Do you wire every tree into it's pot/box?

[Attila Soos]

Bonsai people by definition cannot be lazy. They work hard countless hours, for no material benefit, and no apparent gain other than aesthetic satisfaction. That is NOT the definition of laziness, as far as I know ..

 

[Redwing]

Bonsai people by definition cannot be lazy. They work hard countless hours, for no material benefit, and no apparent gain other than aesthetic satisfaction. That is NOT the definition of laziness, as far as I know ..

You must not hang out with the folks in my local club!

---

Seriously, though, with that gang it's all about coming up with excuses for not doing what they know they should be, whether it's wiring with copper, or wiring at all, or wrapping with raffia before bending, or using soil that needs to be watered daily, or properly preparing a pot before a show....

Personally, I don't see the point of "working countless hours for no material benefit and no apparent gain other than aesthetic satisfaction" --which I agree is exactly what we do - if you're going to do it half-arsed.

-rw

 

[Klytus]

At a pinch you could rip out the cloth covered wire that connects your AlNiCo Single coil pickups in your vintage seafoam green Stratocaster and use that as a Bonsai root binding.

It would fall into the Space Age-Avant Garde.

Perhaps.

 

[roelex14]

i always wire, i have seen cases where unwired trees have blown around and shift in the pot which can damage root tips if they are close to the sides of the pot

 

[davetree]

If you don't secure the tree in the pot, how the hell can you work on it without it moving ?

 

[irene_b]

Guy wires....to hold the tree into position.
When they are placed in the grox (grow + box = grox) it is for them to develope not work on..

 

[sfhellwig]

At a pinch you could rip out the cloth covered wire that connects your AlNiCo Single coil pickups in your vintage seafoam green Stratocaster and use that as a Bonsai root binding.

It would fall into the Space Age-Avant Garde.

Perhaps.

I'm not a strat guy but that would have to be one special tree to warrant me ripping apart my guitar. Of course if it were one of those stories involving camping with a guitar and short notice collecting of a very nice tree I could see it happening. I love awesome stories to go with awesome plants.

 

[Klytus]

Maybe the future is tuned guy wires.

 

[Chris Johnston]

I know of about 500+ bonsai which are not "wired in" to their pots. Believe me... when they get repotted it's a plus. Nothing to hunt and peck for all tangled into your roots.

Please don't get me wrong and think I am somehow against the practice, as I clearly said, I do it myself... but like so many things in bonsai, there's no such thing as a hard and fast rule around techniques. If someone wants to wire in... that's fabulous... but to say that one always... must... etc... and attempt to put the fear of God into the newer learners... is short sighted. I'm more against holding on to the idea that there is only one way to approach some aspect of this art... because there is. For my part, I get to enjoy them all to whatever degree is appropriate for the tree and the moment.

All right, Vic, now you are channeling Daniel. This is getting a bit spooky

 

[Victrinia Ridgeway]

If you don't secure the tree in the pot, how the hell can you work on it without it moving ?

lol... work on very large trees?

It's not that the trees are unstable... it's just that wiring into the pot may not be how it's done. As I said... wiring around the pot can provide stablization as well.

 

[Victrinia Ridgeway]

All right, Vic, now you are channeling Daniel. This is getting a bit spooky

hehehe... that's ok... in a pm the other day I was channeling my inner-Obama... that was FUN. lol

One of the first things Daniel ever taught me was not to limit myself by preconveived ideas... sometimes that means even bucking him. Please don't think he doesn't heckle me for not following completely in his footsteps... I think giving me a bad time is one of his most favorite sports.

I commited a HUGE sin the other week and ordered copper wire for an Engleman Spruce of Eric's... oh that was fodder for DAYS....

You should see the looks he gives me when I have shohin or mame... I think it drives him a bit batty. But I learned that the only thing I could do was just to tell him to hush... and keep right on doing what I love.

V

 

[Bill S]

Victrinia, the rw post should prolly be ignored, seems to be another kk or such, so far his posts have been on the side of lets see what I can provoke. We know you to not be lazy. The results from his club must be spectacularly mediocre.

rockm, the poor results came from the tree constantly wiggling enough to keep tearing the tiny new feeders that are trying to grow and supply the tree to make it vigorous ( I think you know that, at least now anyway, but for the others who don't), not wiring in can be like constantly root pruning, most trees don't care for that.

Chris Johnston has a great article on tying in trees, a good read for anyone not sure on how to do it. Chris do you have a link to it, or is it tied up at BT? If needed I can send you a copy from my library.
Is that Todd Hanson in one of those pictures in the article?

 

[Victrinia Ridgeway]

Bill...

Thanks for the vote of confidence brother...

I believe RW is a very commited traditonal bonsai kind of guy. I don't blame him for taking my comment as a flip response when he didn't know me. There's room enough in the world for all of us. And he's from the PacNW... so I know what the clubs are like up here. It is an uphill trudge to get people engaged enough to want to up their game. There are a lot of voyeurs in the art and not enough passion. Which is sad, considering we can grow nearly anything.

Hope fall is being nice to you up in Mass....


Kindest regards as ever,

Victrinia

 

[Bill S]

LOL, a bit laid back are we?

Fall was quick here, went from pretty darned nice weather to cold and raw, the foliage was pretty, but the way the weather hit, most blew away pretty quickly, color season for the leaf peepers was short this year. Here is the little enjoying the back yard.

 

[Victrinia Ridgeway]

LOL, a bit laid back are we?

Fall was quick here, went from pretty darned nice weather to cold and raw, the foliage was pretty, but the way the weather hit, most blew away pretty quickly, color season for the leaf peepers was short this year. Here is the little enjoying the back yard.

Not everyone... but enough.

Your daughter is so darned cute. Saddly our leaves never get a chance to be dry long enough to play with them. They get pummeled out of the trees by the heavy winds and rain... and just get wet and icky.

Love the East coast falls... they are AMAZING.

V