Bucida Spinosa repotting and new pedestal

[Baku1875]

Hello fellow Nutters,

I have this Bucida Spinosa that has been in development for a while, has a bit of a taper issue on that bottom right branch (the 2nd branch above it is thicker), but I have been working around that by letting the lower right keep most of its foliage and chopping back that 2nd story right branch.

 

[Baku1875]

Side view

Rear view

 

[Baku1875]

aaaaand this is the repot!

 

[Baku1875]

repotted with roughly 30/30/30/10 akadama, pumice, safe t sorb sifted to the coarsest i could get, and 10% peat moss to give it a little buffer. mixed the soil really well, potted it on Saturday afternoon.

I'm considering chopping off everything above the Y and making the left middle branch the new top by wiring it higher next year.

 

[MMJNICE]

repotted with roughly 30/30/30/10 akadama, pumice, safe t sorb sifted to the coarsest i could get, and 10% peat moss to give it a little buffer. mixed the soil really well, potted it on Saturday afternoon.

I'm considering chopping off everything above the Y and making the left middle branch the new top by wiring it higher next year.

I think it would switch styles your tree into semi-cascading tree. I've never seen an black olive cascade.. it's almost setup perfectly for the style . You could bring around one of the branches from the y shaped area into a top branch and wire down the first branch.. I'm almost getting excited like it's my tree.. I'm somewhat new to bonsai like two years in on the serious side but I've owned and killed trees for over 6 years. It's kinda cool when I can see a tree design before it's worked on.. but of course there is always alternative ways to style your tree.. anyway have a good afternoon or whenever you reread your post again.

 

[Gabler]

repotted with roughly 30/30/30/10 akadama, pumice, safe t sorb sifted to the coarsest i could get, and 10% peat moss to give it a little buffer. mixed the soil really well, potted it on Saturday afternoon.

I'm considering chopping off everything above the Y and making the left middle branch the new top by wiring it higher next year.

I think it would switch styles your tree into semi-cascading tree. I've never seen an black olive cascade.. it's almost setup perfectly for the style . You could bring around one of the branches from the y shaped area into a top branch and wire down the first branch.. I'm almost getting excited like it's my tree.. I'm somewhat new to bonsai like two years in on the serious side but I've owned and killed trees for over 6 years. It's kinda cool when I can see a tree design before it's worked on.. but of course there is always alternative ways to style your tree.. anyway have a good afternoon or whenever you reread your post again.

I was just about to say the same thing. One glance, and I knew I’d chop off the top if it were my tree. I really don’t even like cascades that much, but this tree is sceaming semi-cascade. The gaps between upper branches are just too big, and the upper trunk is too straight for such a nicely-curved lower trunk. You’ve got a lot of dense foliage and curved branches down low to match the curved trunk base.

 

[Baku1875]

I think it would switch styles your tree into semi-cascading tree. I've never seen an black olive cascade.. it's almost setup perfectly for the style . You could bring around one of the branches from the y shaped area into a top branch and wire down the first branch.. I'm almost getting excited like it's my tree.. I'm somewhat new to bonsai like two years in on the serious side but I've owned and killed trees for over 6 years. It's kinda cool when I can see a tree design before it's worked on.. but of course there is always alternative ways to style your tree.. anyway have a good afternoon or whenever you reread your post again.

I was just about to say the same thing. One glance, and I knew I’d chop off the top if it were my tree. I really don’t even like cascades that much, but this tree is sceaming semi-cascade. The gaps between upper branches are just too big, and the upper trunk is too straight for such a nicely-curved lower trunk. You’ve got a lot of dense foliage and curved branches down low to match the curved trunk base.

I agree, it is way too straight, and I really dig how the base and nebari have developed over time, as well as the foliage density, so it's choppin time this summer.

In February, I decided to slap two air layers using plastic cup, cocopeat and perlite. If it doesn't root, no harm done, those pieces are coming off anyway.

 

[Baku1875]

This is roughly what I'm gonna start with....

I agree, the trunk is too straight. I might end up chopping lower than that, or perhaps making the new apex based on back budding lower on the straight portion.

The straight section after the first two lower big branches is about 8 inches long. This bucida has been pretty good about back budding, so after I chop the top this month, I'll assess from there if I can chop lower and use back budding to reduce the length of that straight section.

 

[Baku1875]

The flowers went hard this spring. A few weeks ago it was almost 100% saturated.

From the side there is a little bit of movement. Perhaps there is an opportunity to re-select a front after I chop the top and 3rd branch off (it has nasty reverse taper on the 3rd branch and an ugly wound. This year, the reverse taper from the lower right to the 2nd branch on the left has been corrected by pruning the 2nd branch and letting the first one grow unrestricted)
Let me know what you guys think, I appreciate the input, and I'm feelin the urge to semi cascade. Let's see if I get some back budding after the chops, and I'll try to work some asymmetry in with a new thin apex.

 

[Baku1875]

alright one more brainstorm
I copy pasted some tufts to simulate where I would ideally want some backbudding after consecutive chops, only keeping the ONE large lowest branch and having something brand new on the right and top left.
I'm starting to feel this one. First chops come within the next two weeks, thanks guys!

As a side note, it has been loving the soil mix but if I changed anything, I would have used less akadama, no safeTsorb, and more pumice. I had just finished brushing off some algae and raking the soil surface a bit, luckily bucidas LOVE wet soil, but I think it would be even more vigorous in a higher % pumice.

If this year's edits go well, I will look into repotting into a taller cascade style pot, and introducing some complexity into that large lower branch.

I was just about to say the same thing. One glance, and I knew I’d chop off the top if it were my tree. I really don’t even like cascades that much, but this tree is sceaming semi-cascade. The gaps between upper branches are just too big, and the upper trunk is too straight for such a nicely-curved lower trunk. You’ve got a lot of dense foliage and curved branches down low to match the curved trunk base.

 

[Baku1875]

First chop complete. Next chop coming soon! (right air layer) then assessment of budding, etc.
That branch on the left is just too thick relative to the trunk, it ruins the proportion. I'm happy that I have supercharged this trunk with all that foliage, though.

Basically a lot of sacrifice branches inadvertently went into the design lol.

 

[Baku1875]

More chops, took the air layer off, it had a few roots but nothing much, I wasn't expecting success but the branch had to go.

Got some structural wiring on the main lower branch, separated into pads. Going to let the pads grow out and widen now that they have more room, and pluck any downward growing leaves as we head into summer, and see how far that branch elongates to set it up for a semi cascade design down the road, and a cascade pot next year.

Before

After