Japanese Maple Airlayer planning

[Tak]

I've decided this branch of my Japanese maple has to go and I will take the opportunity to airlayer it.

I planned the airlayer where the orange thread is.

I haven't had much success with airlayers on it but I think my timing was off and so was the substrate. I will plan to do the layer just after the leaves harden this year and use sphagnum moss in a bag rather than soil in a ball.

What do you guys think of the spot I picked for it?

It has multiple branches coming out of it and even though it will get reduced eventually I probably don't want to do more airlayers above just yet in order to maximize chances of this one succeeding.

Any inputs welcome

 

[Hack Yeah!]

Do you know what variety the tree may be? What type of leaves does it have? The spot you picked looks a little straight, maybe move up closer to the end of your string?

 

[houterig]

Great tree.

I would also airlayer the actual part that you want and then later cut the remaining branch.

Every branch growing towards the inside of the tree could be a potential airlayer. I like japanese maple landscape tree's nice and open to see the beautiful branch structures!

 

[Tak]

Do you know what variety the tree may be? What type of leaves does it have? The spot you picked looks a little straight, maybe move up closer to the end of your string?

Acer palmatum I suppose? Cookie cutter red leave japanese maple tree.

I agree I could move it up a bit. However with the angle it 's hard to see but there is a Y branching out here :

I plan on keeping only one of the two as trunk and airlayering the other next year and getting rid of it. The Y should create some movement.

I was also considering air layering lower to use the movement lower down but not a lot of branching there.

 

[Tak]

Great tree.

I would also airlayer the actual part that you want and then later cut the remaining branch.

Every branch growing towards the inside of the tree could be a potential airlayer. I like japanese maple landscape tree's nice and open to see the beautiful branch structures!

Totally!

 

[Shibui]

Looks a bit too straight for me too. My experience has always been: It looks great on the parent tree. By the time you remove the layer it looks barely OK. After it's in a pot you wonder what you ever saw in that branch. I've only seen a few examples of layers that produced good bonsai and most of those were layers off bonsai, not from landscape trees.
By all means make the layer if you want the practice or don't have other sources of JM material. Who knows, you may prove the exception to my experience.

My advice on some things to avoid when layering for bonsai:

• Straight sections - makes it hard to create a bonsai with movement.
• Lack of taper - Bonsai need good taper to appear older.
• Long internodes - make it difficult to develop branching with the spacing required for a bonsai.

If you layer as indicated it appears quite a long way to the first fork. One of the forks appears almost straight with the lower part so unlikely to look good in the bonsai. The other makes a slight bend that might be useful in a bonsai trunk. Both branches are almost the same thickness as the lower section so no real taper or option to prune for taper.
Leaving both the main branches would give you a 'slingshot' fork which rarely looks good in bonsai.
You could chop down to the smaller branches that are closer to the proposed roots to get taper and a decent bend in the trunk but that's a big step back. Likely to be quicker in the long run to start with a seedling?
No scale to guess the thickness of the branch or to gauge the length of internodes but few landscape maples have short internodes so i suspect you will have difficulty getting the branching required for a small bonsai from this. Maybe a larger tree where wider branch spacing is OK?


What does the blue circle represent? I don't see any mention of it in your text

 

[Shibui]

I plan on keeping only one of the two as trunk and airlayering the other next year and getting rid of it. The Y should create some movement.

Further info while I was typing.
If you plan to use the fork as a bend in the trunk, don't make your layer straight across the branch. Cut at an angle so the roots will allow the lower trunk to come out of the ground at the best angle to match the bend above. (hoping that makes some sense?)

 

[Tak]

Further info while I was typing.
If you plan to use the fork as a bend in the trunk, don't make your layer straight across the branch. Cut at an angle so the roots will allow the lower trunk to come out of the ground at the best angle to match the bend above. (hoping that makes some sense?)

Yes it totally does! Thanks! I'll try to take a photo from the top tomorrow to showcase the branches I am talking about, but it may be preferable to take two airlayers further up in the end. I'll look at it from a different perspective. This is why I am posting here

 

[leatherback]

As an alternative strategy: Spend the next 3-5 years buliding a nice moving tapered future trunkline on this plant and later layer that off. So use the power of growth of this big established tree to grow out a bonsaitrunk while still a sidebranch.

 

[AmellLeo]

Sounds a solid plan! Keep the moss damp and pick a branch with good shape.
If you love japanese plants, you'd of course love japanese flowers names. For that Cozmicway is the way to go.

 

[Gabler]

Sounds a solid plan! Keep the moss damp and pick a branch with good shape.
If you love japanese plants, you'd of course love japanese flowers names. For that Cozmicway is the way to go.

I'm not sure I understand how that follows.

 

[Tak]

As an alternative strategy: Spend the next 3-5 years buliding a nice moving tapered future trunkline on this plant and later layer that off. So use the power of growth of this big established tree to grow out a bonsaitrunk while still a sidebranch.

I think that would be a great strategy, maybe the best and having the time I think I would go that way. Unfortunately I don't think we have that long before moving out of this place maybe 1 or two seasons.

 

[Tak]

Looks a bit too straight for me too. My experience has always been: It looks great on the parent tree. By the time you remove the layer it looks barely OK. After it's in a pot you wonder what you ever saw in that branch. I've only seen a few examples of layers that produced good bonsai and most of those were layers off bonsai, not from landscape trees.
By all means make the layer if you want the practice or don't have other sources of JM material. Who knows, you may prove the exception to my experience.

My advice on some things to avoid when layering for bonsai:

• Straight sections - makes it hard to create a bonsai with movement.
• Lack of taper - Bonsai need good taper to appear older.
• Long internodes - make it difficult to develop branching with the spacing required for a bonsai.

If you layer as indicated it appears quite a long way to the first fork. One of the forks appears almost straight with the lower part so unlikely to look good in the bonsai. The other makes a slight bend that might be useful in a bonsai trunk. Both branches are almost the same thickness as the lower section so no real taper or option to prune for taper.
Leaving both the main branches would give you a 'slingshot' fork which rarely looks good in bonsai.
You could chop down to the smaller branches that are closer to the proposed roots to get taper and a decent bend in the trunk but that's a big step back. Likely to be quicker in the long run to start with a seedling?
No scale to guess the thickness of the branch or to gauge the length of internodes but few landscape maples have short internodes so i suspect you will have difficulty getting the branching required for a small bonsai from this. Maybe a larger tree where wider branch spacing is OK?


What does the blue circle represent? I don't see any mention of it in your text

Here is perhaps a better angle to view it.

I agree there isn't dramatic taper there. I would have to reduce quite a bit to build it (though I am not a huge fan of conical taper).

Photo 1 is the part I will be working with (even if only as a learning experience).

Photo 2 was my first idea.

Photo 3 is going a bit further up which has a smaller trunk but more branching and opportunities for tapering.

Photo 4 is I toyed with the idea of twin trunk but I don't think that cuts it.

The branch is about 2 inchs thick where the orange thread is (will definitely move it up).

Planning multiple layers is also an option but I do want to give myself the best chance of success.

This might not make the perfect bonsai but I am not looking at competing and want to practice both horticulture and styling skills.

I appreciate your invaluable input so far and would love to hear further if you have another second to spare to comment on this update

Thanks in advance!

 

[Shibui]

I agree there isn't dramatic taper there. I would have to reduce quite a bit to build it (though I am not a huge fan of conical taper).

There's a place for both dramatic taper and taller, elegant trunks with gradual taper but very little taper only says 'young tree' to most viewers.
The problem with layering garden trees is they rarely have much existing taper - as you're seeing on this tree.
Taper can be developed, usually by repeated trunk chops in deciduous but also with sacrifice branching where appropriate.

Photo 1 is the part I will be working with (even if only as a learning experience).

Photo 2 was my first idea.

Photo 3 is going a bit further up which has a smaller trunk but more branching and opportunities for tapering.

All are similar as far as I can see. Great to see the layer angle suits the bends as opposed to the usual straight across.

Photo 4 is I toyed with the idea of twin trunk but I don't think that cuts it.

Twin trunks are often a good option. In the years you'll spend developing the resulting tree you can grow one side more and restrict the other to get different diameters on each trunk. Both trunks will likely need several chops to give bends and trunk taper.

In all cases check where the internodes are in relation to your layer site and the initial bends. JM can only shoot from nodes which means future branches and bends (after a chop) can only develop at a node. Long internodes above the layer site will restrict what you can develop from the material without resorting to grafts.

Also consider sites with more than 2 branches. Japanese maples naturally grow as a multi stemmed tree. You can already see that form in this tree if you look at the base of the trunk.
They rarely grow in the form we typically associate with 'bonsai' (single trunk with horizontal branches). While 'bonsai' shaped JM are sometimes shown I prefer to develop bonsai that look like trees so the majority of my JM bonsai are styled as trees with several ascending sub-trunks.
Note that I'm not intending to bully you into one form or another, Just hoping to open your eyes to new possibilities. Your trees, your choice.

Newer growers tend to look at and plan with what's already there rather than what could be there in 3-5 years. I note you've only marked the initial bend in all these layers. Have you thought forward? Where's the next chop and what bend and taper than might add to your developing trunk? See above notes on nodes and internodes.