Figus Retusa #2 Part two

Dear All
Yesterday I started to work on the Figus Retusa bonsai I bought a couple of days ago over the internet from a Danish Bonsai Nursery. As I wrote earlier, I like these indoor trees as you can enjoy them all year and is not hidden away during winter like the outdoor trees.

When I got the tree I could see it was very healthy and I could start working on it straight away. It is very important that the material that you work on is in a good condition to respond positively to the different techniques applied to the tree. 
Below I have posted pictures of the work:

The healthy tree as I bought it. 

360 degrees spin

360 degrees spin

360 degrees spin

360 degrees spin

360 degrees spin

360 degrees spin

360 degrees spin

In order to work properly on the tree I decided to defoliate it to better see the branch structure

I cut off all the leaves but left the stem and a small part of each leaf.
Within the next couple of weeks new buds will appear all over the tree.
The stem form the cut of leaves will fall off when the new buds starts to show
Please note that you should ONLY do this procedure to a very healthy tree.

After defoliating the entire tree the branch structure is easy to overview
 and shaping of the branches can start.

I started to trim and wire the lowest right branch. I wired the branch to create the base for the future pads.
The wiring is not done perfect but do not have to be in my opinion for now.
The tree are still in its early training state and the wire needs to come off soon
again as the new buds\shoots will thicken the branches quickly.

I took a photo with a white sheet of paper below to better see the branch spread.
I do actually not think I will keep this lowest branch in the final design of this tree.

Lowest right branch wired and placed.
I also decided to cut of the branch in the middle of the trunk to open up the tree more.
The branch above will be pulled downwards.

The lowest branch to the left was wired.
The branch was slightly too low so I decided to use a  guy wire to pull it  a bit upwards.
I inserted a screw in the trunk at a higher place and pulled the branch up with a wire.
It might be a bit difficult to see in the photo.

Tree completely wired. The top needs to be a bit smaller.
The tree will also go in a better pot - slightly smaller and a different colour.
And by seeing this picture I for sure think the lowest right branch have to go.

I will do a follow up in a couple of weeks when the buds are starting to appear.

Shohin Juniper #3

This little juniper tree I have had since august 2008. It was bought at a Bonsai nursery in Denmark.

I saw great potential in this small tree, and started to work on it as soon as I got home. 

Here is a few pictures of the process. 

I was repoting it for a more dramatic and rough pot, wich I feel goes great with the style of the tree.

The size of the tree is about 15 cm tall.

The Juniper as I bought it at the nursery and before the first styling.

Picture of the tree during the first styling in my hands.
Lowest branch I decided to make into a jin.

More of the pads are starting to take shape.

Very difficult to style such a small tree. All mistakes are shown straight away.

Finished result

The tree in its new pot. I like this pot as it gives the tree a more dramatic appearance. 

Amazing performance with a feather!

WOW! This is just fantastic!!!

Please watch the video to the end - then you understand how talented this woman is! 

I got goose bumbs!

Acer Buergarianum #1 Part two

Dear all
I have started to work on the Acer Buergarianum I bought a couple of days ago. I will not do a lot of work as the tree have just starting to open the leaves. I will not jeopardise the health of the tree - so only a few "quick fixes".

I will do the following adjustments:

- Light trimming of the branches
- Using guy wire to pull down some branches.

The tree as I bought it.

Added the first guy wire to one of the lowest branches. 

In order to avoid the wire to cut into the branch I have added plastic tubes as protection. 

The tube you can buy at the local aquarium store.

The wire from the branch is connected to a wire that is attached around the pot. 

This allows more guy wire to be attached to the pot at the same time.

More branches are being pulled down carefully.

Another close up of the wire attached to the branch with the plastic tube.

I decided to pull down several branches with this technique.

While applying the guy wire I also give some of the branches a light trim.

A view from above after the trimming and guy wire.

Top view showing the branches. I have tried to balance them out all around the tree.

Tree before work was done.

The finished result for now. Now the tree have to rest for the summer.
Might give it a light trim later on again.

Figus Retusa #2 Part one

Dear all,
A couple of days I bought on the internet a Figus Retusa Bonsai from a Danish Bonsai Nursery  called: Nordic Bonsai Center. 
The tree is an indoor tree (in Scandinavia) and is very healthy. It is approx. 50 cm tall from the nebari.
What is good about these indoor trees is that you can enjoy them all year around. In the winter time when all the outdoor trees are winter protected, you still have the feeling of bonsai around you.

I will be working on the tree these days and post pictures of the process. I am looking forward to put my hands on this tree and start working with it.
Below I have posted a picture of the tree as I received it:

Acer Buergarianum #1 Part one

This Acer Buergarianum I bought online a couple of days ago from a Danish Bonsai Nursery: Nordic Bonsai Center. I have been looking at this tree for a while on their online catalog and really liked it.  I sent an e-mail to the nursery and made a request of this tree. Lucky they had not sold it yet! A couple of days later the tree arrived together with another tree I bought from them at my office. 
The tree it self is approx.  40 cm tall from the nebari and up. It looks very healthy. When it arrived it had just started to open the new spring leaves. The pot is a dark blue pot that is a bit too tall for this tree - but that I do not worry about now. Maybe next year I will repot it to a more suitable pot and in a different colour. 

Here are some more detailed pictures of the tree:

Below I have posted some pictures that show the tree 360 degrees:

Though it is almost to late to work on the tree I wanted to get my hands on it and do some minor adjustments. The tree has been trimmed to keep its overall appearance - meaning the long shoots have been cut. This has caused some ramification but it needs more attention to create a even stronger branch structure. 

The tree needs a good wiring but that I will do during the winter. I looked at the tree and took a few pictures of the areas that needs improvements. Some of them can be quick fix and others needs more planning\time.

Please see the pictures below:

Branch structure needs to be worked on.

The branches are a bit messy and needs both trimming and wiring.

Some of the long shoots I will cut off so the tree will focus on the branches that needs development.

Some branches are crossing over and needs to be replaced\shortened.

Some of the inner buds I need to grow longer in the future design of the tree and will be left.

This type of Acer grows in a way by shooting several shoot out from the same area.

 If let grow they will form a thick area where connected. This is not nice in the overall branch structure of the bonsai and needs to be adjusted.

A the tree is young most of the main branches are going quit straight up and should be bend a bit down.

I will apply some guy wire to some of the branches. I will not wire the tree now as i am afraid to damage the new shoots. In this situation guy wire is a good solution.

This is another branch that needs to be pushed downwards.

By pushing some of the branches downwards gives a more mature appearance to the tree.

This lower branch is quit small. I do not wish to cut it off as it can be used in the future design of the tree. It needs to be allowed to grow freely to add more thickness. The lower branches always needs to be thicker than ones above. This also create a appearance  of an older tree.

The nebari looks good. Can see a nice root spread but are not sure if there are more hiding underneath the surface soil. The 2 roots in front are quit dominating. If there are a bore even nebari underneath the soil I think they will have to go.  If not, then I might do some root layering at a later state.

In my next post regarding this tree I will show some of the "quick fix" I will apply to the tree now. The rest have to wait for better timing - not to jeopardise the health of the tree.