BentBarrel

I have read as much as I could find in my books and online about literati. My question is about trunk taper and thickness. I have ran across one growing in a thicket that gets little light or fights for it. Its about an inch and a half at the base and tapers over about 3 1/2 feet to the tip of the apex at just 1/8 inch or so. So its pretty much straight and taperless. Theres twists and bends here and there but nothing spectacular.

What I was thinking was either chopping it at the first branch and wiring it in a windswept or either wiring the whole tree and making is like an s form to shorten the heigt by at one third bending it back to the ground and another one third back upward with some twists.

The question or doubts that I have is the taper. ITs a younger tree I believe. Its a pine and the bark is pretty smooth. Theres really nothing to make the impression of age unless I jin the lower branches and make other mods like that. The taper is what makes it look like a young tree I believe. But looking through images of bunjin and literati trees they dont all look old to me.

What are your opinions on bunjin/literati as far as taper and trunk diameter.

I could always prune them and let them grow where they are.

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