The Walter Pall Box Store Challenge Judging Thread

[Vin]

First and foremost, PLEASE DO NOT COMMENT on any posts in this thread until the four challengers have finished posting their work. Any comments will be removed. You can “Like” as many as you want but please don’t comment. I’m trying to keep the comments to a minimum so Mr. Pall can get through the judging process easier. You can comment here if you like: http://www.bonsainut.com/threads/the-walter-pall-box-store-challenge-comments-thread.25029/

@thomas22 @Paradox @michaelj @Walter Pall

This is it, the absolute final submission of our work from the 2015 Box Store Challenge. Let me get right to the process. You can create as many posts in this thread as it takes to submit all the images that show the progression of your tree. Feel free to add any tidbits of information that help explain what you’ve done.

The first post will include just three images: an image of the tree when you purchased it, the image of the completed tree from the 1st phase of the challenge and an image of your completed tree for the 2nd phase of the challenge. When you have completed adding all your other images in subsequent posts please insert the word “COMPLETED” at the bottom of your last enrty. Once this is done the next person can begin entering their images. Good luck everyone.

 

[Vin]

Bottlebrush tree as purchased in March 2015:



As submitted for the 2015 Box Store Challenge:



My completed work as of October 2016:

 

[Vin]

August 2015:



December 2015:



March 2016:

 

[Vin]

Repoted in March 2016:



June 2016:



August 2016:

 

[Vin]

September 2016 I added a Jin for interest:





Closeup of some carving work:



An Erin Pot:



Once again the final tree:



There were many challenges with this tree. As you can see I changed the front because I felt this view better show its attributes and Jin work. This view also gives the tree a more tapered look. Enjoy..

COMPLETED

 

[thomas22]

I will follow Vin's format.

This is my Duranta as purchased.



Here it is after the first styling. I removed all the problem branches and there wasn't much left.



Here is the final image.




Hope you like. I will now post some progression photos.

 

[thomas22]

December 2015



March 2016



June 2016



And once again the final Image.



Thanks Vin for managing the contest and Walter for judging. I never thought I would end up with one of my best trees from this contest but I did.

I am complete.

 

[Paradox]

Ilex crenata compacta as purchased for the 2015 Box store challenge



As submitted for the 2015 Box Store Challenge



September 2016 Final

 

[Paradox]

April 2015 from above




July 2015 (the tree had been repotted about 1-2 weeks after submission to the contest)




Repotted in April 2016




June 2016 after a 3 and a half hour wiring session. I think me and the tree were exhausted afterwards.

 

[Paradox]

September 2016 from above




September 2016 Final



COMPLETED

 

[Walter Pall]

Judging:

Bottlebrush:

challenging material, not easy, but possible. Very upright branches or possibly subtrunks. Way too long, little ramification down where the tree will be created.

first entry: very nice solution from challenging material, very credible weeping willow form in the naturalistic style, good use of the original main trunk as deadwood. In the naturalistic style deadwood on a broadleaved tree is OK.

last image: great development in only one year. I am quite impressed. This is a show-ready bonsai which I like very much. The proportions are very good, the overall feeling is natural and not at all contrived as often the weeping willow form is. Very good choice of pot. Maybe just a too too short, height very fine, broken off rim very nice.

Duranta:

nice material, not easy to make impressive bonsai very soon.

first image: as expected from the material very early days of a bonsai. Very good though from a long term point of view. The cuts have been made ruthlessly at good points. This has a great future. Hard to see the potential for the not so experienced.

final image: Wow!!! what progress in only one year. I get very jealous when I see these subtropical developments in such short time. In my climate this would have taken five years at least. Very well balanced broadleaved tree, very natural crown of a real tree, not this contrived 'bonsai feeling', simple pot, very good choice, very nice moss. The crown is more wide as it is high, which is a very good observation of many broadleaved species, especially in warmer climate. This outcome shows very well what the difference between shooting for intermediate results and long term results means. In bonsai very often one has to accept unassuming intermediate results and gets rewarded at the end only. The one who shoots for intermediate results gets compliments in the way but may well not lead in the end.

Ilex creanata:

good material which makes it possible to create a nice tree rather quickly

first image: interesting and unexpected result of first styling. It would have been possible to make a more full tree right away, but let's see what the future plan is.

final image: Wow again! You guys amaze me. A very nice result in very short time. Quite credible half cascade or whatever this should be called. Crown styling a bit like a conifer. This is a question of taste. It will appeal to many though. The wire bothers a bit right now but when taken off it will look right. Very good choice of pot, very nice moss. Show ready.

Judging:

VERY hard to decide. I would have loved to be able to nominate three equal front runners.

best overall bonsai as of last image: duranta

best and most skilful development regarding material at the beginning: bottle brush

Congratulations to all three finalists.

All three entries have in common that a person who does not know too much about bonsai would have never guessed that the result of first styling was really good. We are being mislead by common bonsai demonstrations: too many think that good artists make a silk purse out of a sows ear in an afternoon. If the fist styling in a public bonsai demonstration brought a result as all three participants did it shows that they are not really artists. Are they not? Well, one year later everybody can see. But the innocent critics are gone by that time.

Have you ever wondered why we never see any big name on stage with broadleaved trees? This contest clearly shows why. Who of the big names would have wanted to make a "fool" of himself in the eyes of a majority by coming up with the duranta after first styling? We need more of the kind of education that this contest delivers.

 

[Vin]

Judging:

Bottlebrush:

challenging material, not easy, but possible. Very upright branches or possibly subtrunks. Way too long, little ramification down where the tree will be created.

first entry: very nice solution from challenging material, very credible weeping willow form in the naturalistic style, good use of the original main trunk as deadwood. In the naturalistic style deadwood on a broadleaved tree is OK.

last image: great development in only one year. I am quite impressed. This is a show-ready bonsai which I like very much. The proportions are very good, the overall feeling is natural and not at all contrived as often the weeping willow form is. Very good choice of pot. Maybe just a too too short, height very fine, broken off rim very nice.

Duranta:

nice material, not easy to make impressive bonsai very soon.

first image: as expected from the material very early days of a bonsai. Very good though from a long term point of view. The cuts have been made ruthlessly at good points. This has a great future. Hard to see the potential for the not so experienced.

final image: Wow!!! what progress in only one year. I get very jealous when I see these subtropical developments in such short time. In my climate this would have taken five years at least. Very well balanced broadleaved tree, very natural crown of a real tree, not this contrived 'bonsai feeling', simple pot, very good choice, very nice moss. The crown is more wide as it is high, which is a very good observation of many broadleaved species, especially in warmer climate. This outcome shows very well what the difference between shooting for intermediate results and long term results means. In bonsai very often one has to accept unassuming intermediate results and gets rewarded at the end only. The one who shoots for intermediate results gets compliments in the way but may well not lead in the end.

Ilex creanata:

good material which makes it possible to create a nice tree rather quickly

first image: interesting and unexpected result of first styling. It would have been possible to make a more full tree right away, but let's see what the future plan is.

final image: Wow again! You guys amaze me. A very nice result in very short time. Quite credible half cascade or whatever this should be called. Crown styling a bit like a conifer. This is a question of taste. It will appeal to many though. The wire bothers a bit right now but when taken off it will look right. Very good choice of pot, very nice moss. Show ready.

Judging:

VERY hard to decide. I would have loved to be able to nominate three equal front runners.

best overall bonsai as of last image: duranta

best and most skilful development regarding material at the beginning: bottle brush

Congratulations to all three finalists.

All three entries have in common that a person who does not know too much about bonsai would have never guessed that the result of first styling was really good. We are being mislead by common bonsai demonstrations: too many think that good artists make a silk purse out of a sows ear in an afternoon. If the fist styling in a public bonsai demonstration brought a result as all three participants did it shows that they are not really artists. Are they not? Well, one year later everybody can see. But the innocent critics are gone by that time.

Have you ever wondered why we never see any big name on stage with broadleaved trees? This contest clearly shows why. Who of the big names would have wanted to make a "fool" of himself in the eyes of a majority by coming up with the duranta after first styling? We need more of the kind of education that this contest delivers.

Sir, I couldn't agree more with your critique of each tree and your choice of the best overall bonsai. Thank you so much for taking time out of your busy schedule to give an honest evaluation of our work. Your last statement "We need more of the kind of education that this contest delivers" is exactly what I was hoping for on a personal level to walk away with through this exercise. Thank you again..

 

[augustine]

Great post, great trees and great evaluation by Walter Pall. Thanks to all

 

[thomas22]

Thanks Walter for taking the time to judge this contest. Also thank you Vin for running the contest and really nice job on your tree. I learned so much from this contest and would have never bought a Duranta if it were not for the contest. Also nice job @Paradox, I really liked you tree/pot combination.

 

[michaelj]

Excellent work, everyone. I was unable to post my tree for two reasons. First, this was an extraordinarily busy week for me, several milestone family events, a huge event at work, and other pressing obligations. Second, and in hindsight, more importantly, my tree is still recovering from a mealybug infestation. Had I known then what I know now, I wouldn't have bought the tree. It had a little bit of what I thought was mildew on some of the leaves when I bought it. That turned out to be mealybugs, and they weren't just in the leaves, they were in the soil, sucking the life out of the root system. They severely harmed the tree, and I had to try many different remedies before one last, drastic measure of bare-rooting and soaking the tree in 120 degree water. While that worked, the tree still needs time to recover. I think it was best that my tree was left alone and its long shoots left in place, so that next spring, I'll still have a tree. I'm sorry I wasn't able to hang in to the end, and sorry I missed the thread until this morning.

 

[Paradox]

Congrats @thomas22, your tree turned out awesome. Grats to @Vin as well. I think yours was the most difficult material.

Thank you @Walter Pall for your time and your comments.
I agree the crown of my tree is a bit flat and needs to get a bit more shape.
As with all trees, it is still a work in progress and that is something I plan on working on as the tree grows a bit more up there. I agree about the wire, it just wasnt ready to be removed yet.

I learned alot during this project and this tree is probably one of, if not the best and most developed of my trees right now.

To be honest, I have to give credit to the tree itself because I think it did most of the work. The initial styling and repot didnt slow it down much at all. It grew like a champ and was very happy.
The second repot also didnt phase it and Ive been pruning and wiring and rewiring and it just didnt care.
This tree really has been tough as nails, very accommodating and trouble free. So much so that Ive taken a liking to the species and I recently purchased another one with some really nice nebari to torture next year.

 

[Paradox]

All three entries have in common that a person who does not know too much about bonsai would have never guessed that the result of first styling was really good. We are being mislead by common bonsai demonstrations: too many think that good artists make a silk purse out of a sows ear in an afternoon. If the fist styling in a public bonsai demonstration brought a result as all three participants did it shows that they are not really artists. Are they not? Well, one year later everybody can see. But the innocent critics are gone by that time.

Have you ever wondered why we never see any big name on stage with broadleaved trees? This contest clearly shows why. Who of the big names would have wanted to make a "fool" of himself in the eyes of a majority by coming up with the duranta after first styling? We need more of the kind of education that this contest delivers.

This is a very interesting comment and one I happen to agree with.
Ive been giving a lot of thought about demonstrations and how useful they really are as a learning tool. While I do think you can learn from watching different people work on material, particularly as a beginner, there is an inherent problem with demonstrations. There is no follow up, you never get to see how the tree looks one, two, five years from the demo, if it survived at all. With my own learning, Ive begun to feel as though I am in a rut of initial styling information and I find myself asking "whats next? Whats the next step?" We never see it.

 

[sorce]

We never see it.

We don't see it with those trees....

But there are some good Bjorn videos about what would be the next step/steps.

Also good info here.

You just have to mix and match trees and steps!

I, myself, will be lucky to have a tree grow well enough, or live for that matter....to perform a second step! Lol.

I gotta say....your tree is my favorite.

No offense to Walter...I love his Naturalstic Fortitude...
If it wasn't for that....you may have taken the crown....

You know...

I was thinking this has to be one of your favorite trees now!

It is really awesome...and if the next few years are anything like this past ONE...

You may just be recieving your acceptance from Bill V for Rochester 2020!

I love it!

Sorce

 

[Paradox]

Thank you @sorce for the kind words.

Yes I am quite fond of the little bugger.

I think Ive got more than a few years before I would have anything remotely close to National quaility

Youll get there too, just takes time and patience, mostly patience.

 

[sorce]

Youll get there too,

I'm taking this as it IS your goal to make it there...

I hope so...so does Adair....what with the easier drive for you and all!

While Thomas' tree is excellent...
The final image you created is the most profound. The angle is wonderful.

Sorry...I just can't stop!

Sorce