copying real trees

[*tree*]

Has anyone here tried to make a bonsai copy of a full size tree in the nature. Horticulturally it is probably not the best idea as I would pretty much have to start from seed, also it would be difficult to get a tree with enough character from seed but it may as well be a good challenge.

 

[Deleted member 47471]

Cool idea. I have still-frames of branches from my area that are locked in my mind, and I intend to recreate them on some conifers.

 

[*tree*]

I'm going to try it with these pitch pines. Pitch pine will be a good conifer for this, because you can chop it anywhere. The models will probably be swiss stone pines or scots pines if I can find any interesting specimens.

 

[gooeytek]

I'm going to try and get my ginkgo to be more tree-like and less shrub-like. The goal for most of my bonsai is definitely to make them look like trees, but there are quite a few of them that will present a challenge, like my wisterias and vietnamese bluebell.

 

[Cruiser]

Has anyone here tried to make a bonsai copy of a full size tree in the nature. Horticulturally it is probably not the best idea as I would pretty much have to start from seed, also it would be difficult to get a tree with enough character from seed but it may as well be a good challenge.

Not exact replicas but yes in the sense that many of my trees are meant to showcase features and growth forms of native forest trees around here.

 

[ShimpakuBonsai]

Maybe not copying a tree but creating an image of a tree you could find in nature is the main goal in bonsai for me.

 

[Shibui]

My aim is not to copy any particular tree. I aim more at trying to find the general features that a species exhibits and portray those features in a bonsai.
Also look at general shapes and traits of trees in certain environments and try to recreate the look and feel of those - eg coastal windswept trees, taller forest trees, harsh, rocky mountain trees, etc.
Some years ago I noticed that callistemons growing in our local rivers all had similar traits because of the regular flooding they experience so I set about creating a 'waterswept' callistemon bonsai. It has since died but the bonsai received lots of interest from other growers down here as a unique Australian bonsai form.
Here's what it looked like in 2018

 

[johng]

I believe it was John Naka that famously said something to the effect of…don’t make your trees look like bonsai, but instead make them look like trees

 

[eugenev2]

Sorry i had to laugh to myself a bit when i saw the title of this thread...
I honestly thought this is what bonsai's about