Newly collected berberis

[daygan]

If this were my tree, I think my vision for it would be somewhere in the neighborhood of this:

 

[davetree]

View attachment 38414

Heres a picture this spring (with leaves!!). Do you guys really think I should cascade a Barberry? This thing has a totally stiff upright habit. It seems contrary to it's very nature. Anyone?

That's right - you are going to be fighting its nature. You could make a cascade and grow the tree on its side to avoid that problem. Or you could turn the tree into an informal upright or something like an informal broom style. Barberries can be a bitch to work with.

 

[davetree]

Especially since they apparently grow upside down.

 

[Jason]

New pot today. It's an Ikkou green oval. The sphagnum on the surface is temporary.

 

[Vin]

It looks great in its new pot!

 

[Bonsai Nut]

Great tree... but not a strong design. Three trunks? Two trunks with a stubby primary? Just doesn't look like a tree to me - looks like a shrub in a pot.

P.S. I don't want my constructive criticism to sound too harsh. I think you need to resolve the left trunk...

 

[Brian Van Fleet]

I like the pot, and this tree, but do think that if you lose the left trunk, you gain a ton of movement. Then work the main trunk back toward the left a bit.

 

[Si Nguyen]

I like it! I think it looks very natural this way, kind of like an oak style tree.
I am sure you planned to grow out the some more branches on the left trunk, because that's really all this tree needs to complete a picture. A few more low branches on the left trunk and slight cut back top on the left trunk will give this tree a more finished looking round canopy.
Nice to see an old thread updated too.
Thanks Jason!

 

[JoeR]

I really like this tree! When I first looked at it, I thought that it would look much better if the very left trunk was airlayered off. Then I saw other people agreed! Nice to see I'm making progress and growing as a bonsai designer. You would get a nice shohin start and one beautiful, mature looking tree. Great bark and movement on this one.

 

[edprocoat]

Nice one, seal the ends of the cut branches they seem to die back a whole bunch if you do not seal the cut area.

ed

 

[drew33998]

I think that maybe the issue is that the left trunk and the main trunk are too close in thickness. In fact the left trunk seems to be thicker than the center one. Which pulls my eye to the left trunk more. Wish I had one this nice to contemplate design over! Love the pot too.

 

[drew33998]

Excuse the rough virt but if you are keeping all three trunk I was thinking something like this. Not sure how berberis do with healing scars but I would remove some of the thickness of the left trunk and some of the center trunk on the right.