Juniper tree newbie

[Leo in N E Illinois]

This - really has potential as the front in my mind's eye. And you could keep all 5 branches and make this work.

do take your time, and consider for yourself all the possibilities. You can create a style using all the branches, you can always take branches off later on, it is difficult to add branches back after you have cut them off.

 

[Orion_metalhead]

Please include your location in your profile.

I would take Leo's advice. Move slowly with this tree. From some angles, it appears to have a lot of movement and others, very little movement. It looks like it was at one point laying flat on the ground and then repotted into am upright position since from the one side its totally flat.

Do some reading on junipers... they dont react to pruning the way some other species will.. dont expect them to backbud at all, dont expect them to be able to be kept indoors easily, keep an eye out for boring beetles considering your tree has some trunk girth.

 

[Jun2x258]

Thanks everyone.
@Orion_metalhead I do keep the tree outdoors. Just had to take indoors to take better pictures and stuff.

 

[Jun2x258]

For now I decided to let the tree grow a bit more and work on it later.

 

[LittleDingus]

This - really has potential as the front in my mind's eye. And you could keep all 5 branches and make this work.

do take your time, and consider for yourself all the possibilities. You can create a style using all the branches, you can always take branches off later on, it is difficult to add branches back after you have cut them off.

I was going to say that this orientation really makes me like this tree...I absolutely hate juniper! After seeing this picture I can see myself owning one and not wanting to torch it

Since the views differ so much with viewing angle on this tree, you may want to pick a proposed front and make minor tweaks so that as it grows in, the foliage is coordinated in direction more. From this view, I like how the 3 right branches all lean right and the foliage tends to follow. That's very dramatic and created tension against the main trunk sweeping left as it does. But the two tufts to the left both tend towards the left which breaks the composition for me.

But what do I know? I hate juniper (except for this one)!!

 

[Jun2x258]

Awww I’m so happy that this tree was an exception in your views. @LittleDingus
I’m also starting to like this angle as a front too. My only concern is that the branch lean too much towards the front. Do you think that it is ok?

 

[LittleDingus]

Awww I’m so happy that this tree was an exception in your views. @LittleDingus
I’m also starting to like this angle as a front too. My only concern is that the branch lean too much towards the front. Do you think that it is ok?

I typically don't get into all that level of detail. I grow trees in pots. If they look nice to me, I'm happy with them. If they don't follow the rules or meet the critical eyes of the judges, etc...doesn't mean shit to me!

I was just struck enough by this particular tree to comment. And my only (untrained) criticism that I would would work on if it were my tree is that it's a little off putting to me that 60% of the foliage leans right and 40% leans left. That breaks the composition for me because I stop appreciating the tree for what it is and start wondering what caused the disparity.

I'll leave it to others to comment on the "bonsai worthiness" of the presentation

 

[Shibui]

Branches too far forward can be cured.
Simply planting the trunk a little backwards at the next repot will sometimes fix the problem. When assessing any tree have some wedges handy so you can tilt the pot in any direction to see how that changes the trunk, apex and branches. Just because the tree is currently planted that way does not mean it has to stay there forever.
Wire and jacks can also be used to change branch and trunk angles. Juniper wood is quite hard but they can be bent quite a lot with some skill and effort. The branches on this one are much straighter than the extreme curves in the trunk. Bonsai usually look better when branches and trunk look similar and follow a 'theme'. It is likely this would be improved with some more bends in those straight branches and that ill also give the opportunity to relocate the foliage pads.

 

[leatherback]

To anyone out there too, I would much prefer get all those harsh of advice you’ve than sugar coated compliments. As smilezz have said, better hearing some harsh words, than killing the trees.

The tree is very bare near the trunk. I would recommend just letting it grow a bit (Say, till next fall). With proper management of the foliage (fertilize, sun: Let it grow long runners, then trim them back) you should get back-budding. It looks like someone has removed a lot of inner branches. So you might get lucky and get a few new branches sprout nearer the trunk which would make styling this easier. This is a tree worth taking the slow route developing and getting on-site input or taking to a workshop.

You are in Italy. Italy has some of the best bonsai artists in Europe.

Do a bit of a search and find a local club with local talent. This is a hard to judge tree from just a few pictures considering all the little twists you may have there, yet it is worth a little effort to get an opinion of experienced artists who have the tree in front of them. I think a rotation of the plant is needed, but as said: Dificult to judge without the option to slowly turn the tree in your own hands. Remember: Bonsai is a 3D art. So do not style the tree to "look good in a picture" but base your choices on having a tree that looks like a well-developed coherend image from all angles.

Fun tree. Looking forward where you take this. Just do not start to wire and bend "and see where it ends".