Oak Tree Bonsai...

JBMorrey

I live in Texas and there alot of old oak trees that have 1 or 2 large branches that will actually lay on the ground for 10-15 feet and then come up...I looked for picture examples but could not find any on the internet. I was thinking of doing a Bonsai with those characteristics. Does anyone have any examples of this done in Bonsai? And also what tree would take well to some heavy wiring and such? And does anyone have some tips on attempting this?

James

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RedPine

Sounds like you mean the "live oak form",I have only seen it done with boxwoods so far but it is one of my favorite forms.Here is a link to some pics of a boxwood being trained in the form. http://forum.bonsaitalk.com/showthr...ghlight=boxwood

Attached Images

oakliveFL.jpg (67.9 KB, 81 views)

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JBMorrey

Yea....that picture is pretty close, I'll have to drive down my street tomorrow and take a few pictures to post. you know it's funny, I've only been attempting Bonsai now for about 6 mos. But it sure does change how you look at a tree....

RedPine

I will look forward to your pics.Nothing says bonsai like an old oak.

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Alasdair

I'm sure you could manage this with ficus species aswell, maybe even with a few aerial roots between the low branch and the ground.

I'm guessing that going for this kind of style in bonsai would involve a very wide circular pot to gain the desired effect.

Al

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zen

Google "angel oak" it's an live oak in S.C. (I think) it grows some limbs down into the ground, and then back up. I have thought of doing something like this,...it might have to be done with grafts and it stands to reason that will have to be a rather large bonsai in a huge pot,...the cost of the pot may be prohibitive so you might think of a slab and due to weight you may want to make a slab from hypertufa.

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Ralph

Info on live oak style bonsai:


http://www.lcbsbonsai.org/Newslette...iveOakStyle.htm


In Texas, the most common plants used for live oak style are: boxwood, yaupon holly, and of course live oaks.

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Bonsaifreak

Ralph:

Interesting link about Texas oak-style bonsai. Our club has a dig coming up this weekend in brush country, near Mathis. I'm not sure if oak is endemic to that area but I'll be looking for it. Typical yamadori species in our area include: anacua, texas ebony, colima, hackberry, mustang grape, kidneywood and mesquite (the latter being particularly fastidious with a low survival rate after collection). We also find tamarix along the coast.

Jorge

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eminart

There are (or were at least) a lot of live oaks growing in that style in New Orleans. They were very impressive. A couple of them can be seen in the movie, "A Love Song for Bobby Long (which I highly recommend ). I think it would be a difficult style to pull off on a small scale, but done correctly it would well worth the effort.

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