Hollywood Juniper Progression

[berobinson82]

In the spirit of posting more pictures, I've decided to stop being so shy about what I'm working on. My concern is that I still kill a lot of trees. It's discouraging posting about a tree only to lose it 6 months later.

I got an expiring groupon for a local nursery from my mother. Free trees? Sure. I picked this up for about $35 or so and had $5 left over for some perlite.

This is the earliest picture I have of it.



Because it was long and thin I decided to try and put some big bends into the trunk. So raffia and heavy wire got me to this point:







I left a lot of extra foliage. Something I read about the health of the plant. So it was in this stage for quite some time. over the last year I've removed foliage slowly. The tree has been gaining vigor and has shown much growth.

 

[berobinson82]

Here is the juniper after growing well all season.



After some thinning;



And after a bit of wire:

 

[berobinson82]

A few more angles. The crown needs to fill in a bit more; especially on the right side. Hopefully it stays alive long enough for me to see that develop.








Thanks for your time and attention.

 

[JudyB]

Good to see it! Now you have even more reason to keep it healthy... It's a nice progression documentation as well. We need more or these.

 

[october]

Good vision in seeing the bonsai in this tree. I like pic 2 in post #3 as the front the best. I do not know what the base of the trunk looks like with this view. However, I like how the foliage and branch are closer to the trunk. It seems to pull the whole design together.

Rob

 

[berobinson82]

Good to see it! Now you have even more reason to keep it healthy... It's a nice progression documentation as well. We need more or these.

Well thank you kindly!

I'm keeping this guy under some shade for a bit and will keep it sheltered from the worst winds this winter. I'll try and keep up with any progress.

 

[berobinson82]

Good vision in seeing the bonsai in this tree. I like pic 2 in post #3 as the front the best. I do not know what the base of the trunk looks like with this view. However, I like how the foliage and branch are closer to the trunk. It seems to pull the whole design together.

Rob

Thank you for your kind words. I do believe that pic2 is a good option for a front. I was trying hardy to make it attractive from all sides but...that's tough!

Hopefully I can get a good 360 of the tree when the roots are further exposed. I feel like that eight second clip is such a superior method to present a tree.

 

[berobinson82]

Still not happy with the trunkline. I think it will require some rebar and more raffia. Maybe in winter.

 

[tmmason10]

The trunk line needs some interest, but the foliage is lookin great! I would add shari down the whole trunk and get some more movement in it.

 

[augustine]

Looking good. I strongly agree you need to make a big bend at the top. The sharper the better. You'll have a nice Bunjin.

Good luck.

 

[berobinson82]

Welp, as it's been growing well, I thought it was time to put it into the slow process of bending this juni further. Top needs to be much sharper and the trunk needs some more movement. Slowly, slowly.

Cheers.

 

[JudyB]

Good job so far, the foliage pads look very nice, and it's good that you're taking your time...
snap! NOT.

 

[berobinson82]

Good job so far, the foliage pads look very nice, and it's good that you're taking your time...
snap! NOT.

Thanks lady! This guy already had a snap the first time I bent it. I'd like to avoid that heart spasm and worry in the future.

 

[berobinson82]

Since the last post this juniper has been bent slowly every week. I've been off a few days working on this. Amalgamated tape is my new preference. Little wire and a few snips. I'm still not stoked on the foliage... it's a torulosa. It will take some time to get the foliage proper (nor did I rearrange for every angle) but at least the bends have progressed. Here's a few possible fronts.









Thank for the look, even if it's one without response. I hope you learned as much as I did in 2013; if not about bonsai, about something. Here's wishing you all plentiful backbudding and quickly setting branches. And thanks for being a pleasant (and sometimes not so pleasant) distraction when it was much needed.

Cheers,

B

 

[daygan]

Nice work, B! Looks like you'll have something good pretty soon!

 

[Vance Wood]

Here is the juniper after growing well all season.

View attachment 40975

After some thinning;

View attachment 40978

And after a bit of wire:

View attachment 40979

Seeing what you started with and the direction your first efforts were going I was surprised at how well it turned out.

 

[Dav4]

Well done! You took mediocre material and took it to a new level....and you used rebar. Happy new year to you.

 

[berobinson82]

Seeing what you started with and the direction your first efforts were going I was surprised at how well it turned out.

Thanks, Vance! After receiving feedback in this thread, the tree starting moving in a better direction.

Well done! You took mediocre material and took it to a new level....and you used rebar. Happy new year to you.

Using rebar was a fun learning experience. While perhaps overkill, the bend achieved slowly was worthwhile IMO. Also, mediocre was perhaps too kind.

Thanks again for the input Nuts.