tylerwdesign
Sapling
I bought this crabapple at an auction a few days ago. It has some pretty bad structural flaws, but I got a good deal on it, especially considering I like the pot. I had a few questions and was looking to see if anyone had any thoughts on what I should do.
I'll start with saying I know this isn't likely to end up being a stellar tree. I have some great childhood memories of crabapple trees and it's a tree I've wanted to own since getting into bonsai. I am very new to bonsai (at least in practice), so I thought it could also be a great tree to learn a few things from. I have no knowledge of anything done to this tree before it was purchased, so making sure the tree is healthy will be my first priority before I do any major work.
The first question I have is about the weirdness going on at the bottom of the trunk. It seems to be a failed ground layer? Will any of the bark grow back on this area over time if cared for properly?I was thinking I might want to ground layer in the same place eventually, but that will be a little further down the line. I can deal with the funky trunk for the time being.
My thoughts were to change the front, remove some branches, then possibly ground layer the trunk or doing some carving. (see one of the last images below). One of the larger branches has a pretty large reverse swell a few inches up, so I was thinking that could be a decent candidate for an air layer. I figured it was a good learning opportunity, since I was planning to remove that branch anyways. (Picture below for this one as well.)
Any other thoughts you guys have would be greatly appreciated.
I'll start with saying I know this isn't likely to end up being a stellar tree. I have some great childhood memories of crabapple trees and it's a tree I've wanted to own since getting into bonsai. I am very new to bonsai (at least in practice), so I thought it could also be a great tree to learn a few things from. I have no knowledge of anything done to this tree before it was purchased, so making sure the tree is healthy will be my first priority before I do any major work.
The first question I have is about the weirdness going on at the bottom of the trunk. It seems to be a failed ground layer? Will any of the bark grow back on this area over time if cared for properly?I was thinking I might want to ground layer in the same place eventually, but that will be a little further down the line. I can deal with the funky trunk for the time being.
My thoughts were to change the front, remove some branches, then possibly ground layer the trunk or doing some carving. (see one of the last images below). One of the larger branches has a pretty large reverse swell a few inches up, so I was thinking that could be a decent candidate for an air layer. I figured it was a good learning opportunity, since I was planning to remove that branch anyways. (Picture below for this one as well.)
Any other thoughts you guys have would be greatly appreciated.
