Help With My New Specimen Plz

DavidN

First thing you should do is to dig down into the soil and find out where the rest of the trunk is and where the roots begin. Then post a new pic.


EDIT: BTW thanks Jennifer for you input. Very well put and explained.

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Bonsai Northwest Inc, Melbourne, Australia

Bonsai Flora Nursery in Yarraville, Melbourne

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Master-S.T-

well david if u look closely in the photos in my link ( and zoom in)
on the base of the trunk pics...u can planely see roots coming out of the base into the soil..which i find strange....but then again...i never saw a juniper liek this with a root crown like a maples for istence....
but if u see what i am talkin about ..then tell me if i should get rid of them...and digg down more ...or keep them..cus where its the base of the trunk..thats the base alright cus roots are growing from it down to the soil...-

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DavidN

I see them. Sorry about that. They look good.

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Bonsai Northwest Inc, Melbourne, Australia

Bonsai Flora Nursery in Yarraville, Melbourne

Master-S.T-

not a problem...so any change son your pst before about making the main trunk bigger...or should i just keep what i got..alognwith the roots...( lol wheres walter at ..i asked for sugestions but insted he just posted the pic for peopel to see ..which helped..but cant i get a word from the master? haha)

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JTriptow

Master ST,

Don't feel slighted... I'm sure Walter gets many requests for advice but his "ask the master" forum is for trees of show quality. It is not his duty to respond to all tree critique or advice posts, that's what the rest of the BonsaiTalk crowd is here for!

You're in Minnesota, so I hope you are not planning on doing any root work or repotting with this tree until next spring.

As far as Davids advice, as I said before, I think it is sound. But really, you should do some thinking about the styling and direction before you just jump in. But if you DO jump in and start pruning/wiring, remember to keep some foliage on that tree. Junipers will not survive if they are completely defoliated.

Best of luck,

Jennifer

P.S. I see from another thread that you are seeking out new books to read. Keep on reading! Minnesota winters can be long---it's a GREAT time to read all you can before the busy spring bonsai season.

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DavidN

Sam, I'm assumming that is your name according to your picture names, here is another pic of your tree. This is what I would do right away. Just chop them leaving several inchs. This might give you a better idea of what you are looking for in your tree. But again this is just my opinion.

Do not do any repotting until next spring.

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Adam_MA

Sam,
I will just take a minute to chime in to agree with David's and Jennifer's advice. Very sound advice!

David: Great virtual!

Adam

Master-S.T-

alright guys and tahst what im gonan start by doing....
but is now a good time of the year..iu have some Tree prunning seal stuff i got at a hardwear store if it is neaded ( it looks liek a tar thing that comes with a brush)

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Ralph

The tree pruning seal you have sounds like an old sealer that used to be recomended for sealing cuts on landscape trees. It is not ideal for what you are doing, and in fact is not even recomended for use in the landscape any longer.
The sealer that is used in bonsai is called cut paste, and is more a consistency of play-doh. It has essential vitamins and minerals that help the tree seal it's wounds quicker.
Remember that in your case, you will be leaving stubs a couple of inches where you cut your branches off, because you will be jinning them, and not sealing them. being a juniper, and it is summer it will almost certainly leak sap from where you make the cuts. For now, don't worry so much about the jin, cut the branches, and leave the stubs. You can tackle jins later on in your process.
Oh yeah, from David's virtual, he indicates 3 cuts, cut the ones that he recomends. You can do this now.

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Emerging from winter slumber
Bonsai trees burst buds anew
Spring is upon us!


-Paul S.