longevity of tanuki?

ElGringo

Hi all, hope you're having a nice weekend.

The tital suggests what this thread is about. One of the critisisms of tanuki is that the deadwood employed in the technique will rot over time, even if treated with a preservative before use, and with lime sulpher every year (also to bleach the wood). But surely this only applies to wood that is kept constantly damp, say if it was touching the potting medium. The tanuki could be stood on a brick with in the pot to elevate it out of the potting medium slightly, and this may help to extend it's 'life' (and stabilise it to prevent it falling over).

Please take a look at this tree:

http://pictures.bonsaitalk.com/show...=medium&cat=500

its not tanuki (or if it is its a very good one), but see how the shari is touching the potting medium and the moss? surely this would encourage rotting from near the base?

So, how long can we expect a tanuki to last for? If the deadwood of a tanuki could be kept dry (ignoring periodical rain) then would it last the lifetime of the tree attached to it? Just some thoughts

Regards

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Richard

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bonsaimeister

good question

I hardly know anything about tanuki, but I do remember that Colin Lewis adresses this issue pretty in depth when he made the juniper tanuki in 'The Art of Bonsai' I think he used some kind of white car filler at the base of the deadwood to prvent rot along with the classical preservitive and lime sulpher, etc. If you can find the book check it out.

bonsaimeister

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RedPine

Mmm tanuki...I want this one . http://www.penjing-bonsai.com/image...erus_tanuki.jpg



Here is a pretty detailed course on making a tanuki. http://forum.bonsaitalk.com/f15/100-juniper-14328.html

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