AusBonsai

I have just spent the morning lifting and root pruning older tridents, these trees have been in the ground and root pruned every year for the last 8-10 years so the work is sweet and easy. As it happens I am putting them in pots but if they were going back into the ground the treatment would be the same.
Craigw

Just a quick q from a newbie who needs to trunk chop and root chop some maples soon... is it not better to do these in August rather than early in winter?

the later you do them in winter is generally better, But if you are nurseryman like craig and shibui,l you have to start now so they can get thru the workload before spring.
Leaving them too long is worse than doing them early

Ken

Thanks KC

Hey craig, how much would the tree you put in pic one sell for?

Wow! What a base.. how did you get that on that maple!

.. and the roots, is it a matter of just pruning it year or 2 to get it like that ?

Excellent Craig, very nice foundations your laying there.

Nice, so when are they being delivered?

You can rootprune tridents any time over winter. I have already done some of mine.

The specimen, There is a tiny bit more than

just pruning it year or 2 to get it like that ?

knowing what to cut and how to cut and where to cut helps a lot and even then not all work out as well as this one. There are a few that end up on the scrapheap no matter how experienced you might be.

The reason I am confident about root pruning this early in the winter is I know exactly what I am going to find when I lift the trees, These trees have been grown from seed and had their first root prune a couple of months after the seed germinated when the first leaves had hardened off and they have been done annualy ever since so any roots which need pruning are at the most 12 months old and very vigorous, the more fibre you have the less traumatic the root prune is. If you are planning to do work on untrained stock which will need heavy pruning it would be best to leave it as late as possible.
To achieve a good root base you need to have a good radial root system and some well place sacrifice branches. If the roots are evenly spread and at the same level on the trunk then as the tree develops the roots will pull the base out, any downward growing or crossed roots will negate this effect. It also helps to scar the underside of the trunk with parrot beak cutters so that its slightly hollowed out.
This kind of root work should be standard for anyone producing pre-bonsai.
Craigw

awesome info, thanks Craig....

Root pruning I shall go ! Top notch info thanks Craig