Betula pendula

salt

Dear all,
This is my silver birch collected in 1996 (height 68 cm, 27 inch). It was one of my first yamadoris. During the years I have had a lot of trouble styling it. First I tried to make a informal upright, but the lower branches died. I tried to thread graft new branches, but they didnt take. Then I tried a weeping style, but I was never satisfied. Now it is almost a literati, but it has too much foliage to be a "real" literati. I am not really sure where to go from here. Comments are welcome! Also, it really needs a better pot!


Regards
Magnus

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kenoath

there are many possibilites -it has appeal for me as literati.or if birch can be aerial layered and trunk chopped -try layering at the branch chop just below first wire-and then after removal ,trunk chop below first bend-I'm not sure how birch react to major work like this so get as much information as possible.

blofeld

IMO this tree has a lot of interesting features i.e. nebari, natural-looking curves and beautiful bark structure. You said that you had a lot of diebacks of branches which seems to be common for birch species. It determines your birch for literati - here's my virt - that's how i see the story to begin.
Regards
Blofeld

Attached Images

2005-06-27_214451_bjork1050627liten.jpg (60.3 KB, 89 views)

Carl_Bergstrom

Yes - I like the tree very much as-is, as well. It's one of the nicest birches I've seen, and certainly the nicest literati birch that I've seen.



No, no, no!

The major strength of this tree is the movement and subtle taper in the trunk. You'd destroy both via the plan above.

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Where to go next? I'd get it into an appropriate pot for the style (I'd probably choose a rustic nanban pot), and be sure to plant the trunk in the center of the pot.

Best regards,
Carl

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rockm

I agree with Crow. Touch that trunk and you will ruin the tree. It isn't "almost" a literati. It IS a literati and quite a nice one at that. Literati is one of the most misunderstood styles. It isn't so much stark, sparse and spare, as it is lean and graceful. This tree is both. I wouldn't worry about the quantity of leaves. They're fine.

jemmick

I also agree with the notion to leave the tree as is !!! Just repot in an appropriate pot and enjoy it . IMHO to do anything else would do a diservice to this tree and your enjoyment of it . I wish I had one with this character!!! Not every tree falls within our preconcieved Idea of the perfect bonsai ,some things are better left as nature intended. ENJOY IT FOR WHAT IT IS!
Regards,
Jonathan

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Jonathan

Attila

Most beautiful trunk line and great bark.

One thing you need to do before you do anything else. From the look of the sparse foliage and your account of failed attems to grow branches at the lower levels tells me that this tree is NOT in top condition. It is weak, and a weak tree doesn't respond well to bonsai techniques.

You need to bring back its strength and vigour characteristic of birches. I have a birch like yours, about 15 years old, and it sends out new shoots everywhere on the trunk. This would minimize the risk of die back as well.

Unfortunately, you will not be able to achieve that in the current pot. New, larger pot and a good clean-up of the roots is what it needs.

But it's too late this year (at least one bonsai book claims that repotting birch in the fall is often fatal - it's not fall yet, but already mid-summer).

Edit: you can nurture it back to becoming strong again in a small bonsai pot as well, but it takes much more skill. In a larger container with good soil and fertilizer it happens by itself.

Attila

The fact that you are asking for styling advice tells me that you are not satisfied with the way it looks. You sound frustrated with the result.

And I agree with you. This tree has much more potential than the way it looks now. If you resign with a so-so result and try to enjoy it the best you can, you are wasting your time. That's not the way bonsai is supposed to make you feel.

You can't be satisfied with the way it looks until it gives you a sense of awe, a sense of wonderment. When it makes your jaw drop.

Do you have that sense right now? I don't think so.

It will happen only if you build a sparse and gaceful crown around that beautiful trunk. So, you need to create lots of low branches all the way from the nebari to the top in the beginning, and then, from the many available, select the ones you like the best. The crown should be sparse, so that the beautiful trunk line remains visible.

No literati with a few bare branches will bring out the full potential of this tree.

Best regards,
Attila

rockm

I think you must also take into account the species, here. Birch are notoroous for dropping branches for no reason, on a whim, if they're pruned wrong, too hard or not at all.

The branches are a fleeting part of a birch bonsai. You can't build an image around them. It's best built around the trunk, which in this case is terrific.

I have a friend who has been hacking away at a few birch for some time trying (and sometimes succeeding) to make them into bonsai. His designs have been frustrated by this species habits. He is constantly retyling them when the branches simply die off.

Some of the best results are sometimes already before us and we don't know it until someone points them out...