Eric Schrader
Chumono
I got this landscape juniper from a friend in 2008. It was in a giant wash tub having been dug out of a yard in the east bay. When it was dug out a bunch of large branches were cut off. By the time I got it some large sections of the trunk were dead, all the better for a juniper. 2008, first work:
The foliage was fast growing, prickly and yellowy so it was a good candidate for grafting to a more desirable type of foliage. Boon helped me put three Kishu approach grafts on the trunk (Kawabe style):
By the end of summer 2010 the grafts had taken, although we elected to remove one that was on a branch which was no longer part of the design. I had removed all but a tiny piece of the original foliage at the top right:
February 2012: the main line of the grafts were already wired and now the tree has been allowed to grow long whips to create larger branches. The few remaining sprouts of the old foliage have grown vigorously also at top right:
October 2012: the whips grew vigorously all summer. I did some more deadwood work, removed the last of the lifeline leading to the old foliage and trimmed the right side shorter to emphasize flow to the left:
May 2013 - the tree is growing more slowly after pruning, wiring and relocation back to San Francisco's cool weather. Just some light thinning and cleanup:
November 2013 - starting show prep, strong tips removed, light thinning and tweaking of branches:
The back of the crown showing some deadwood cleanup, adding ink to disguise the fresh carving, then removing it and applying lime sulfur:
Repotted into show pot:
Mossed and ready to go, Height is 29 inches:
Hope to see some of you at the 2014 Bay Island Bonsai show, next weekend, January 18-19 at the Lakeside Garden Center, 666 Bellevue Ave, Oakland, CA. This tree will be in the large conifer class for judging, but I expect to be trounced and have no shot at winning the members' choice award.
Cheers,
Eric
The foliage was fast growing, prickly and yellowy so it was a good candidate for grafting to a more desirable type of foliage. Boon helped me put three Kishu approach grafts on the trunk (Kawabe style):
By the end of summer 2010 the grafts had taken, although we elected to remove one that was on a branch which was no longer part of the design. I had removed all but a tiny piece of the original foliage at the top right:
February 2012: the main line of the grafts were already wired and now the tree has been allowed to grow long whips to create larger branches. The few remaining sprouts of the old foliage have grown vigorously also at top right:
October 2012: the whips grew vigorously all summer. I did some more deadwood work, removed the last of the lifeline leading to the old foliage and trimmed the right side shorter to emphasize flow to the left:
May 2013 - the tree is growing more slowly after pruning, wiring and relocation back to San Francisco's cool weather. Just some light thinning and cleanup:
November 2013 - starting show prep, strong tips removed, light thinning and tweaking of branches:
The back of the crown showing some deadwood cleanup, adding ink to disguise the fresh carving, then removing it and applying lime sulfur:
Repotted into show pot:
Mossed and ready to go, Height is 29 inches:
Hope to see some of you at the 2014 Bay Island Bonsai show, next weekend, January 18-19 at the Lakeside Garden Center, 666 Bellevue Ave, Oakland, CA. This tree will be in the large conifer class for judging, but I expect to be trounced and have no shot at winning the members' choice award.
Cheers,
Eric