Chamaecyparis Pisifera Bulevard

This tree is with me almost from the start of my bonsai trip, so around five years and actually the first post on my blog was written about this tree. All this time I constantly worked on the tree and step by step it is slowly improving. 

Chamaecyparis Pisifera Bulevard
- five years of progress

Last year the tree was exhibited the first time at the European Bonsai Exhibition EBA-2012 in Ljubljana. And while I'm looking at the photos now, I think it was not ready for showing it at an exhibition. Especially not ready for an Exhibition at a EBA level. But Ok, they didn't throw tomatoes at me and it was a positive experience.

Chamaecyparis Pisifera Bulevard - EBA 2012

This spring I repoted the tree in the same pot with a new position and left it to grow and gain energy. At the evening of Mick Jaggers 70th birthday, with a good and long Rolling Stones playlist, I started the next styling, changed the wire and in the next days worked on some details.

Chamaecyparis Pisifera Bulevard
- after the last styling

At the moment I'm happy with the result and maybe if the tree develops nice in the future and gains the right maturity, someday in a couple of years, it will be truly ready for an exhibition. Maybe even before Micks 80th birthday. 

Prunus Mahaleb progress

I collected this Prunus Mahaleb in spring of 2011 and in the first two years the tree made nice progress. I hope it will continue to develop with the same pace so it can be exhibition ready in the next 5 to 6 years.

Prunus Mahaleb after collection 2011-02

After a year of rest I started to style the tree in spring of 2012. Unfortunately I broke one of the main branches, but what is gone is gone and the good thing with Prunus Mahaleb is that new branches can be developed quite fast so in three to four years a new branch with a similar diameter will be developed form scratch. After the styling the tree was completely defoliated and re-wired in June 2012.

In spring of 2013 I transplanted the tree in a training pot, changed the angle and the old soil with a new substrat and made an additional styling focused on deadwood and branches structure. My goal was to develop a good basic branch structure with the right dynamic movement of each branch and especially  start the development of branches with natural proportions.

Prunus Mahaleb 2013-03

Despite that the tree was transplanted and styled in spring the growth was strong and vigorous so I decided to defoliate the tree completely in the June 2013 and make some new adjustments to the branch structure. 

Prunus Mahaleb 2013-06

Styled deadwood

Prunus Mahaleb 2013-07

The main structure of primary and secondary branches is done for the moment. The focus of the future development will be mostly on developing stronger branches and maintain the good structure, proportions and branch movement of each single branch.

I strongly believe that a quality deciduous tree needs to have, next to all other characteristics that make a good bonsai, a natural, mature and proportional branches structure compared to the trunk and of course with the same design principles of proportions for all additional branches (secondary vs. primary, tertiary vs. secondary and so on).

Progress from 2011 to 2013