American boxwood.

c54fun

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Put the little boxwood into a bigger training pot for now. Also started splitting off the curly branches. Where there are 3 tips I started cutting the center. Will keep doing that for a while. Will post more pictures when I strip back the leaves again. Learned from last year you can strip the leaves and not wire until you strip them again unless you really like to wire.
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c54fun

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I'm starting to split the branches now. Lots and lots of ramification on the way now. Going to look goofy for a while because I'm going to wait to wire. Will keep and eye on how flexible the branches are and wire when I feel its ready. For now I'm going to split into two, let grow, split into 4 and so on. At the same time the branches will go up and out.
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TommyHallahan

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What's the reason for chasing back the foliage? Excuse me if it is answered in the video included in this thread I haven't got a chance to watch it all yet
 

c54fun

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What's the reason for chasing back the foliage? Excuse me if it is answered in the video included in this thread I haven't got a chance to watch it all yet
Wanting the growth at the top only. Keeping the growth off lower until the branches are woody and less likely to bud again.
This is the first time I've tried this. Watched the video and thought it was a good way to develop this one. Works great so far. Lots and lots of wiring. Especially after the branches start splitting.
 

Hyn Patty

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Looking good! I love the direction you are going with this one. Makes me want to go pick out a boxwood to play with. My MiL has some stunning old, gnarly ones in front of the house she's selling but she won't let me cut them back and dig them up, nor the old azaleas, alas. Haha.
 

c54fun

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Looking good! I love the direction you are going with this one. Makes me want to go pick out a boxwood to play with. My MiL has some stunning old, gnarly ones in front of the house she's selling but she won't let me cut them back and dig them up, nor the old azaleas, alas. Haha.
Seems like there are several ways of working these. This is my first attempt at doing this. Once the ramification gets going and I have to wire again I may not be liking it so much. The guy in the video did say there is lots of wiring using this method.
 

Hyn Patty

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I find wiring to be relaxing. I like doing it. I'm not sure how much I'll like doing it with itty bitty tips on my junipers to flatten out the pads with very thin copper wire, but I'll be giving that a try soon. Learn as I go. I think you'll do fine. You have a nice start so far. I have a bunch of ficus cuttings I bound all together that look a bit like your boxwood right now with very wavy, curly limbs. In time I hope to fuse more rooted cuttings and build out the truck with my ficus.
 

Josiana

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I just purchased a Japanese boxwood today. I'm really excited about it! How do you go about getting the trunk like that though? There's a bit of confusing information that states the boxwood does not thicken how other bonsai trees do, and it can take decades. Is that true?
 

c54fun

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I just purchased a Japanese boxwood today. I'm really excited about it! How do you go about getting the trunk like that though? There's a bit of confusing information that states the boxwood does not thicken how other bonsai trees do, and it can take decades. Is that true?
The best way to thicken most trees is to plant it in the ground and let it grow. Different trees grow at different rates. Not sure about the boxwoods growth rate/
 

c54fun

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Getting closer to being able to remove the wire and then I plan on re wiring the branches up to the splitting of the branch. I'll let those grow out for a while then wire them. The split branches will start going up and out. When I re wire the canopy will drop closer to the trunk by a couple of inches. At least that's what I think I'm going to do.
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c54fun

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Removed all the wire then re wired and shaped. Going to try and leave it alone for a while and let it grow. Been trimming on it a lot. I'm sure it could use a break from me.
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This is what it looked like after removing the wire.
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c54fun

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I've stopped pulling off the lower leaves on the branches to get some health back into the tree. Just letting it grow. I stripped the leaves a lot and thought it would be good to let it grow a while. Next will be stripping more of the lower leaves and wire where the ramification is happening. More of the same thing I've been doing.
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