Ebihara maples

[markyscott]

A problem with the tree is this straight, taperless section near the apex.


Actually, this is not a problem. All one has to do is graft a seedling to the apex, cut the offending piece of trunk off and graft the apex lower. Yep - just chop it on off.


Looks like he cut it at an angle. Just one side of the apical graft was aligned.


A few months later the graft has taken



No problem

 

[markyscott]

Here's the progression:


Amazing

 

[Adair M]

The one I thought was the most amazing is where there was a good bottom of the tree, and a good apex, but there was a bad straight section. So he cut off the apex, cut off the bad section, and put the apex back onto the bottom section. And it took!

 

[0soyoung]

Yep. Just a 'trivial' problem of establishing an approach graft with a seedling. The rest is easy, of course.

 

[quietobserver]

A problem with the tree is this straight, taperless section near the apex.
View attachment 129968

Actually, this is not a problem. All one has to do is graft a seedling to the apex, cut the offending piece of trunk off and graft the apex lower. Yep - just chop it on off.
View attachment 129969

Looks like he cut it at an angle. Just one side of the apical graft was aligned.
View attachment 129970

A few months later the graft has taken
View attachment 129971
View attachment 129972

No problem

Looks like one of Adair's wire jobs

 

[Adair M]

Looks like one of Adair's wire jobs

Actually, that wiring is what I call "double helix". It's where you deliberately not place your wires side by side, but evenly put the second wire midway between the spirals formed by the first wire.

I rarely use it. It's used primarily with deciduous material. The advantage is it provides more points of support when making curves in branches. The downside is the branch looks "over wired". But with deciduous material, the wire isn't usually on very long. A couple of months at most. So the appearance of the wire isn't as much of an issue as it is with conifers where the wire can stay on for years.

 

[dirk hoorelbeke]

This must be the reason to be on a forum. No nonsense thread with tons of information. Most of the tricks i've heard of before but like this it all looks so easy that i would give it a go. Thank you for this great learning experience!

 

[Adair M]

This must be the reason to be on a forum. No nonsense thread with tons of information. Most of the tricks i've heard of before but like this it all looks so easy that i would give it a go. Thank you for this great learning experience!

Wait, no nonsense?

 

[quietobserver]

Actually, that wiring is what I call "double helix".

Looks like the bonsai equivalent of an MMA submission hold

 

[dirk hoorelbeke]

Wait, no nonsense?

Everything is relative... (even relativity)

 

[MACH5]

Scott is all this compiled in one book? Or are these from different Japanese magazine articles?

One more amazing thing I've studied that Ebihara has done. Perhaps the most amazing.

Ebihara-San had a technique (I believe that Mach5 pointed us to another author that had done this as well). This technique required multiple grafts. First, he grafted a seedling to a fully formed branch. Then he seperated the branch from the tree - while it was seperated, it was supported by the seedlings roots. He then grafted the branch onto another part of the tree - once that graft had taken, he removed the seedling he had originally grafted. Voila! Frankentree!

Here's an example:
View attachment 129961

A fully formed branch with a seedling graft, keeping it alive.
View attachment 129962

All the branches ready to go

I will definitely be trying this!! I've known about it for quite some time, but have not tried yet as I have not had a good candidate.

 

[markyscott]

Scott is all this compiled in one book? Or are these from different Japanese magazine articles?




I will definitely be trying this!! I've known about it for quite some time, but have not tried yet as I have not had a good candidate.

These are all from Kinbon 5, May, 2001. Hard to find.

 

[Dav4]

These are all from Kinbon 5, May, 2001. Hard to find.

Yeah, that article is apparently pure gold. I've known about these techniques for a while but actually seeing the pictures is fantastic!

 

[Mellow Mullet]

First lesson. Do not use plywood - it won't last for two years.

View attachment 68536 View attachment 68537

Scott

Scott, have you ever tried using a plastic cutting board, the white ones. I got several at Ikea real cheap and cut the handle off the top. They really hold up, are thinner than wood but just as strong, and easy to drill. Anyway, just thought that I would throw it in.

John

 

[markyscott]

Scott, have you ever tried using a plastic cutting board, the white ones. I got several at Ikea real cheap and cut the handle off the top. They really hold up, are thinner than wood but just as strong, and easy to drill. Anyway, just thought that I would throw it in.

John

Hi John. I've not thought of a plastic cutting board before. No doubt they'd hold up better than a board in the soil. Can you nail into the plastic? That part seems like it might be harder.

 

[Adair M]

Hi John. I've not thought of a plastic cutting board before. No doubt they'd hold up better than a board in the soil. Can you nail into the plastic? That part seems like it might be harder.

I have a plastic cutting board that's kinda soft. The knife can sometimes make little cuts in it. (Which can make it hard to sterilize!)

I think nails might not hold too well. It's kinda slick. But coarse Sheetrock screws would work.

 

[Rusty Davis]

Predrill and run the screw right up into it. Have to experiment on a way to do the root spread

 

[Adair M]

Predrill and run the screw right up into it

The issue isn't screwing the tree to the board, it's the arranging the roots, and using nails in the board to position the roots.

 

[thumblessprimate1]

I've used plastic cutting boards. Some materials are brittle. Need to get the kind that can handle drilling. Probably could use nails on them, but screws work well. I think they're hard to use nails on, but maybe I haven't experimented enough. Problem is that using screws can be a big hassle in tight spaces where nails could easily be hammered when using wood board. This year I only used wood boards; scrap wood if find people throwing away. Inexpensive and easy to use.

 

[Mellow Mullet]

Hi John. I've not thought of a plastic cutting board before. No doubt they'd hold up better than a board in the soil. Can you nail into the plastic? That part seems like it might be harder.

I don't know how easy it would be to nail, I use screws, which works pretty well. I will be potting some the next few days and I see if it will take nails.