[xtolord] ligustrum sinense

[xtolord]

Entry for AusBonsai Shohin Progression Competition 2013-2014

Species name : ligustrum sinense
Common name : Privet
Original height of stock (from top of pot to tip of tree) : about 200mm
Where you obtained it from : From the garden, most probably a bird dropping
Cost of stock : free

Photos:

[xtolord]

Collected the tree with loads of precautions to get as much roots as possible.
Removed the more obvious rocks then proceeded to soften the soil all around the tree with water and slowly loosen the roots.






Not really visible on the shot, but there was a thick tap root preventing me from simply picking the plant up.
Ended up cutting it off.


The full plant, I'm holding it by the truncated tap root.



The rock


Using the long roots to tie the plant to the rock with some sphagnum moss to prevent the roots from drying out.
I did a messy job on this one.




Back into the ground, with one piece of ceramic underneath.
I also placed two rocks on either sides to stabilize the whole setup.







That's all for now.
Gonna wait for it to grow some and then wire and cut back.
Will check on the roots and stability of the whole setup in june or july.

[Neli]

Some people use kitchen foil for root over rock.
Good luck with it!

[xtolord]

I think I'm going to spoil this one, but ...
I'm thinking of using Walter Pall's Hedge Method on this tree to develop it. Or at least what I think I've managed to grasp...

So for the long term that's what I have in mind:

or


The tree is starting to pull off a new set of growth, the old branches have harden off and the old leaves have turned this dark green shade that for me means that its mature enough to feed the tree.


There are new growth appearing a bit all over the place, but mostly on the extreme ends of the topmost branches, and those are the ones that's developing faster.



So here's the little guy after the first "pruning" to get a rough shape.



I'll try to keep to that shape and most probably will cut back in July/September.

[Neli]

Darling just think about this:

wp's.jpg

Do you see tapper in the branches...Do you see well developed twiggy structure...This is 5 years of work.
Check some other progressions for the same period what people have achieved for the same period of time.Then decide.
I think you are not a commercial grower with 4000 bonsai to trim...and dont you enjoy trimming your branches one by one?

[xtolord]

You make me smile Neli
I love taking my time and trimming the tree branch by branch, and most of my trees were developped just like that.

Frankly I'd rather give it try on a tree that has nothing trained yet and see what real changes this will bring forth.
Well I've got no emotional attachment with this one... yet.
It has no girth, no ramification, few branches to choose a structure from, branches are too high up, not enough branches in the middle section, etc, etc

Right now if I want to be honest with myself, I should "Grow" the trunk instead of doing any ramification.
Get a trunk [with taper ] in place as well as a bunch of primary branches.
Then proceed with the creation and refinement of the ramification.

I can already estimate how it will behave in the following scenarios:
1. I leave it alone to grow :
> Most growth will be in the upper branches, with few to no growth in the lower section of the structure.
> The trunk will thicken up quickly but for a shohin size I would end up with next to nothing in terms of ramification.

2. If I start creating the ramification :
> This just won't do it. The trunk will never thicken up. I'll get a nice ramification on a stick by the time I reach the deadline.

3. If I use a sacrificial branch while doing the ramification :
> This could solve the issue of the thin trunk as well as provide me with a basic ramification structure.
> This would be my best course of action if I were to do it and have something presentable by the deadline.
> Only major issue would be the "big" scar left after the sacrificial branch is removed, but that can be hidden in the back.


Option 3 would be the way to go.
But I want to see how much back budding I can get and what type of structure I can create in the time limit for this competition with this type of material and with the method Walter Pall described.
Anyway with the amount of plants you've entered, my poor two little entries don't stand a chance [ just teasing you ]

[Neli]

Sounds like a very good plan to me Darling!
Sensible!
Just dont try experiments now...do it slowly and with the same sense of your plan. It is a competition...dont experiment now...Try something else for experimenting with the HM. Dont waste the limited time you have.

[xtolord]

Nothing major happened, except that it pulled some new growth following the previous "haircut"



Wiring and root checkup is scheduled roughly for end of July / start of September.

[xtolord]

Quick update:
Had lots of leggy growth and some slight thickening.
I was going to allow it to grow some more, but it seems like the inside shoots I was aiming for were dying off or were not growing at all.
I've been feeding for the past weeks and then removed the leggy growth.





I hoping to get lots of new growth near those cuts.
I should have looked into the roots too, but I'm going to leave it as it is for the next two months and check back on it in Nov.

[Neli]

Darling! He he he! What happened to the hedge method??? Are the roots growing close to the stone? Maybe use something to press them if not?

[xtolord]

Darling! He he he! What happened to the hedge method??? Are the roots growing close to the stone? Maybe use something to press them if not?

Hey Neli, ohh black bonsai belt sensei
Hope you had a blast out there darling [ Did u manage to buy a new set of fingers ? Just teasing you dear ]
Well at this stage its not like I had any other choice given what I have in mind for the tree:

> I need more ramification closer to the nebari, but right now the upper growth is shading the inner / lower structure and preventing any new growth. I've cleared up the leaves to promote inner growth, but it keeps pulling all the growth to the upper areas. I'm expecting a new growth cycle soon, so I had no other choice at this point.
> The place I made the cut is basically my apex or will be in the future.
> I'm expecting the lower ramifications to thicken up the base of the trunk, if ever they manage to take off.

I doubt this will be presentable before the end of the competition, but I think I could get something like a basic structure in place by then.

I have not yet checked on the roots, but from the amount of growth that it has pulled over the last months I'd say it has pull some new root growth alright. I need to get rid of several roots, there a just too many and too close together. As it is, in the long run I feel like it will just make a single thick mass of roots.
Maybe I'll tackle that in 4~6 weeks. With the pruning I made its going to need whatever reserves I has got to pull new growth, so I'm not going to touch the roots right now.

[Neli]

No new set of fingers...no sensei also....managed to break several branches on a tiny tree i was wiring today. I think I am becoming cross eyed from no sleeping due to the jet lag...walk around like a drunk person. But still eager to wire some more....
Lots of good plans for the little tree. And something that makes sense to me ....you have seen ...experienced...to a degree...that HM is not always what it seems. I would never do it.

[xtolord]

A bit of follow-up on this entry:
Last time I cut rather hard to force it to product new growth around the area where I hard pruned.
I was also going to wait a bit before checking on the roots and re-pot it,
so here's what happened over the last two months.

I finally got my new growth in the lower section, but the tree is still apically dominant.




Last monsth I finally decided to check on the roots and to repot it.
The section close to the wall was not producing any buds, so I placed it in a large training pot so that I can rotate it when I need to.
Sorry I seem to have misplaced some of the shots from the repotting.



And this morning I further controlled the growth to force some the lower, weaker buds to get stronger.
Before working on it:


A sacrificial branch:


The growth that I want to promote:


Anything above this "apex" will have to go, except for the sacrificial branch:


That's the current shape and I used my hand to get a rought visual of my ramification boundary.
Front:


Side:


Lastly I used a weight on the sacrificial branch to make it grow/thicken lower.

[Neli]

Looking good. I would have used the sacrifice branch as the new leader, And those top two branches (highest like a fork) As sacrifice branches, At least there will be a bit more taper.I like the way it is growing...but your roots should have been pressed to the rock long time ago. Did you see my ROR the roots are stuck to the stone.

[xtolord]

Looking good. I would have used the sacrifice branch as the new leader, And those top two branches (highest like a fork) As sacrifice branches, At least there will be a bit more taper.I like the way it is growing...but your roots should have been pressed to the rock long time ago. Did you see my ROR the roots are stuck to the stone.

I considered using the sacrificial branch as the new leader, but in the long run it will not fit with what I have in mind.
The current apex is what I want, and I need lower branches.

For the roots
I wonder if I should have done something more permanent earlier.
I changed the initial root position at least twice already. The first placement was too artificial.
When I'll check the roots in a few weeks, if there is a need for it, I'll probably readjust one last time and then bind it more strongly.
I will probably expose the whole stone too by then.

I've been working on it this morning.
Removing some undesired growth and doing some aesthetic cuts.
Will post those soon.