Here's a pinus thunbergii 'thunderhead' in progress. It's about 10 years old and is just putting out new buds after candling. Nice short needles.
It's in this pot for a season or two but please note it's not the correct pot for this tree. I needed something low and large diameter to get the root mass spread out. I purchased this pot from Dale at the BSF show at Morikami and had plans to use is with another tree in the future. The glaze is something else, it's a greenish grey to my eyes and has little sheen and a bit of texture. Reminded me of a non glazed but colored clay pot.
I like to do major root work on pines in the summer. I time it so that I do the big root cuts just as I start to see bud or candle activity. This tree was in a 5 gallon pot before this planting so it was a major reduction. It was candled in the spring and had some branches removed so I guess I broke a taboo of no top and bottom work in one season. The tree is doing well besides a few candles that were attacked by the dreaded shoot top moth (note to self - spray for them as well as use systemic). It's still a bit deep in the pot. The nebari is not bad but I took the time to tie and wire a few roots, also nicking a few spots to try to get better rootage. I planted it a bit deep to keep the area moist.
I like the tree but realize it will never be a great tree. It's 10 years from having good bark but by then I will have achieved some decent ramification (I hope). It's one of my learn as I go trees. Perhaps in the future I will see a way to reduce the height and the branch length to bring the outline of the tree in a bit for a more convincing bonsai. I don't have a "front" yet but I do not want the big scar to be seen so it will go away from the viewer.
It's in this pot for a season or two but please note it's not the correct pot for this tree. I needed something low and large diameter to get the root mass spread out. I purchased this pot from Dale at the BSF show at Morikami and had plans to use is with another tree in the future. The glaze is something else, it's a greenish grey to my eyes and has little sheen and a bit of texture. Reminded me of a non glazed but colored clay pot.
I like to do major root work on pines in the summer. I time it so that I do the big root cuts just as I start to see bud or candle activity. This tree was in a 5 gallon pot before this planting so it was a major reduction. It was candled in the spring and had some branches removed so I guess I broke a taboo of no top and bottom work in one season. The tree is doing well besides a few candles that were attacked by the dreaded shoot top moth (note to self - spray for them as well as use systemic). It's still a bit deep in the pot. The nebari is not bad but I took the time to tie and wire a few roots, also nicking a few spots to try to get better rootage. I planted it a bit deep to keep the area moist.
I like the tree but realize it will never be a great tree. It's 10 years from having good bark but by then I will have achieved some decent ramification (I hope). It's one of my learn as I go trees. Perhaps in the future I will see a way to reduce the height and the branch length to bring the outline of the tree in a bit for a more convincing bonsai. I don't have a "front" yet but I do not want the big scar to be seen so it will go away from the viewer.