Tips and Advice Please!
- Thread starter Marlyn
- Start date
Brian Van Fleet
Pretty Fly for a Bonsai Guy
Appears to need a haircut and a smaller pot, and it's good to go.
Poink88
Imperial Masterpiece
Looks nice but cannot be certain until we see the hidden branch structure.
Marlyn
Seedling
Thank you for your quick reply!
How do you recommend I go about trimming it?
and do you have any pot reccomendations?
The tree is currently in a 10 x 8 inch pot.
Trunk is 1 inch and there is 5 inch nebari. The tree is also about 7 inches above soil.
How do you recommend I go about trimming it?
and do you have any pot reccomendations?
The tree is currently in a 10 x 8 inch pot.
Trunk is 1 inch and there is 5 inch nebari. The tree is also about 7 inches above soil.
jk_lewis
Masterpiece
I don't see a 5-inch nebari, but whatever, the tree needs thinning out. CAREFULLY remove sone of the leaves so you/we can see the branches, but don't thin so drastically that you end up with pom-poms of foliage at the tips.
I think it was john Naka that said birds should be able to fly through the canopy.
I think it was john Naka that said birds should be able to fly through the canopy.
Marlyn
Seedling
I can't confirm the five inch nebari. The tree is being shipped here right now, so I have yet to see it in person. I'm just going by what the seller told me. 
thank you! I will do that.
thank you! I will do that.
october
Masterpiece
Nice little tree. For now, you can cut the leaves and small branches that are growing in the crevaces and notches between branches of the interior of the tree. Also, any small leaves and that are growing out from the trunk.
Next, prune the silhouette a little bit. Your final shape should be a tree similar to virt 2. I would only prune a little. Then if more is needed, you can do it after. It is better to leave more than to cut too much.
Virt one is which leaves to cut. I also added a close up. Virt 2 is with the silhouette of the tree pruned.
Rob
Next, prune the silhouette a little bit. Your final shape should be a tree similar to virt 2. I would only prune a little. Then if more is needed, you can do it after. It is better to leave more than to cut too much.
Virt one is which leaves to cut. I also added a close up. Virt 2 is with the silhouette of the tree pruned.
Rob
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Poink88
Imperial Masterpiece
Rob,
If you looked at the pic posted, you can see the main branches and it is nowhere close to the formal upright type that you did. It might confuse her more.
These grow so slowly so be careful about over pruning...once a branch is removed, it can't be re-attached. Study each branch and how they work w/ the entire tree before you clip. Note that some can be wired and re-positioned too.
Good luck!
If you looked at the pic posted, you can see the main branches and it is nowhere close to the formal upright type that you did. It might confuse her more.
These grow so slowly so be careful about over pruning...once a branch is removed, it can't be re-attached. Study each branch and how they work w/ the entire tree before you clip. Note that some can be wired and re-positioned too.
Good luck!
Marlyn
Seedling
Thank you guys! I will follow the leaf cutting guide you gave me, Rob.
Also Dario -
What style do you recommend I go with for this tree?
I should be getting the tree late this week. I'll post more pictures after I trim some of the leaves a bit.
Also Dario -
What style do you recommend I go with for this tree?
I should be getting the tree late this week. I'll post more pictures after I trim some of the leaves a bit.
Poink88
Imperial Masterpiece
Seems like a perfect candidate for "Oak style".
Marlyn
Seedling
"Oak Style" is where there is a large, branched out canopy. Right?
And do you have any pots that you could recommend? (Color, size, shape, etc)
And do you have any pots that you could recommend? (Color, size, shape, etc)
Poink88
Imperial Masterpiece
A few inspiration for you...
http://bonsaibark.com/2011/04/02/1000-bonsai-from-scratch-contest/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/72955843@N00/4432513347
http://www.flickr.com/photos/72955843@N00/4428337078
No idea about the pot...I personally like dark brown, or dark blue, or red. Oval or rectangle on mine.
http://bonsaibark.com/2011/04/02/1000-bonsai-from-scratch-contest/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/72955843@N00/4432513347
http://www.flickr.com/photos/72955843@N00/4428337078
No idea about the pot...I personally like dark brown, or dark blue, or red. Oval or rectangle on mine.
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Marlyn
Seedling
Wow.. that bonsai from scratch is amazing!! thank you so much! 
daygan
Chumono
Personally, I think that shape is a bit too coniferous for a broad-leafed tree like this. I personally would go with a more deciduous, broad-leafed tree shape.
buddhamonk
Chumono
http://bonsaibark.com/2011/04/02/1000-bonsai-from-scratch-contest/cover107-680/
take a look at this tree. This is how I style all of my kingsville and I have a lot of them.
Baically, remove all the interior foliage. These trees are very twiggy so once you remove all the inner leaves, you'll get an instant bonsai out of it...
take a look at this tree. This is how I style all of my kingsville and I have a lot of them.
Baically, remove all the interior foliage. These trees are very twiggy so once you remove all the inner leaves, you'll get an instant bonsai out of it...
rockm
Spuds Moyogi
Here's what I did with a similar Kingsville. It amounts to looking UP into the interior of the tree selecting branches and eliminatin inward and cross branching. This tree was basically a green inpenertrable gumdrop of branches and foliage when I got it. You couldn't see through to the interior. I cleared it out in an afternoon, thinning and thinning and thinning.
It has since filled in pretty well, but I have to be careful not to let it fill in too much.
It has since filled in pretty well, but I have to be careful not to let it fill in too much.
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lordy
Omono
I have had the best success with leaf-cutting about every 3rd or every other leaf. That way, light can begin to penetrate the dense canopy these trees are known for. It will also allow you to begin to see the "bones" of the tree and from there you can make more significant pruning decisions. As RockM said, looking UP may be the quickest way to determine it's structure, but unless you are after the pom-pom look, thinning the entire canopy evenly (with almost surgical precision) is the most sensible way to improve the entire tree's looks and health without making an irreparable mistake through cutting too much at one time. The links posted by Poink and Buddhamonk are examples of what I mean.
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