New Prunus Mahaleb Yamadori

Prunus Mahaleb is one of my favourite species and this new, big example has joined my garden in early spring. In my opinion the tree has good potential to become a strong and powerful bonsai in the future.

Prunus Mahaleb - Yamadori

Prunus Mahaleb - Yamadori

New growth from the very old trunk

Carpinus Orientalis Yamadori

The spring part of the collecting season is more or less over and next to some other trees, three nice Carpinus Orientalis joined my collection. 

Carpinus Orientalis Yamadori - Single trunk

Powerful nebari

Carpinus Orientalis Yamadori - Double trunk

Nice and mature nebari

Carpinus Orientalis Yamadori - Multiple trunk

Carpinus Orientalis nebari

Juniper restyling

Last year I repoted this Juniper in its first bonsai pot and a new perspective of design came up in my head. This year I restyled the tree and the main goal was to make the tree more dynamic, the crown less linear, more compact and hide the long uninteresting straight left first branch.

Juniper 2012-04 - After repoting and before the styling

Juniper 2013-04 - After the restyling

Prunus Mahaleb next step

This Prunus Mahaleb was collected by myself and last year I styled it for the first time. This spring, if we can call it spring,  it was time to make the text step. 

I was working on the deadwood, branch structure and transplanted the tree in a new pot (not a final pot).

2011-03 - Prunus Mahaleb (Yamadori)
starting matetrial

2013-03 - Prunus Mahaleb (Yamadori)
after the second styling

The tree is developing quite fast. Of course the branches need a couple of additional years to develop and mature, I need to find the right pot, the apex has to be developed,.... but for now I’m happy with the progress. There is only one thing which is bothering me more and more and this is the inverse taper  issue in the lover part of the trunk. So this will be one of the areas where I  will look for solutions to solve this problem.

Result of the deadwood styling

Result of the deadwood styling

Result of the deadwood styling

"Spring" 2013

Weather is.... different this spring.

Juniperus Sabina

Abies Picea

Pinus Mugo

Juniperus Procumbens Nana

Abies Picea

Chamaecyparis Pisifera Bulevard

Outside is still winter, but inside I have real spring already.

Carpinus Betulus

Workshop with Enrico Savini

I wish there would be more days like this. Days where knowledge, good will and positive energy come together in the form of one creative group of individuals. Tomaž and I went to Italy for two days to attend a workshop with Enrico Savini and while having interesting debates and intense work, this two day passed in a blink of an eye.

Enrico Savini working on a Juniperus from his
student from Switzerland

Tomaž worked on his Taxus

Nice and very positive working environment

But despite the feeling that time passed in a blink of an eye some things will last for a long time. Lots of new knowledge, new experience and a great feeling will stay for a long time. Next to all this a new Juniper went home with me and became part of my collection.

New Juniperus ready to go home

Some detail of the great natural deadwood

I was extremely looking forward to finally take my Juniper home with me but the key purpose of the visit was to work on trees and above all learning. This time I worked on quite unusual Prunus Mahaleb, which became his first styling. The focus of the first styling was designing the dead wood, branch selection and basic positioning of the primary branches.

Prunus Mahaleb yamadori starting material

Deadwood after the styling

Prunus Mahaleb before and after the first styling

Carpinus Betulus next step

I took one next step with my Carpinus Betulus and despite that it develops fast and quite OK in the last years it has still some things which have to be changed in the next step. Its one of the first trees I collected by myself and some kind of my mirror of the learning process. After i styled the tree I analysed it by myself and discuss it with my bonsai friends and the result is a roadmap for improvement of the tree and of course new experience and knowledge. 

Current state of  the tree

The tree was collected in 2010 and each year one development step was done. In the next photo all four stages of development are visible.

Development form 2010 till 2013

The main errors that ware discovered in the analysis proses are the trunk line in the upper part, the strong nebari is ok, but is to linear and can be much more interesting if additional smaller roots will be developed. Of course the  branch structure which is still in a early development stage needs additional time to improve and mature. I like to develop a good branch structure with the natural proportions of size compared to the trunk size, the right narrowing of each branch, the right proportions for primary, secondary,...branches, and of course a mature ramification. So this three things are the main areas on which I will work in the next development stages. And maybe this year the tree will be transplanted in its first pot.

Possible pot from John Pitt