Root over Rock needs rethinking

clevetromba

Shohin
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I'm see a rock sitting on top of the ground with a tree grasping it. Not what I'd expect to see in the wild. My opinion, the ROR is actually too exposed. If the rock was buried by a 3rd to halfway deeper it would look much more natural. I like the idea of additional similar rocks at uneven levels and distance around this tree. The culturing and the use of an American Hornbean are impressive.
I see this kind of thing in the Allegheny mountains of Pennsylvania, though usually the rock is completely covered with leaf humus and moss.
 

clevetromba

Shohin
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Could be.
Or....the white garage, or the mostly whitish soil?

The almost too large pot? Oh no, box, that is better.

It could be any or all of these thing.

Hell, could even be the tree just needs to cast a little more shade, fill out!

Hell with it. Again for me, lean the rock and all about 30degrees forward in the first pic.

It holds the rock too nice to change, so I'd just grow it out. If it still is unconvincing then, maybe it'll be an easier fix.

Two questions.

How long has it been on the rock?
How much do you have into it?

Sorce
It's been on there for about 4 years and the rock was a gift from a friend that he carried down from a mountain in a backpack for me. So, I guess I'm kind of attached to it. But, I do want it to look better...
 

clevetromba

Shohin
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Taking the suggestions of making this look more like it's clinging to the side of a cliff, and tilting it to the right a little, I put it in a nice pot by Erik Krizovensky. If I could stain the rock to look more like the pot, I think it would look much better.
ROR_hornbeam_virtual copy.jpg
 

sorce

Nonsense Rascal
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Yeah. I wouldn't worry about it.

Time and a crown will put things in place!

Sorce
 

jeanluc83

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I see this kind of thing in the Allegheny mountains of Pennsylvania, though usually the rock is completely covered with leaf humus and moss.

I believe this is why it looks "off". There are light colored rocks out there and I'm sure if you looked hard enough you could find an natural ROR with a light colored rock. The problem as I see it is that the rock is too new and clean and that is why it looks a little unnatural. In my area anything that sticks around long enough will be colonized with lichens and moss.

Years ago, when I first got into bonsai, I did an experiment. I scraped some lichens off a rock and mixed it with a little bit of slightly watered down Elmers glue and painted it on a clean rock. The lichens did start to colonize the new rock. It might be worth it to try with this rock.
 
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