Unknown Pine, need help

OJavali

Sapling
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Can't edit... Since this tree has a trunk that has all it's branches coming from the top, would it be safe/advisable to simply remove all branches except those two central, taller ones considering winter is coming? The trunk has a sort of Broom-style ending.
 

aml1014

Masterpiece
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View media item 2950
Okay, let's imagine that I want to prune this branch. The places I marked with black circles should be the ones I stay away from because they will grow more branches, right? If I wanted to cut it's length where could I do it? By the last post, you mean I should not remove needles in any part of the branch? Thanks for the help, and sorry for all these questions, but I don't have a bonsai club or master available to me -_-
In your picture the areas you circled along the branches length have buds, you can cut back to any of them and the branch will live. During the first styling you want to leave as many needles as possible because they help keep the branch strong.
Can't edit... Since this tree has a trunk that has all it's branches coming from the top, would it be safe/advisable to simply remove all branches except those two central, taller ones considering winter is coming? The trunk has a sort of Broom-style ending.
Generally you want to have branches fork from 1 to 2, same for the trunk. If you leave 2 or 3 branches in one area on the trunk it will cause reverse taper.

Aaron
 

OJavali

Sapling
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In your picture the areas you circled along the branches length have buds, you can cut back to any of them and the branch will live. During the first styling you want to leave as many needles as possible because they help keep the branch strong.

Generally you want to have branches fork from 1 to 2, same for the trunk. If you leave 2 or 3 branches in one area on the trunk it will cause reverse taper.

Aaron

If you don't mind, I'm going to go artistic...
In the image I drew (badly) I tried to represent the trunk, in the central bottom part. It has a few small branches coming off. Some places have 2 coming out of the same point, as show underneath the square, and others are just 1 lonely branch. On the top part (the square), there are several branches growing vertically, or nearly vertical, being the 2 I painted in full the longest and strongest branches. In order to avoid reverse tapering I should eliminate extra branches growing at the same spot (2 coming from the same knot, I cut one) and leave only 2 branches from the top? I'm only referring to the trunk itself, which is around 5 cm long. From what I understand of your explanation, many branches in 1 place cause enlarging of the trunk and for the first styling I can be aggressive on the amount of branches I remove BUT I must leave the branches' foliage intact, is that correct?

EDIT:
Before and after should look like the pics (more branches/lines --> less branches/lines)
 

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Dravantree

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I'm new here but I see these guys all the time - looks like I might try one
 

M. Frary

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Can't edit... Since this tree has a trunk that has all it's branches coming from the top, would it be safe/advisable to simply remove all branches except those two central, taller ones considering winter is coming? The trunk has a sort of Broom-style ending.
I would wait until spring before I did anything. In the meantime find out exactly what it is. Read up on the species. And read all you can for bonsai culture for it.
In other words look at it. Make sure you can keep it healthy. Get acquainted with each other.
I know it's hard in the beginning to not do something. Anything. But they say the first lesson in bonsai is patience.
 

OJavali

Sapling
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I would wait until spring before I did anything. In the meantime find out exactly what it is. Read up on the species. And read all you can for bonsai culture for it.
In other words look at it. Make sure you can keep it healthy. Get acquainted with each other.
I know it's hard in the beginning to not do something. Anything. But they say the first lesson in bonsai is patience.

Eheh, I've been looking at it patiently since the summer, and to be honest, it's not really the "I WANT TO DO SOMETHING TO IT", but more the "Is it better to do it this time of year?" and "What do I actually do, and how do I begin?". Because honestly, with my knowledge or lack of, combined with not really having a vision for the tree is what's consuming me. Right now I just want to know if I could get a shear and remove everything but the trunk, which is so short, and ONE of those two leaders, and how that would affect the tree. Honestly I've been searching a lot, but I see no examples of a tree like this, which is freaking weird for a conifer. Also, I find the trunk ending to remind me of Broom-style, but I don't wish to pursuit it, since my other bonsai is styled this way. What I'd really like to do though, would be making this tree into a Bunjingi or Literati but I don't know how to get there from what I have. And I don't think I will learn until I try and risk making mistakes, like cutting all branches except the leader, and leaving that with it's secondary branches and foliage.
 
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