Workshop shimpaku juniper

[amatbrewer]

I got this shimpaku in a workshop I attended a couple of years ago. After being damaged from a crash off the shelf during a storm, followed by a near death experience due to a irrigation failure, it spent the last two years or so recovering and now seems healthy.
So I am beginning to contemplate its future, but coming to the conclusion that it may be a bit above my skill level. I keep looking at it from various angles and just can't figure out what I should do with it. It is obvious I made a lot of mistakes to begin with and the damage from the fall sure did not help.

Any ideas or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Obscure_shadow]

Maybe a very tall pot would be good and a Cascade or semi Cascade styling?

 

[River's Edge]

I got this shimpaku in a workshop I attended a couple of years ago. After being damaged from a crash off the shelf during a storm, followed by a near death experience due to a irrigation failure, it spent the last two years or so recovering and now seems healthy.
So I am beginning to contemplate its future, but coming to the conclusion that it may be a bit above my skill level. I keep looking at it from various angles and just can't figure out what I should do with it. It is obvious I made a lot of mistakes to begin with and the damage from the fall sure did not help.

Any ideas or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
View attachment 257465View attachment 257466View attachment 257467View attachment 257468View attachment 257469View attachment 257471

I think the possibilities would be endless once you have improved/ changed the root base to allow a more upright planting. I would spend the next couple of years changing the root structure, it is hard to give you directions on that without seeing what is the current root situation. It may involve some approach grafts if one side is bare of roots. Start some cuttings right away just in case.

 

[Brian Van Fleet]

Cascades are difficult to keep healthy. Is this front an option; standing it more upright.

 

[ihaveaspaceship]

I like the first picture posted. a nice semi cascade.



@Brian Van Fleet Why are semi cascade trees difficult to take care of? I do not think I have heard this before.

 

[amatbrewer]

I like the first picture posted. a nice semi cascade.
@Brian Van Fleet Why are semi cascade trees difficult to take care of? I do not think I have heard this before.

If what I understand is correct most trees want to grow up. Going against that takes work. I made the mistake once of trying to do a cascade Wisteria and the damn thing would grow up almost faster than I could wire it down. I have a bar harbor juniper that seems to love growing in a downward direction but this seems to be an exception.

This shimpaku was originally intended to be a semi cascade...but that may not be the best option for this material, and may not be the best for my skills (or lack there of).

I am really intrigued with Brian's idea of turning it on its end...I had not even considered that...which after all is why I asked here.

 

[Bonsai Nut]

If what I understand is correct most trees want to grow up. Going against that takes work.

Agreed, to a point. It is somewhat species dependent, and there are a lot of different circumstances where "up" is not the "straight up" that you think.

I am currently working on developing a 6' shimpaku cascade. Yes, it would probably have grown "up" originally, but now that all of its strength is diagonally downwards, it doesn't really care as long as all foliage pads are getting sun and generating energy. I honestly can't say that the higher foliage pads are any stronger than the lower ones.

However try to do this with a pine, and you will get very different results. Pine cascades are (at least for me) extremely hard to develop and maintain.

 

[amatbrewer]

Agreed, to a point. It is somewhat species dependent, and there are a lot of different circumstances where "up" is not the "straight up" that you think.

I am currently working on developing a 6' shimpaku cascade. Yes, it would probably have grown "up" originally, but now that all of its strength is diagonally downwards, it doesn't really care as long as all foliage pads are getting sun and generating energy. I honestly can't say that the higher foliage pads are any stronger than the lower ones.

However try to do this with a pine, and you will get very different results. Pine cascades are (at least for me) extremely hard to develop and maintain.

Thanks. I knew my explanation was overly simplistic. I suspect if it were not for trees accommodating the conditions (e.g. a cliff side) and growing in a cascade or something suggesting it was at least possible, the style would probably not exist. But the basic idea is that it takes skill and/or specific conditions to make that a reality for many (most?) species of trees, hence the 'difficult' rather than something more along the lines of "can't".
Can a shimpaku be a cascade? Sure.
Can this material? Well, maybe, or even probably.
Can this material in MY care? ...er...um...uh...I think the images suggests the answer falls someplace between unlikely and hell no!
Can this material in MY care be a believable and attractive cascade? Ok, this is just getting depressing...I am going to stop here and poor myself a large Basil Hayden Rye.

 

[BunjaeKorea]

This tree is just asking to be a cascade. Listen to the tree and you will have a stunner in no time. Follow it's natural inclination.

 

[sorce]

This is the kinda tree you'll make upright, futz with, get frustrated, and sell to a professional who will see a great Cascade in it, pot it accordingly, style it and sell it for a couple stacks.

Look at that movement in the first pic.

Look again.

Shiiiiiit.

Sorce

 

[Maloghurst]

Semi-cascade.

 

[BunjaeKorea]

Thanks. I knew my explanation was overly simplistic. I suspect if it were not for trees accommodating the conditions (e.g. a cliff side) and growing in a cascade or something suggesting it was at least possible, the style would probably not exist. But the basic idea is that it takes skill and/or specific conditions to make that a reality for many (most?) species of trees, hence the 'difficult' rather than something more along the lines of "can't".
Can a shimpaku be a cascade? Sure.
Can this material? Well, maybe, or even probably.
Can this material in MY care? ...er...um...uh...I think the images suggests the answer falls someplace between unlikely and hell no!
Can this material in MY care be a believable and attractive cascade? Ok, this is just getting depressing...I am going to stop here and poor myself a large Basil Hayden Rye.

Stop whining and whinging and look at plenty of cascade and semi cascade pics, get inspired, pop it in a medium height square pot, wire it and made a good cascade before I go there and Mitsubishi you upside the head.