New large trunk trident maple - need advice

[Jpour6]

Hi friends,
After years of looking, I finally found a large trunk trident and purchased one to have as my life long project . The tree was field grown for 20+ years and just out into a grow box two weeks ago. Had a few questions and would appreciate any feedback:

1) how long should I leave in grow box? Should I wait until large wounds are healed before moving into a pot ( wait a few years)
2) where would be the next chop to develop the apex?is it better to wait for large wound in the back to heal before chopping again?
3) which branches should I remove or , should I wait until growing season to let tree push growth to develop root system in box before doing any further structural work
4) there are some forward facing branches, any thoughts on whether to keep and just prune back close to trunk or remove all together

Any other comments or ideas would be much appreciated.

 

[SilverCeder]

IMO, I’d leave it alone until early spring 2026. If it responds well, grows long shoots this next year, then I might prune it/ chop it at that time. If it acts lethargic this next year, I wouldn’t do anything to it. I wouldn’t repot for at least 2-3 years. Let the tree tell you what it can handle though. Just my experience though.

 

[Shibui]

How long to leave in a grow box depends on many factors - what you are happy with in terms of development, how well you care for it, how much it grows, etc. Personally I leave tridents in grow box until cuts are almost closed and main branch structure is established. Healing virtually stops when the tree goes down into a bonsai training pot, even a larger training pot slows growth. Great to develop finer ramification but not so great for healing cuts.

Usually better to let a new transplant alone to get the new roots re-established but tridents are very resilient so you could remove any obviously unusable branches at this stage, especially where there are extra branches close to the big chop or where extra branches are causing inverse taper. There's already slight inverse taper at the big chop. The healing cut will add some extra thickening there and any excess branches will add even more so pick 1 or, at most, 2 possible useful branches and get rid of others. The node above has the same issue so remove extra branches there as a priority too.

Now that it is in a box growth will slow a bit and so will healing of scars. To speed healing we need growth above the chop which usually means the new apex. It is now a juggling act - allowing enough growth up there to help heal the chop but not letting the new apex get too thick because that means another chop to heal later. It looks like the new leader is already a good size so is probably ready to chop again up there and then grow it again. I'd probably consider that chop for summer - if growth is good, or next winter. Leave the leader for now to help with growth and root regeneration this coming spring.
Same story with front branches. Obvious front branches can be removed next summer, if growth appears good, or next winter - before they get too big - but should help root recovery in spring so leave them for now. When you do remove those I'd probably cut flush so it will heal neatly. Lower trunk especially should be seen rather than hidden behind front branches.

Congrats on choosing a trident with some trunk taper. We see far too many beginners choose straight poles and hope to create instant bonsai. Fingers crossed the surface roots are a good start on decent trident nebari. From the trees I see posted here it appears US field growers concentrate on quickest trunk growth as the first and only and don't seem to bother with root arrangement.

 

[Jpour6]

How long to leave in a grow box depends on many factors - what you are happy with in terms of development, how well you care for it, how much it grows, etc. Personally I leave tridents in grow box until cuts are almost closed and main branch structure is established. Healing virtually stops when the tree goes down into a bonsai training pot, even a larger training pot slows growth. Great to develop finer ramification but not so great for healing cuts.

Usually better to let a new transplant alone to get the new roots re-established but tridents are very resilient so you could remove any obviously unusable branches at this stage, especially where there are extra branches close to the big chop or where extra branches are causing inverse taper. There's already slight inverse taper at the big chop. The healing cut will add some extra thickening there and any excess branches will add even more so pick 1 or, at most, 2 possible useful branches and get rid of others. The node above has the same issue so remove extra branches there as a priority too.

Now that it is in a box growth will slow a bit and so will healing of scars. To speed healing we need growth above the chop which usually means the new apex. It is now a juggling act - allowing enough growth up there to help heal the chop but not letting the new apex get too thick because that means another chop to heal later. It looks like the new leader is already a good size so is probably ready to chop again up there and then grow it again. I'd probably consider that chop for summer - if growth is good, or next winter. Leave the leader for now to help with growth and root regeneration this coming spring.
Same story with front branches. Obvious front branches can be removed next summer, if growth appears good, or next winter - before they get too big - but should help root recovery in spring so leave them for now. When you do remove those I'd probably cut flush so it will heal neatly. Lower trunk especially should be seen rather than hidden behind front branches.

Congrats on choosing a trident with some trunk taper. We see far too many beginners choose straight poles and hope to create instant bonsai. Fingers crossed the surface roots are a good start on decent trident nebari. From the trees I see posted here it appears US field growers concentrate on quickest trunk growth as the first and only and don't seem to bother with root arrangement.

Thank you so much , your feedback was great and much appreciated

 

[Gabler]

Thank you so much , your feedback was great and much appreciated

Be sure to update us! We all love to see a tree develop.

 

[Jpour6]

Be sure to update us! We all love to see a tree develop.

I most definitely will!!!

 

[Jpour6]

Photos of nebari