Trident wire marks

WNC Bonsai

Omono
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I got this trident from Jason Schley today. I like the general shape and lean of the tree but there is a problem. They left the wire on the tree a bit too long and as you can see there are some deep wire marks as a result. So my question is will these grow over in time or do I need to cut all these branches all back and regrow them? This is my first experience with tridents so I want to get started in the right direction. I can’t believe they left the wire on these and let these marks get so deep!
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WNC Bonsai

Omono
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I just heard back from Jason and he says it was only wired this past spring and will heal over in 6 months. My only other choice is to pay to ship it back for a refund. so this question is will it really grow over that fast?
 

Dav4

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I just heard back from Jason and he says it was only wired this past spring and will heal over in 6 months. My only other choice is to pay to ship it back for a refund. so this question is will it really grow over that fast?
I think it'll take longer then 6 months, but those marks will eventually disappear if you let it run for a year or two.
 

Silentrunning

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I just heard back from Jason and he says it was only wired this past spring and will heal over in 6 months. My only other choice is to pay to ship it back for a refund. so this question is will it really grow over that fast?

This means it was either wired improperly or not monitored closely after being wired. Either way I find it inconceivable that someone would sell a tree in this condition without the customer being made aware of this in advance. Thanks for posting.
 

markyscott

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If it were mine, I would have zero concern about the wire marks. In my view the bigger problem is that there’s no movement or taper in the trunk until the top of the tree where it was chopped. What is your plan for dealing with that?
 

leatherback

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Always nice to see your own gut feeling reflected in the responses given.

My thoughts were:
- You will not loose those wire marks any time soon. I do not believe you will loose them, pretty much ever unless you cut them off OR do a LOT more growing out.
- The tree is too tall, reduce

I like the idea of air layering the top off. Gives you 2 trees instead of one. In that case, you might want to hold off on trimming back the branches. Use whatever branches there are now, to provide the needed umpf for layering in spring.
 

Brian Van Fleet

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I’d go lower than that!
That’s a safe spot because it has growth on both sides. I’ve done too many trunk chops on tridents that died back to the ground on one side because no growth was present to stop the dieback. I agree I’d like to go lower, but maybe it’s just going to be a large tree. I’d rather suggest that than something that will result in someone damaging their tree.
 

JudyB

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I would at least expect the vendor to send me a partial refund, or a coupon for a discount on another tree. That is just good business... this is why you want to make sure you get plenty of photos of all aspects of the material. If they don’t have enough angles posted, make sure you ask for more. The vendor should also be willing to answer any questions you may have, including any defects or injuries the tree may have. Again that’s just good business.
 

Adair M

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I agree with everybody's comments about chopping back to get rid of the wire marks. BUT, if I got a tree like that with those kind of wire marks without being told about it up front I'd be pissed!!!
Well, I don’t think the wire scars are a bug deal. As Dav4 stated, let a leader go, they’ll go away.

My point is more educational. That trunk is taperless. A deciduous telephone pole. I have seen trunks like that after they’ve been worked for a decade, and have branches, and ramification, and they’re still ugly due to no taper. Warren Hill had a dozen of them.

He made a V cut at the top of a 3 foot Trident pole, and got branches to pop all along the trunk. After a decade, the V part was somewhat interesting, but the trunk was a pole with branches.

The only thing worth doing was to airlayer the V part off to make a clump, and chop the pole down low to make a sumo Trident.
 

Silentrunning

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Well, I don’t think the wire scars are a bug deal. As Dav4 stated, let a leader go, they’ll go away.

My point is more educational. That trunk is taperless. A deciduous telephone pole. I have seen trunks like that after they’ve been worked for a decade, and have branches, and ramification, and they’re still ugly due to no taper. Warren Hill had a dozen of them.

He made a V cut at the top of a 3 foot Trident pole, and got branches to pop all along the trunk. After a decade, the V part was somewhat interesting, but the trunk was a pole with branches.

The only thing worth doing was to airlayer the V part off to make a clump, and chop the pole down low to make a sumo Trident.


I agree with your analysis and recommendations for this tree but after looking at the sellers site, I am sure the op paid a pretty hefty price for this tree. A person shouldn’t have to pay that kind of money for a tree that is represented as a quality pre bonsai. There have been years added to the development of this tree due to carelessness.
 

Adair M

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I agree with your analysis and recommendations for this tree but after looking at the sellers site, I am sure the op paid a pretty hefty price for this tree. A person shouldn’t have to pay that kind of money for a tree that is represented as a quality pre bonsai. There have been years added to the development of this tree due to carelessness.
I don’t disagree with you. I would never have bought this tree. But I have 45 years experience. And the qualities I look for are probably more demanding than someone new to the hobby.
 
D

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@Adair M for my own personal knowledge, is there no way to save a deciduous telephone pole?

I am looking at the attached photo (taken from: https://valavanisbonsaiblog.com/2018/09/13/2018-6thus-national-bonsai-exhibition-review/), for example. To my inexperienced eyes the trunk of this tree appears to have very little taper, if any at all. However, i don't know if it is the 'mushroom' shape of the silhouette that is compensating for the trunk, the flare at the base, or something else(?), but this tree is very pleasing to me as far as trees in its style go.

I'm asking because I often see (at the other extreme) tridents with trunks shaped like triangles (for example: http://walter-pall-bonsai.blogspot.com/2010/02/new-pot-for-big-trident-maple.html), which are the reason why I gave my young trident away for free - this dichotomy was creating a mental block through which I simply was not able to see an interesting future for my trident. I probably just haven't seen enough tridents in my life.

Would love to hear your thoughts :)
 

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