Flat Top Bald Cypress

[VAFisher]

Picked this up from Zach last year and started it on its journey to hopefully becoming a flat top. I was able to slip pot it into this cheap training pot and get the trunk standing mostly upright. I also pruned off a lot of branches up and down the trunk.



Here's what it looked like late last summer. I felt like the 2 side branches looked too much like arms and hands so I removed the left one.



Here is the tree today. Still a long way to go but it's making progress.

 

[Leo in N E Illinois]

Nice, it is coming along.

I would let the upward branches extend a little more, or would have shortened the trunk a little more before developing the upward arms. (sub trunks) I personally think that many flat tops look contrived because the branches of the "flat top" are too horizontal and too short. They should be a little more vertical and extend the height of the tree more significantly. But that is my taste.

I was going to post a link to a thread on IBC where I posted many images of bald cypress from the wild. But because IBC still refuses to host images, link rot due to changes as to where I hosted images has rendered the threads on IBC photo-less. Sans photos, the thread is pointless.

As an aside, I would still call IBC home if they would host the images their members post. But having to go 3rd party with image hosting, is just something I don't want to bother with. Oh well.

 

[just.wing.it]

Sweeeeet!
Are there any chops? Taper looks nice and smooth.

 

[VAFisher]

Nice, it is coming along.

I would let the upward branches extend a little more, or would have shortened the trunk a little more before developing the upward arms. (sub trunks) I personally think that many flat tops look contrived because the branches of the "flat top" are too horizontal and too short. They should be a little more vertical and extend the height of the tree more significantly. But that is my taste.

I was going to post a link to a thread on IBC where I posted many images of bald cypress from the wild. But because IBC still refuses to host images, link rot due to changes as to where I hosted images has rendered the threads on IBC photo-less. Sans photos, the thread is pointless.

As an aside, I would still call IBC home if they would host the images their members post. But having to go 3rd party with image hosting, is just something I don't want to bother with. Oh well.

Thanks Leo. Appreciate the advice

 

[VAFisher]

Sweeeeet!
Are there any chops? Taper looks nice and smooth.

Right where the 3 trunks forming the crown emerge. I still have a little work to do there.

 

[Leo in N E Illinois]

I put some photos of bald cypress from a canoe trip back in November of 1994 or somewhere around that time. This is the Lower Cache River, near Vienna, Illinois. This is fairly far north for a Tupelo-Cypress swamp. Notice that this far north you don't see many flat tops. Some domes, many broken trees. Candelabra style is common amount the old ones.

Bald Cypress Cache River, Illinois

The most popular Bonsai Community in the WORLD!

www.bonsainut.com

 

[VAFisher]

Nice. Thanks for the inspiration Leo.

 

[Zach Smith]

Picked this up from Zach last year and started it on its journey to hopefully becoming a flat top. I was able to slip pot it into this cheap training pot and get the trunk standing mostly upright. I also pruned off a lot of branches up and down the trunk.

View attachment 310481

Here's what it looked like late last summer. I felt like the 2 side branches looked too much like arms and hands so I removed the left one.

View attachment 310480

Here is the tree today. Still a long way to go but it's making progress.

View attachment 310479

Looking good, Dan. Is there any reason you haven't carved the chop yet?

 

[VAFisher]

Looking good, Dan. Is there any reason you haven't carved the chop yet?

Thanks Zach, no real reason. I whittled it down a little this Spring but definitely have more work to do. I was just watching a video of John Geanangal doing one and got some inspiration. Need to invest in a Dremel tool.

 

[Zach Smith]

Thanks Zach, no real reason. I whittled it down a little this Spring but definitely have more work to do. I was just watching a video of John Geanangal doing one and got some inspiration. Need to invest in a Dremel tool.

I have both a cordless and regular Dremel. They are quite useful. But I'll tell you, I do more carving with knob cutters followed by hand carving tools. I bought a set a few years back, inexpensive and they work great. You have a lot more control than with a tool spinning at 35,000 rpm

 

[AaronThomas]

Really nice! Love the pot as well!

 

[VAFisher]

Did some work carving the chop today (thanks for the nudge Zach). Figured I better get in there while I could. This is about the best I could do with my concave cutters and a knife.



And all sealed up.



And a shot of the whole tree for good measure.

 

[Zach Smith]

Looks good. Let me caution you regarding your leaders. They are going to pull most of the sap flowing through the tree and try to thicken up a lot more than they already are. If the tree were mine I'd be cutting back pretty hard on those leaders right about now. If they get too thick there's nothing you can do but cut them off and start over.

 

[VAFisher]

Looks good. Let me caution you regarding your leaders. They are going to pull most of the sap flowing through the tree and try to thicken up a lot more than they already are. If the tree were mine I'd be cutting back pretty hard on those leaders right about now. If they get too thick there's nothing you can do but cut them off and start over.

Thanks Zach. Yes I was planning to hard prune the top very soon to try to help along the lower branches. Finally got one to pop in the about the right spot on the left. Up til now, all I was getting was fronds and not an actual branch.

 

[Zach Smith]

Thanks Zach. Yes I was planning to hard prune the top very soon to try to help along the lower branches. Finally got one to pop in the about the right spot on the left. Up til now, all I was getting was fronds and not an actual branch.

Makes sense. It takes a couple of seasons to get those lower branches to take off and thicken up. The first year they just sit there and you think they're never going to look like real branches.

 

[VAFisher]

After a hard cut back on the top a month ago. I can see keeping the top in check is going to be a constant battle, but it's starting to take shape and look a little more like a flat top. I'm pretty happy with the progress over the year and a half I've been working on this tree.

 

[roberthu]

I put some photos of bald cypress from a canoe trip back in November of 1994 or somewhere around that time. This is the Lower Cache River, near Vienna, Illinois. This is fairly far north for a Tupelo-Cypress swamp. Notice that this far north you don't see many flat tops. Some domes, many broken trees. Candelabra style is common amount the old ones.

Bald Cypress Cache River, Illinois

The most popular Bonsai Community in the WORLD!

www.bonsainut.com

Awesome photos! Thank you for sharing!

 

[roberthu]

Picked this up from Zach last year and started it on its journey to hopefully becoming a flat top. I was able to slip pot it into this cheap training pot and get the trunk standing mostly upright. I also pruned off a lot of branches up and down the trunk.



Here's what it looked like late last summer. I felt like the 2 side branches looked too much like arms and hands so I removed the left one.



Here is the tree today. Still a long way to go but it's making progress.

Curious if you bought this as a nursery stock? I am looking to buy one as a 5 gallon nursery stock but not sure the trunk size of it since it’s an online seller.

 

[Hartinez]

Curious if you bought this as a nursery stock? I am looking to buy one as a 5 gallon nursery stock but not sure the trunk size of it since it’s an online seller.

Can’t say for sure, but @VAFisher gets a lot of his material as Pre-Bonsai from @Zach Smith . His website is linked at the bottom of his posts. He’s got great material available and would probably be a better purchase than basic nursery stock.

 

[roberthu]

Can’t say for sure, but @VAFisher gets a lot of his material as Pre-Bonsai from @Zach Smith . His website is linked at the bottom of his posts. He’s got great material available and would probably be a better purchase than basic nursery stock.

Awesome thanks!