Three Trunk Trident Maple

[cheap_walmart_art]

Hello folks, thought I’d post up a specimen trident from my collection and get your thoughts. I acquired this tree in 2018 and I’ve always been fond of it. It’s so weird with its base and the fact that whoever fused it together in the past used seedlings different enough, so the canopy is always two toned.

Lately I’ve been thinking about removing the middle trunk. Someone tried to cut and bend it long ago and the scar will likely never heal. It’s also way too straight to my eye. What’s your opinion?

 

[Gabler]

Lately I’ve been thinking about removing the middle trunk. Someone tried to cut and bend it long ago and the scar will likely never heal. It’s also way too straight to my eye. What’s your opinion?

That's probably a good idea.

Also, the multiple colors of foliage are neat. I've seen it in wild trees that have fused together, but for some reason you don't tend to see it in bonsai.

 

[cheap_walmart_art]

That's probably a good idea.

Also, the multiple colors of foliage are neat. I've seen it in wild trees that have fused together, but for some reason you don't tend to see it in bonsai.

Here’s a bit better pic with the foliage color difference. It’s a bit more obvious in person than in pics.

 

[Gabler]

Here’s a bit better pic with the foliage color difference. It’s a bit more obvious in person than in pics.

View attachment 537762

I like the middle trunk even less in that picture.

 

[Ruddigger]

I’d cut it.

 

[MHBonsai]

Agreed… I think the composition is better without the Middle trunk. Cool tree!

 

[Mats Hagström]

Unless the middle trunk is dominant, it should be removed.

Anesthetics things are usually done in odd numbers with the exception of two.

In other words trunks can be one, two, three, five, seven, nine and after 10 it doesn’t matter,

This is not just Bonsai , but is also how chefs put food on plates and anything else that has to do with aesthetics. My new mantra is “if it’s not bonsai remove it”. I come back to this concept pretty often. When I look over my still, early in development, journey of bonsai I tend to not remove enough. Cutting off things we spent years growing is not intuitive to me so I have to learn to do it.

I recently listened to Peter Tea give a talk about branch development. He talked about growing a branch on a trident maple for three years just to cut it off an inch from the trunk because that where he wants the branch to divide. He then spends another two years growing out the next segment etc. His thinking is more in decades that year to year.

What’s your thought on the stump? The tree might look better with that trimmed as well.

The more I learn the more I realize how little I know.

Mats

 

[Shibui]

I have a 2 tome trident multi trunk. The colour difference was only noticeable for a few weeks in spring then all the leaves turned green for the rest of the year. Another triple trunk had one tree that leafed out a week before the others. It also turned colour and dropped leaves a week earlier. It's easy to do because these are normally assembled in winter when there's no leaves so we can't see those attributes at the time.

Before removing the middle trunk try rotating the tree slowly through 360 degrees. I agree that trunk doesn't match the others from this angle but sometimes there's another 'front' where the 3 do look good. Current photos show the middle trunk right in the middle between the other 2. I find that's rarely the best view of a triple (or other multi) trunk. It's usually good to have some asymmetry - with 2 trunks slightly closer and a bit more distance to the 3rd.
Just because we've always looked at a tree from one side does not mean that side is the best view.
If you check and find that side is really the best option then I agree with removing it.

 

[ForrestW]

Interesting tree! I would remove the middle tree, and then next year when you repot, I would adjust the angle a little, making the larger tree the more vertical one and the smaller one leaning a little more away. I like how the unusual part of the pot mirrors the stump in a way-- nice connection.

 

[cheap_walmart_art]

Here we are in Spring of ‘25. As per usual, I’ve done none of the work I said I would. Very pretty this spring though!

 

[Orion_metalhead]

Id remove it. That trunk adds nothing to the composition. Its too straight, even to air layer, from what I see. The twin trunk final option would look great!

 

[cheap_walmart_art]

Id remove it. That trunk adds nothing to the composition. Its too straight, even to air layer, from what I see. The twin trunk final option

Yeah I agree. Now will I get to it at any point this year? We shall see!

 

[Orion_metalhead]

Yeah I agree. Now will I get to it at any point this year? We shall see!

Get to it!? Its just a single cut! Haha

 

[cheap_walmart_art]

Get to it!? Its just a single cut! Haha