring. It's a collected tree (not sure when) in pure pumice so I don't know what I'll find.

Chris

It was probably not something you did, it was already going to lose those sections.

Rob

 

[october]

I was going to mention that I thought the color of the tree seemed off but it seems lately all I have been doing is bringing up bad news for people. My concern was that it seemed you removed most of the dominant active growth. That concerned me because of the experience I had with a Spruce a couple of years ago where I did the same thing.

Hi Vance, I hope you continue to offer your assessments because they usually come true. Your advice to me over the years has come true. Even your bad predictions. So it is not the good or bad aspect that is important, but that your predictions are usually, if not always, accurate.

Also, you are correct about the color. You know how we always talk about when a conifer turns a different color out of season that the tree is already dead. There is a chance this tree is already in that state. However, I did not see the tree last year to make the comparison. I am hoping that both you and I are not correct in this case.

Rob

 

[drew33998]

Good luck and great material! Pump the Superthrive to it! Just joking guys. Hahaha.

 

[Poink88]

...but it seems lately all I have been doing is bringing up bad news for people.

You won't be popular for it...but someone have to do it Vance. I thank you for that. As long as you believe you are doing the right thing (and can keep an open mind), I hope you keep on going.

 

[Vance Wood]

Hi Vance, I hope you continue to offer your assessments because they usually come true. Your advice to me over the years has come true. Even your bad predictions. So it is not the good or bad aspect that is important, but that your predictions are usually, if not always, accurate.

Also, you are correct about the color. You know how we always talk about when a conifer turns a different color out of season that the tree is already dead. There is a chance this tree is already in that state. However, I did not see the tree last year to make the comparison. I am hoping that both you and I are not correct in this case.

Rob

Thanks and sorry? I am however concerned about this winter and it's rewards.

 

[discusmike]

Cool trunk.

 

[Smoke]

Thanks and sorry? I am however concerned about this winter and it's rewards.

I would be more concerned with November?

 

[october]

Thanks and sorry? I am however concerned about this winter and it's rewards.

The good thing is that the needles are still soft and still attached. When I was at the nursery, even though I saw potential and it had a decent price. My inner voice was asking me "are you sure? Look at the color, doesn't that look like what you always talk about how doomed conifers have that look." I choose to not listen. Part of it is because we really do have a shortage of great material around here and an even greater shortage of good priced trees. The thing is that many times, to get good material at decent/fair prices, this is something that one has to deal with. I absolutley wish I could start out with a great piece of peak health yamadori. However, at the chance that I do find it, it is well into the thousands.

Rob

 

[Vance Wood]

I would be more concerned with November?

What happened in November that was so unusual?

 

[october]

What happened in November that was so unusual?

I am not sure, but I think Smoke might mean whatever happened back in November, would be the thing that set this tree on the path to firewood.

Rob

 

[Vance Wood]

I am not sure, but I think Smoke might mean whatever happened back in November, would be the the thing that set this tree on the path to firewood.

Rob

I'm not sure unless he cares to elaborate.

 

[october]

I cleaned up the deadwood. No carving just cleaned and treated. My pics in the beginning of this post did not seem to show the deadwood at all. I think now you might get a better idea of why I saw potential in this tree.

Rob