An open window into the comings and goings of students and their trees attending our regular weekend and midweek bonsai classes under the ever watchful eyes of John Hanby.
Classroom Corner – Sometimes branches just have to go!
Ian arrived at a recent class with this very dramatic Juniper. The interaction of the live veins and the deadwood shari coupled with the movement in the trunk is very impressive.
There are basically two problems. One is that the foliage crown has now grown two heavy
for the tree and it’s trunk. The second is that some branches are coming out of the inside
of curves hiding the continuation of the dramatic movement in the upper section of the
trunk.
Some branches would have to be removed to deal with these problems whilst retaining the aesthetic appearance and balance in the foliage mass.
Having removed the branch on the right it was now a matter of looking at the two lower
branches. Notice how neat and open the curves in the upper trunk have become and now
they are completely visible.
The remaining foliage mass is still too heavy and will require a proper thinning out and a detailed wiring but already it looks more in scale with the trunk.
Removing large branches on a tree of this stature is always a daunting experience and one where students are happy to be able to obtain advice and help. Get it right and the tree is improved considerably……..get it wrong and….!!!…..do you and your trees need any such help?…..workshop places available now.
