Bonsai stock

[Lewiscarnes]

I have a bunch of books and movies on developing bonsai but I want something on growing stock. Brent has some good stuff on growing pines as does this great forum. Does anybody know of a book on growing bonsai stock? International bonsai and bonsai focus have some articles from time to time but I am looking for a book that shows step by step what to do on a variety of species. I have screwed up a bunch of trees, hopefully I am not screwing up anymore but I am not positive. Some of the books/magazines/movies got from year 1 to year 20. I understand that everybody does this different and no 2 trees from the same but the basic idea would be awesome.

 

[Stan Kengai]

In my experience, there is not much out there in the way of growing stock. Peter Adams' book Bonsai with Japanese Maples has a couple of sections on growing stock, but most of the book is on refinement techniques, as are most books entirely. I have come across videos occasionally, but none that I can specifically recall. Joans at bonsaitonight.com has a good amount of articles discussing stock development.

 

[leatherback]

Not sure whether they are any good; I'll leave that to others to comment. However, I tried to put the info I could find down here:

http://www.growingbonsai.net/growing-bonsai/growing-roots/
http://www.growingbonsai.net/growing-bonsai/growing-trunks/

Cheers,

J.

 

[Lewiscarnes]

In my experience, there is not much out there in the way of growing stock. Peter Adams' book Bonsai with Japanese Maples has a couple of sections on growing stock, but most of the book is on refinement techniques, as are most books entirely. I have come across videos occasionally, but none that I can specifically recall. Joans at bonsaitonight.com has a good amount of articles discussing stock development.

Thank you.

 

[Eric Group]

I have a bunch of books and movies on developing bonsai but I want something on growing stock. Brent has some good stuff on growing pines as does this great forum. Does anybody know of a book on growing bonsai stock? International bonsai and bonsai focus have some articles from time to time but I am looking for a book that shows step by step what to do on a variety of species. I have screwed up a bunch of trees, hopefully I am not screwing up anymore but I am not positive. Some of the books/magazines/movies got from year 1 to year 20. I understand that everybody does this different and no 2 trees from the same but the basic idea would be awesome.

In my experience, trial and error is key. There is simply not one way to do it "right" and it varies so much depending on what you are growing out, what size and shape you want it to be and what resources/ space you have available to grow it out... use this thread to post some details about what you are doing and what you need to know Lewis, we can try to chime in and help you!

 

[bonsaidave]

This site had a good progression for the first couple years of some tridents from seed. One of the articles has an interesting idea to put some wiggle in them on a semi large scale.

https://bonsaial.wordpress.com/category/tridents-from-seed/

Good luck.

 

[sorce]

I think there is enough readable information out there....just not A book.

Here's a blend of what I use.

The "rules".
Standard Tag Info.
Backyard Observation Of particular tree.
The "rules", with design in mind.
Observation.
THC
Observing the "rules".
Keep health between 60-100%

Oh and PPB.
Keeping potential problems at bay.

Really....
If you are keeping potential problems at bay, you are growing a tree correctly.

Know the potential problems...
And you have your book.

Sorce

 

[Brian Van Fleet]

You aren't going to find it in a book, really. You're going to find it in your back yard. Quick and easy basics:
1. Get the roots right first. Even, radial, tight, and on one shallow plane.
2. Fatten up the trunk.
3. Trunk-chop lower than you think you should. Keep cuts at the back; each trunk section is progressively smaller.
4. Branches come last, once you get your trunk.
5. Soil and fert doesn't matter a lot if it's growing strong.
6. Read articles by guys who are a few years ahead of you. Most of us will share what we should have done...do that!

 

[tstrum]

You aren't going to find it in a book, really. You're going to find it in your back yard. Quick and easy basics:
1. Get the roots right first. Even, radial, tight, and on one shallow plane.
2. Fatten up the trunk.
3. Trunk-chop lower than you think you should. Keep cuts at the back; each trunk section is progressively smaller.
4. Branches come last, once you get your trunk.
5. Soil and fert doesn't matter a lot if it's growing strong.
6. Read articles by guys who are a few years ahead of you. Most of us will share what we should have done...do that!

Brian, I recently bought a Washington hawthorn and had another post on bnut asking about the front and some design advice. But I later noticed some issues with the roots. In a quick search for root topics this was the first so I thought I'd ask your thoughts on how to do your #1- getting the roots right. If there another place I should be looking I can go there instead of piggybacking on this thread. When I repot this year I want to address the roots. I think I'll need to cut several of these off but not sure what the care procedures are for chopping large roots. Do I need cut paste or anything? What should I do after making the larger root cuts?

 

[herzausstahl]

You aren't going to find it in a book, really. You're going to find it in your back yard. Quick and easy basics:
1. Get the roots right first. Even, radial, tight, and on one shallow plane.
2. Fatten up the trunk.
3. Trunk-chop lower than you think you should. Keep cuts at the back; each trunk section is progressively smaller.
4. Branches come last, once you get your trunk.
5. Soil and fert doesn't matter a lot if it's growing strong.
6. Read articles by guys who are a few years ahead of you. Most of us will share what we should have done...do that!

You are absolutely right that books won't show it! They focus on finished bonsai or "instant" bonsai from stock often portrayed as it's ok to do this all at once & your tree will be fine! Highly irresponsible & probably leads to a lot of people quitting after their instant tree dies out of frustration.

I'm guessing #4 is why we look for trees that back bud naturally? So it's easier to grow new branches that will be in proportion to the trunk? Or do you prefer to graft on new branches vs growing new ones?

For #3, by cutting at the back, you mean start the cut at the back of the tree, cutting at a downward angle toward the front correct? Is it usually a 45 degree angle good or closer to say 60?

Thanks for posting this! It's a great 5 step guideline that's very practical & you'll never see in a book.

 

[Eric Group]

You are absolutely right that books won't show it! They focus on finished bonsai or "instant" bonsai from stock often portrayed as it's ok to do this all at once & your tree will be fine! Highly irresponsible & probably leads to a lot of people quitting after their instant tree dies out of frustration.

I'm guessing #4 is why we look for trees that back bud naturally? So it's easier to grow new branches that will be in proportion to the trunk? Or do you prefer to graft on new branches vs growing new ones?

For #3, by cutting at the back, you mean start the cut at the back of the tree, cutting at a downward angle toward the front correct? Is it usually a 45 degree angle good or closer to say 60?

Thanks for posting this! It's a great 5 step guideline that's very practical & you'll never see in a book.

#3- cuts at the back means make cuts where the scars will be on the back side of the tree when possible so the front trunk line will be cleaner... you don't want big ugly scars on the front of your tree.

 

[thumblessprimate1]

Brian, I recently bought a Washington hawthorn and had another post on bnut asking about the front and some design advice. But I later noticed some issues with the roots. In a quick search for root topics this was the first so I thought I'd ask your thoughts on how to do your #1- getting the roots right. If there another place I should be looking I can go there instead of piggybacking on this thread. When I repot this year I want to address the roots. I think I'll need to cut several of these off but not sure what the care procedures are for chopping large roots. Do I need cut paste or anything? What should I do after making the larger root cuts?

You'll find a lot of info spread out on deciduous tree root work, but a thread that comes to mind that is a good tool is the Ebihara thread by @markyscott . Search for it.