Shohin dwarf maple

[Adair M]

View attachment 132844 View attachment 132845 View attachment 132846 This one was screwed on to a board last year then placed in a larger pot with akadama based soil. The roots are definitely better this time around so it's back onto the board and into the akadama for another year.

What??? You mean the Ebihara method actually works?

That thread MarkyScott created and I contributed to was just an April Fool's joke! I can't believe you actually believed it!

Kidding!

Tree looks great Dave! Japanese Maples really do like akadama, and the board really helps the nebari. Keep on keeping on!

 

[sorce]

April Fool's joke! I

The grafting section could totally pass for this.

Sorce

 

[Dav4]

Well, that left branch has continued to fight me and the overall design of the tree. Despite my best attempts at carving it, the branch just got uglier and uglier. Well, it got lost today . At least for now, this one is going to be styled in a very non-maple form… You can see the tree on the left in the first photo, from 10 days ago. Here’s the tree today, in the last two shots.

 

[TyroTinker]

Maybe not traditional maple form but it still looks good and healthy too. Just needs more time with you and it will still turn out great I bet.

 

[Dav4]

Lots of new growth since the heavy cut back. Made lot's of salad with his smaller friend... hoping for more bud backing here, too.

 

[Paulpash]

Has anyone found a dependable way to chop off a substantial JM branch and NOT have dieback? Must be either my technique or timing but it happens to mine far too often!

 

[ConorDash]

Has anyone found a dependable way to chop off a substantial JM branch and NOT have dieback? Must be either my technique or timing but it happens to mine far too often!

I’m very shortly going to chop off the top section of a spiral trunk on my Acer P. Given what you’ve said, I think I’ll leave a good inch or 2 more than I planned... for safety..

 

[Dav4]

Has anyone found a dependable way to chop off a substantial JM branch and NOT have dieback? Must be either my technique or timing but it happens to mine far too often!

Cut back to a shoot during the growing season and you’ll be fine

 

[discusmike]

Seedling grown you can get away with trunk chopping to a node with no branches and having buds breAk,cultivars cut to a branch kike Dave mentioned or you take a chance at killing your tree,just my experience with them.Dave,i think you will have a cool tree in the long run!

 

[papymandarin]

to avoid die back do such cuts only when the tree is in active vegetation (may-august), also remember maples only push growth from nodes, so whatever you do if you cut in the middle of an internode, you will have die back till the first node below the cut (unlike an elm for instance which can sprout new growth from the cut margin itself)

 

[Dav4]

This is another “probably putting into a show pot too soon“ scenario… But what the hell!

 

[Brian Van Fleet]

Moss up that soil surface; that’s sitting really high...and I understand the temptation all too well. ?

 

[Paulpash]

I think that you could have a go at growing out a few long whips for thread grafting next season. Putting one just above the branch you removed will look good structurally just outside the bend and will help to pull resources up and around the cut point to help close the wound.

 

[BackyardBonsai]

This is another “probably putting into a show pot too soon“ scenario… But what the hell!
View attachment 229246View attachment 229247View attachment 229248

Bright side... Less soil needed.

 

[Dav4]

Moss up that soil surface; that’s sitting really high...and I understand the temptation all too well. ?

I applied milled sphag moss right after the pic and watered it in. It'll get some real moss prior to the show in a few weeks....

 

[Dav4]

Bright side... Less soil needed.

You got that right! Most of my trees take soil measured in gallons instead of handfuls.

 

[JudyB]

Nice roots! looks good in the pot, show us a mossed pic?

 

[james]

You have a nice start: nebari, trunkline, taper and first branch. However, 2/3 the way up the tree, multiple branches emerge, several of which are heavy, and on inside of a nice curve. This reverse taper will produce a big blob in the middle of your tree, which will be very difficult to fix. If it were mine, I would remove all the branches at this level except the small one to the right (likely, not all at once, first year the complex of branches on inside of curve, second year heavy branch to the right. Next branches would be to the back and left higher up. Let the apex run, build next segment of tree and get the big wounds healed.

 

[Dav4]

Nice roots! looks good in the pot, show us a mossed pic?

Looking for the moss now

 

[Dav4]

You have a nice start: nebari, trunkline, taper and first branch. However, 2/3 the way up the tree, multiple branches emerge, several of which are heavy, and on inside of a nice curve. This reverse taper will produce a big blob in the middle of your tree, which will be very difficult to fix. If it were mine, I would remove all the branches at this level except the small one to the right (likely, not all at once, first year the complex of branches on inside of curve, second year heavy branch to the right. Next branches would be to the back and left higher up. Let the apex run, build next segment of tree and get the big wounds healed.

Thanks for the advice. I'll need to consider it with the tree in front of me... I suspect you're on to something, though.