A Random User
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Ok, so I had this Juniper that I had gotten from a Big Box store for 37 dollars...
The above picture is after the first initial styling that I did 3 plus years ago.
I then decided that I loved the foliage and it's ease of putting out adult growth, I also loved the fine branching and the amount that it had, but hated the straight trunk and the lack of ability to do much with it.
So, I decided that it needed some movement, and that more than likely it would need a lot of movement if I was going to try and get the tree nice and tight and compact. Now, the only problem with that, is that a trunk this size was not going to bend as much as I decided I wanted, on it's own... That it would need some help, for it was to thick of a mass. After much thought I came to the realization that if the tree's trunk was split and if the two portions were bent individually, it would allow for the vision I intended for the tree. And hey... It again was only a 37 dollar tree, so why not? The lessons learned would be worth that!
I got to work using a jig saw actually, with a metal blade. Reason being that the fine tooth of the blade and jig saws smooth and easy cutting ability, would be much more precise in it's cutting than a sawzall which might just shake the whole tree to death! Below are the pictures of the tree's trunk split. You will note, that I did not cut all the way up, completely cutting the trunk in two, but instead, stopped just below, the main branches coming off up top as to not have to worry about killing off any of them.
The tree was then wrapped with bicycle inter-tube , and then wired. Now before I go any further, I would like to discuss the use of a bicycle inter-tube as binding... First off let me say that it does work fairly well, but will never give the compression one would get from using raffia. However, if in a bind and you don't have any raffia available, just make sure that when wrapping, you apply as tight as possible. Also, just as when using raffia, you need to over lap a little bit of the previous layer.
The two split trunks that were wrapped individually were then wired individually as well. Now, when one plans on doing very heavy bends, through experience, I have found it more beneficial in the instances to avoid following the rules of wrapping wire together, and instead would suggest that one actually separates them. By this I mean, run one wire... then when running the second wire, don't bump it up against the first, but rather run it down the middle of where you ran the previous one. Reasoning behind this is that it actually will support better and will help prevent any blow outs. Usually where this where happen will be between wraps... laying another run of wire in-between, minimalizes this distance. Lastly it will allow for more option to where the material could be bent.
Below is a picture of the juniper after bending. The tree's branches and foliage had been wired, before the work was done, so it was then all just moved into place. It was then allowed to recover for the rest of the year. This weekend it finally made it into a pot. Was busy trying to get a whole bunch of things repotted, so I was unable to get any photos... will try and get one tomorrow.
