AusBonsai

This was a purchase for "The Hacker" unfortunately he let me down and couldn't find the time in his schedule to dig it out . I'm not 100% sure but from the research i have done i looks like it is a Mt Fuji . Me being responsible for the purchase , I made the decision to travel to Melbourne and collect the tree . It was around 3 m high /wide so i whipped it back with the loppers to 2m and dug it out .The trunk is 200mm in diameter and the base below ground level is close to 400mm , the owner estimated the tree at close to 60 years old ??? . Time will tell when i sever some of the leaders and do a ring count .

My labourer spent the day talking rubbish with the owner , so it was up to me to do the hard work , he was way too rough anyway. I did receive a little help to slide it into the ute , note there is not even a speck of dirt or mud on the hired help .With it safely loaded and wrapped in shade cloth its off into the wild blue yonder .

Once home after a 12 hour round trip i slid the tree out and into a bath of seasol power feed overnight , then without assistance moved it around behind the house out of the sun and wind and potted it into a 900mm square grow box . It has had some damaged done to the lower trunk , possibly 2 leaders have broken off in the past and left untreated it was infested with an ant nest and plenty of slaters had made a home . A quick carve with the die grinder to clean up the rot and deadwood . This will be left alone and de-flowered to utilize the energy for growing the foliage . Hopefully it will survive as i have a 2-3 year plan for a single trunk 2 man tree and and "The Hacker" might get one of the numerous layers i plan to set in a few years time if and when it recovers and or survives . This has definitely been a real back breaker , one i didn't need .

Cheers Alpineart

There you are telling me to do as I am told. No wonder your bloody leg is taking so long to heal.
Nice future tree though, he had better do something to earn those Airlayers mate.

Cheers mate, Pup

That is an absolute monster alpine, congratulations on getting it back in one piece. Look forward to seeing how it develops.

Anthony

A lot of work for one man!!
Do look forward to seeing where you take this though Alpine, some beautiful material you've got there

Hi Pup , mate my instructions are to do some bending exercises on the lower leg , guess the back couldn't handle the workout . They tell me no pain no gain , doesn't always work that way .
I've got the trunk , "The Hacker" might be lucky enough to get a layer if they take . Never tried layering a cherry but they grow well from cuttings of all sorts so there is hope .

Hi Freckl , mate the ute was loaded with every possible tool i could think of , hand winch , slings , skids/ramps , trolley , pick , shovels , and no crow bar , the owner supplied one which was great. Trouble was only one operator and a big gas bagger , he did keep the lady occupied for a few hours with idle chatter while i tackled the job at hand . Almost 4 hours to do the deed , Linden was that tired he slept all the way home.

Hi Jason , mate i'm usually the only reliable worker when needed at short notice , Its hard to get good help anywhere these days .This was grown on a compacted clay base so the tap root went sideways with the main stay roots , only 300mm from top to bottom of the root mass so i managed to get most of the required feeder roots close to the trunk , hoping its enough .

Cheers Fella's . Alpine

Wow, that's what I call dedication!!! Few could question your dedication to bonsai. Superb specimen mate...Good luck with that.

John

Hi Jester , mate it is an awesome specimen , i have been looking for one for years , just not quite this big .Hopefully the layers planned will do justice for such a unique tree .I have taken a few big root cuttings as well so we will see if and how they grow .

I was down sizing , this is just another hiccup in the plan .

Cheers Alpine

Well i sharpened the saw and ripped into the trunk first attempt at paint This is the trunk i saw the moment i clapped my peepers on the tree . Makes for a tough looking unit at around 1.2meters high witha 200mm trunk , hopefully i can lift the base up and show off the 400mm root mass as part of the exposed Narebri .

Cant wait to actually get to cut the other branches off after the planned layers are taken off of course , A couple of years away if i can keep the Stihl in the shed it will be a good thing .

Cheers Alpineart

Nice lines Alpine.

Big project - well beyond my spatial ability!

Great trunk alpine. Can't help seeing a frog with its head stuck in the sand though.

You are a Trojan.

Squizz

Hi Biocs , mate it does have a very nice flowing design , willingness gives me the ability to tackle the no so impossible .

Hi squizzy , mate that's one bloody big frog , with some shoots and in time it will be a unique old cherry , hopefully as impressive as some of those half century old Japanese specimens .

Cheers Guys Alpine

Going to be a cracker Alpine! Great material mate and in good hands now.

Hi Shannon, only time will tell . Its safer here than with "The Hacker" .At least if i kill it i get to learn about this species , already spent a few hours over a couple of days removing the flowerbuds before they open up , another couple of sessions over the next week and they should all be removed .

I plan to layer a couple of collected cherries i have here to see how the go and how long it takes . This will gauge the time required for the layers on this mother that are planed for the future . If the test on the collected stock fails then its out with the Stihl and "Hook in roy" to say the least .

Cheers Alpine

Well this has shot like a Trident Maple and is back budding well . I have checked the root mass and there is a large white mass of roots throughout the scoria . If its not healthy them i'm a done dog . Time to set a few layers i have once again i have used the open pot method that has proved itself here many times .I have placed shade cloth over the pots to prevent the mix from being washed out with the hose . I set five layers over the last few days but 7 are required to balance the branches back ready for stage 2 of layering next year .There is still plenty of foliage to feed the main trunk .The roots cuttings taken are growing strong so hopefully the layers will do the same .

Cheers Alpineart

This is an update on the progress of the tree .Its growing so bloody well its coming out in flower again .All the branches have new growth and most likely flower buds, i did remove the majority of the flower buds pre season to reduce the energy on the newly potted root mass and to stimulate leaf growth .

The roots cuttings or be it a few of them have survived the heat , the layers have struck roots from what i can see without disturbing the pots too much so it a good result considering the damage done over Summer to the majority of my stock .

Looking forward to removing the layers but if there is any doubt i will slip pot them into bigger pots and leave in place for another season . An additional 3 layers will be set in Winter/Spring as the planned trunk has sprouted new branches in the right places, it should make for a nice monster Fuji in the coming years .

Cheers Alpineart