Sean’s Trident Projects

[SeanS]

Metal plate trident clump repotted into a much shallower pot.



August 2021 when I started it

 

[Orion_metalhead]

Yet another ROR trident dug up today. I’m noticing a trend here

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This one is awesome!!

These were all done using the foil method and then combining that with a tile below? Brilliant.

 

[leatherback]

Tridents

I was wondering, have you every tried root over rock tride ts?

 

[SeanS]

This one is awesome!!

These were all done using the foil method and then combining that with a tile below? Brilliant.

@Orion_metalhead correct! The foil method by @Shibui has to be the best ROR technique there is. I haven’t had an unsuccessful attempt at creating a ROR bonsai using it. And then combined with some sort of flat surface under the rock you’re on your way!

Here’s when I started this one, can you count how many seedlings I used? They were all one year old seedlings, back in August 2023, making it only 3 years old from seed!

 

[SeanS]

Another ROR dug up today. Originally started with 3 seedlings attached to the rock. They’ve all fused together near the top of the rock. I’ve shared this tree before and documented how I used a screw through 2 of the trunks to force them to fuse together. The screw has done its job and will be removed when I give it its initial styling.
I dug this one up last spring to move it to a better spot and attached it to a small paving stone at the time. It did a good job of forcing the roots to grow laterally from the rock. You can see the paver in the first 2 photos under the rock.

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Photo from I started this one

 

[SeanS]

2 more RORs out of the earth! One big, and one small.

Here’s the big one

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And here’s a WIP shot from 2 springs ago when I grafted some extra seedlings to the original trunks to get some buds closer to the rock. This was after 1 season in the ground, and it stayed in the ground for 2 more so 3 years in total



Here you can see the result of the grafts. The lower parts of the grafts were cut off once they had fused, I only wanted the “exit” part of the grafted seedlings

 

[SeanS]

I was wondering, have you every tried root over rock tride ts?

I might just start a few this spring, thanks for the suggestion!

 

[bonsaiwood]

Sean, you’ve got me feeling motivated to try the metal plate clump method next spring. Terrific work on these!

 

[clem]

Yet another ROR trident dug up today. I’m noticing a trend here

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It is, for me, the ROR tree with the best potential. If you manage to develop beautiful trunks, with taper and curves, and then pretty branches to dress these trunks, you will have a great tree because the rooting and the base are very beautiful, I think.

 

[Wood]

The foil method by @Shibui has to be the best ROR technique there is. I haven’t had an unsuccessful attempt at creating a ROR bonsai using it.

You and @Shibui inspired me earlier this season and I'm trying it with some extra Carpinus coreana seedlings I had

 

[SeanS]

One of my bigger ROR tridents got a new pot today. It didn’t grow all that well last season, the soil was very compacted and the fine surface roots had totally colonised the top layer of soil due to applying pelletised fertilizer directly to the soil. Hoping to reinvigorate it this season with some fresh soil. I need the lowest left branch to thicken substantially.



Some progress shots over the years.
Spring 2021 when I started it. It’s the foil wrapped rock in the very top left corner.



June 2022.



July 2023. I had grafted a shoot to the original trunk right above the roots to start building the trunkline and get buds close to the roots/rock



June 2024. Here you can clearly see it didn’t grow much over the last season compared to the current photos