ONE MORE TIME! Yamadori Style Junipers

[Eric Group]

Sold 2014 at the Fresno Swapmeet.

In the foreground center, blue colander. Tag said $25.00.

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How could you!? Didn't you want to keep this future masterpiece!?


Oh well, just wanted to see some after they fattened up a bit. I did some last year but not totally happy with the wiggle I put in them and a few Sargents I did the year prior are kind of boring curly Qs... Keeping at it though... Got my eye on a couple more I plan to snap into piec-I mean wire into shape!

I did a few where I twisted up a Shimpaku with a Sargent (which grows and thickens much faster) to make some kind of mish-mash Frankenstein tree... Of the three only one seems to have worked out! One of the other originals never would stick together very well, another i tried this year quickly merged, but the Shimpaku cutting died off, leaving a strip of dead juniper cleanly grafted to the lower trunk of the Sargent... Which may make for an interesting deadwood feature eventually! The best of the three though has both parts growing strong, has been taped together for about two years and went in the ground this Soring where it quickly DOUBLED in size! I think it will be pretty cool in about 4-5 years! They are kind of different from what you did here but somewhat inspired by the "Yamadori" style wiring I saw you doing to your Junis here and on your blog! So, thanks for making me try something new!

 

[Eric Group]

Not really. They were among the 85 I dug up and sold when we moved last year. Right side, but no close ups.

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Somehow I knew you were going to say that... For some reason I remember you saying in another thread you were selling a bunch when you moved and I kind of guessed this would have been one that got sold. Too bad I don't live in you area, you had some nice stock up for sale it looks like! And arranged so neatly... Man... I do need to work on my uniformity in arrangements of trees in my yard. Everything you post is so symmetrical, and well put together... Even just a row of trees in flats in your picture here is somehow aligned in a pleasing way! LOL.
I spend half my time in my back yard tripping over stuff I or my kids or my dog randomly placed in a really bad spot!

 

[Vance Wood]

Life is after all a trip.

 

[barrosinc]

Mine are doing ok still.
Maybe too much foliage inside.

 

[Vance Wood]

Mine are doing ok still.
Maybe too much foliage inside.

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When one considers that at least 50% of the image of a Juniper bonsai, especially a Yamsdori Juniper bonsai is invested in the nature and exhibition of the trunk. Healthy as your's is does not make it a Yamadori Juniper Bonsai. At some point here you are going to have to make the decision to bare the trunk a bit. Once making that decision you have to determine how much of the trunk has to be converted into deadwood elements; the essence of Yamadori.

 

[barrosinc]

When one considers that at least 50% of the image of a Juniper bonsai, especially a Yamsdori Juniper bonsai is invested in the nature and exhibition of the trunk. Healthy as your's is does not make it a Yamadori Juniper Bonsai. At some point here you are going to have to make the decision to bare the trunk a bit. Once making that decision you have to determine how much of the trunk has to be converted into deadwood elements; the essence of Yamadori.

Yes, I got some comments from some friends to remove a lot of the lower foliage.
It is still thin to start with deadwood, although I might peel off some bark and cambium so it starts getting "beat-up" appearance.

 

[Vance Wood]

You need to educate yourself on this aspect of the art. In order to make it look natural and not kill the tree you have to learn to follow the natural life lines and take advantage of them. Try to violate them at your own risk.

 

[barrosinc]

You need to educate yourself on this aspect of the art. In order to make it look natural and not kill the tree you have to learn to follow the natural life lines and take advantage of them. Try to violate them at your own risk.

I have been reading what BVF posted to do small parts and then start joining them.
Once I clean it up I will look at the veins and see if I can start working out one side.
thanks for the heads up

 

[petegreg]

...It is still thin to start with deadwood, although I might peel off some bark and cambium so it starts getting "beat-up" appearance.

I think I 've let this link https://www.bonsaiempire.com/inspiration/progressions/shimpaku-juniper to somebody and were misunderstood. Not providing design or size picture...But look how to "grow deadwood" and trunks.

 

[Brian Van Fleet]

When one considers that at least 50% of the image of a Juniper bonsai, especially a Yamsdori Juniper bonsai is invested in the nature and exhibition of the trunk. Healthy as your's is does not make it a Yamadori Juniper Bonsai. At some point here you are going to have to make the decision to bare the trunk a bit. Once making that decision you have to determine how much of the trunk has to be converted into deadwood elements; the essence of Yamadori.

Sure, but not until he has the trunk he wants. Pruning it back now will only slow it down to a crawl.

 

[barrosinc]

I think I 've let this link https://www.bonsaiempire.com/inspiration/progressions/shimpaku-juniper to somebody and were misunderstood. Not providing design or size picture...But look how to "grow deadwood" and trunks.

The age of the shimpaku un that link is 10 years. Mine are 5 and 3 (I believe).
I might lighten up a bit close to the trunk to keep healthy the inner foliage.

 

[petegreg]

Yes definitely. You can select branches for your final design and keep them under control with foliage close to the trunk. And select branches for future jins, wire them in positions and shapes, remove foliage close to the trunk (from them only) and let the runners run.

 

[Vance Wood]

Sure, but not until he has the trunk he wants. Pruning it back now will only slow it down to a crawl.

You're right but doing what a lot of people do around here, not necessarily this instance, but you and I have seen it a lot of times, in fact there was a Youtube video not too long ago that demonstrated this exact point. Assuming that making Jin and Shari is simply a matter of cutting a trench right down the middle of the front of a tree, with little or no consideration of the life lines, could lead to disaster. Want to talk about slowing things down, killing the tree will slow it down a lot. People get excited and want to do something before they really understand what they are doing. I am all for letting a trunk develop until it reveals its muscularity.

 

[barrosinc]

I am definitely not going to rush it.
I have been taking my time with these, but if cutting a bit of the trunk now can give it more character then I might just do it.

 

[petegreg]

Hi there, my itoigawas created last year are doing fine, HBR repotted this spring, they gonna be freed from bandages next season. How are yours?

 

[RobertB]

Anyone have updates to any of these trees. I am very interested.