just.wing.it
Deadwood Head
I love this tree, great work.
32 year old Acer Rubrum
- Thread starter ABCarve
- Start date
namnhi
Masterpiece
If you going to chop the apex lower to where Gabler suggested, that would mean you have to cut back all the lower branches for the tree to look proportional? That would mean most of your ramifications would have to be removed. Not so sure that is a good direction for this.
Gabler
Masterpiece
This is Acer rubrum we're talking about. If you blink, the branches will outgrow the trunk. Regrowing the apex isn't a ridiculous idea if the end result is a better apex.
namnhi
Masterpiece
Am referring to all the lower branches that will need to move closer to the trunk for the tree to look good.
ABCarve
Masterpiece
Seems like one has already been started.
Have heard this said that tree should be and agree however have one big question
. Is whole or just upper trunk to bow forward? Is just apex bowing forward the standard? Is there actual written standard for this or just rule of thumb or spoken "soft" rule for this
?
. Is whole or just upper trunk to bow forward? Is just apex bowing forward the standard? Is there actual written standard for this or just rule of thumb or spoken "soft" rule for this?
ABCarve
Masterpiece
This was a fairly hard cut back of the roots. Probably took more off the top of the root ball than the bottom, exposing more of the nebari. More work to do but it needs some recuperation. Cleaned a lot of algae off the trunk.
I really believe this is the nicest acer rubrum I have ever seen as bonsai. Was this tree mainly developed in a small pot? I have some red maple projects and have noticed through the years that they fatten extremely quickly. I'm looking for ways to really slow them down.
ABCarve
Masterpiece
I think the smallest pot it was ever in was maybe 16", currently 22". Try defoliation. You may want to read the whole thread.
Orion_metalhead
Masterpiece
This tree is a stunner everytime I see it. I hope to one day see it in person, honestly, because its my favorite tree on this site ir at worst, top-3. Everyone should be messing with these.
houterig
Sapling
What a nice tree damn!
Orion_metalhead
Masterpiece
What is this looking like now? Id love to see it with the spring flush before the leaves get to normal size.
SouthernMaple
Chumono
i imagine its still dormant, red maples in the mountains of nc are just now waking up, the two in my garden have swollen buds and are usually the last thing to pop with all my other natives like hornbeam and winged elm
Orion_metalhead
Masterpiece
Very possible. If thats the case, at least AB can catch it in that perfect moment for us when it does flush out.
ABCarve
Masterpiece
Orion_metalhead
Masterpiece
Its the best. Acer Rubrum are such great material.
bray
Yamadori
This tree deservers all the praises it receives, and I am sure you are proud of where you have taken this tree. Wouldn't it be wonderful if the leaves would stay this size.
If you don't mind, I would like to go back to when you were developing the trunk and how you built the bones of this tree. I see what I think are scars on the trunk, but they seem to be from branch removal not trunk chops. Did you trunk chop this tree in the early days or has it always just been just pruning to keep growth in check?
I have 2 sugar maples I collected this spring with pretty good bases. I have read and reread this thread to try to understand your process because I believe the same could work for these sugar maples. My trees have been copped and will be chopped shorter once a new leader is defined.
Thanks for any insight you could provide for getting my new trees going in the right direction.
If you would prefer, I could start a thread on those trees, and we could take the conversation there.
If you don't mind, I would like to go back to when you were developing the trunk and how you built the bones of this tree. I see what I think are scars on the trunk, but they seem to be from branch removal not trunk chops. Did you trunk chop this tree in the early days or has it always just been just pruning to keep growth in check?
I have 2 sugar maples I collected this spring with pretty good bases. I have read and reread this thread to try to understand your process because I believe the same could work for these sugar maples. My trees have been copped and will be chopped shorter once a new leader is defined.
Thanks for any insight you could provide for getting my new trees going in the right direction.
If you would prefer, I could start a thread on those trees, and we could take the conversation there.
ABCarve
Masterpiece
About the only thing that is different is that I chopped the tree while it was still in the ground and let it grow until the following spring before I dug it. The first year after the chop it put out three buds. One became the top and the other two became the right and left branches. They were roughly wired to get them going in the right direction but after that they grew rank for a number of years to obtain some caliper. At one time the leader was over 6’ high. The rest is just like any other bonsai, grow it out and cut it back, wire when needed. The incremental defoliation didn’t start until 2016.
bray
Yamadori
Thanks
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