AusBonsai

Hi guys
I bought this juniper yesterday and have been thinking about what I can do with it. At first I thought of a twin trunk. Two good leaders and it makes sense, but then I got the idea of twisting the two together with the plan of turning one into dead wood later on down the track to give a nice contorted deadwood/livewood mix.
has anyone done this? Is this possible? Is ita good idear or am I doomed to fail?
All comments welcome.
Cheers
Damo

You dont think it will look like a topiary a bit? But it is a good thinking. I will remove the bark first, twist them and tie them together, bend to shape...and put in the ground to fuse them...That is if you really want to do it.

I wasn't really thinking topiary. more like twisted deadwood.

If you haven't read this thread yet, I would recommend it as it sounds like this may be what you're trying to accomplish. It looks like it might take several years, but you would end up with some really great material.

I don't think I would try to fuse the two together into one trunk, but I think having the two intertwined with one branch eventually as shari could be really interesting. I don't see it coming off as a topiary though.

If I understand your idea correctly I think the biggest problem would be removing the bark from one of the twisted trunks if it is close to the other.
Bending young junipers is a great idea but i think plaiting or twisting the trunks around each other will create problems.

Hi Guys
ok I have gone down a different road with this tree, one more obvious, but im not sure if I want to keep the cascade or not. Im thinking of bringing it back up straight and chopping it for a Jin.
Ideas welcome.

Doesn't do anything for me as it is Damo. C shaped curve from ground to the cascade branch doesn't look much like extreme mountain conditions. I know you have not made the decision yet but 2 different trunk lines - cascade and upright doesn't go well together either. Cascade can have an apex branch but short and stunted so the emphasis is on the cascade.

Keep at it, something will work out.

Lots more movement and tight bends required I think.

Ken

I'd chop the cascade off. I'm no expert though

Thanks guys
All good points. I plan to do some modification on this tonight so I'll post my efforts.

I agree with the above, there just isn't much harmony in those trunks. On a twin trunk, both trunks should tell a similar story regarding the forces they have dealt with in order to survive. They will be slightly different, but very similar. Upright and cascade tell very different stories, so probably don't work really well together.

There are lots of options here though, and the tree should still be very flexible. Look forward to your updates after tonight's work!

OK
so here is what I have done to fix this juniper(I hope fix anyway ).
I shortened the cascade trunk, brought it up and trimmed and stripped for a jin. I added a little bit more movement in the main trunk and adjusted some or the branches to give a better overall flow. Please comment, I need all the help I can get on this one.
Damo