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ADVANCED TECHNIQUE: Guy Wires
A member asked about guy wires a few threads ago, I felt that there is some confusion about guy wires and maybe its time for a primer.
There is nothing in bonsai that coiling wire around a branch or trunk can't bend. oops.. I mean, as long as the wire is large enough! Guy wires can be a great aid during the final phases of bonsai display. I say display because that is the time when a guy wire is most appropriate.
Some trees when approaching the final years of training may be ready for display. The tree may still require wire in the branches, or may be a species that requires wire for most of its styled life, i.e., yew, juniper, or larch. In this case to make the wiring less obtrusive; guy wire may hold a branch into place with less wire and still allow the branch to be where it needs to be to complete the composition. Here's the problem, guy wires are terrible at taking the place of heavy wire. Let's review how each works: We all remember the tensile strength and compression strength debates a few months back with the root issue on slanting trees? I intend to bring that all back. When wire is applied to bring a branch either up or down, it applies the compression force needed to keep the branch in the applied position. The branch is not pushing on the wire, the wire is pushing the branch into place. Compression. When a guy wire is used on a branch or trunk the branch is held in opposition due to tensile force. The branch is pulling against the guy wire, but cannot oppose further due to the guy wires length. Tensile. A guy wire does not really exert any real force or "will" on the branch and so is poor for training purposes. They do work great for display, when extra opposition is needed with small wire for appearance sake on a display tree. Why is a guy wire poor for training purposes? Guy wires are poor for training branches due to the tensile effect on the area to be trained. With no direct exertion on the branch, branches trained with guy wires only would be poorly shaped and would spring back to their original position in a short time. A guy wire works in much the same way as a bow and arrow. The long bow is strung, and the guy wire used to pull oposition in the wood. When it is let go, the wood springs back into its original position and the arrow sails forward striking its target. While a tree is living, wood will grow and eventually the branch will take on the shape intended , but only after many years of guy wire training.
The actual size of the guy wire is important only if the tree is to be viewed and appreciated. For most applications, copper wire should be used in the 20 to 22 gauge range. Aluminum is not appropriate because it would need to be much thicker for the same strength, and being not nearly as ductile as the copper, would tend to break when twisted. Slip a piece of clear aquarium tubing over the wire and place the tubing over the branch area. This is all that should be needed to protect the branch area from the wire biting in. The branch should be eased into position with the help of another set of hands while the guy wire is anchored with pliers. The guy wire can be anchored to another branch, a snag of deadwood, a root or even another wire. Choose a point that is stable. If it is too far out from the trunk you may wind up raising the anchor point! After anchoring the wire with a twist, you can pull out on the wire and tighten it again carefully. That way the wire can be tightened and it will be in the position needed without being too long. Once the wire is anchored, slip a short piece of large copper wire about 10 gauge into the loop and use it as a winding stick. A few revolutions of the stick will bring the loop of wire into a neat, twisted braid that can be used to further tighten the guy wire.
In conclusion, use guy wires when appropriate, just understand why you have put it there and be ready to explain what it is you are trying to achieve with it. Best Regards, Al Keppler
__________________
It's about time that the proper respect be given to the fine art of balloon animals... |
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#2
by
Joanie
on
1-Jun-2005
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Al, this was a really great article. I was especially interested because I use guy wires on several trees, mostly because they are difficult to wire in the more conventional fashion. (I work mainly with mame and smallish shohin flowering and fruiting trees)
It is still a little hard to wrap my mind around the idea that a branch held in position won't stay that way, if it is guy wired. I thought that it had more to do with stretching the cells on the top, compressing the cells on the bottom, and that they eventually become hard wood and remain in position. The analogy of a strung bow seems reasonable, except that the bow isn't growing, and isn't generally kept in the taut position for a year or more(as you pointed out). So why does it take so much longer for the guy wire to work? I know you explained, but there is something that I am not understanding..... I tried searching the forum for "tensile" to find the other discussion, but it was a discussion of slanting trees and roots and my little brain couldn't make it translate to wrapping wire vs. guy wire. Joanie Last edited by Joanie : 1-Jun-2005 at 01:48 AM. Reason: clarification 
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#3
by
bonsaial1
on
1-Jun-2005
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Joanie, A guy wire does not exhurt any actual force on the branch/trunk. When used in conjunction with a coiled wire, it can help pull a wired branch or trunk into position that wire alone would not hold.
useing a guy wire just allows the trunk/branch to continue growing in the shape its in with out the aid of actual force on it. The tensile force is not enough to "set" the wood. It's hard to explain, but all the wood grows at the same rate with a guy wire and so on release it snaps back, like a bow. Even though it grew. Think of coiled wire like a cast, and a limiting string around your head. Both keep the broken arm from falling down, but the cast keeps it solid and will not allow movement so the arm mends. A guy wire can actualy allow the trunk to grow out of the guy wire if you get my drift. Hope that helps.
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#4
by
Joanie
on
1-Jun-2005
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Boy, I'm trying. Really I am. But the metaphors you apply are not similar to the situation. If the branch is held stiffly in place with the guy wire, or perhaps two wires on the same branch (one closer to the trunk, one farther) then the branch is forced to stay in the same position as it would with the coiled wire. (Let's not worry about other bends or changes, or if there is an arch rather than an angle when the branch comes out of the trunk) If the branch is held strongly and firmly and a considerably different angle than it would normally take, how is that different than the coiled wire? Granted, the coiled wire is pushing down in more positions, starting from the trunk and moving along the branch. But my understanding has always been that this deformation of the living cells eventually becomes a permanent part of the tree.
In your example, you use a deciduous tree vs. a conifer, which is very valid for stylistic reasons. But if you wired, say, one branch of a deciduous with coiled wire, and another on the same tree with guy wire, and left them on for several growing seasons, (rewiring the coiled one several times to alleviate scarring) would there really be a difference when both wires were removed? Thank you for taking the time to be patient with me....  Joanie
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#5
by
bonsaial1
on
1-Jun-2005
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Guy wires are at the top of the landscapers bag of tricks. Yes they can train trunks and branches to take on shapes. For the most part, landscapers will use a guy wire to pull black pine and yucca's away from the sun, and let the pull of the sun help shape the trunk while the sun pulls the trunk against the length of the wire.
In bonsai, you can train a bonsai with guy wires alone. But why? They should be a last resort, and a helper. I specialize in shohin, I'll bet I have larger hands then you, and I manage to wire anything I want to. A guy wire WILL NOT hold a branch or trunk in the same position it was in when you applied the wire. If you could do a time lapse photo of a guy wired tree over say two years, you would see that trunk and branch do the most unbelievable hula dance you have ever seen. Trust me at the end of a few years the guy wires will be where you put them, but what you intended for them to do will not be the same as if you had wired it. When it is wired it has no place to go except where you wire it. You can guy wire an "S" curve into a trunk, but it will pop out when you take the guy wires off. Don't take my word for it. Buy a juniper and do it and do a control with one guy wired, and one hard wired. Come back here next year and let me know how you did. I have been there, but don't take my word for it. Find out by doing it. Thats the way you learn. Al Last edited by bonsaial1 : 1-Jun-2005 at 02:51 AM.
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#6
by
Joanie
on
1-Jun-2005
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Nope, don't have to, the hula dance did it for me.....! Okay, gonna have to bit the old bullet and try wiring that little flowering cherry....wrapped wire....sigh. Those guy wires seemed so much easier.
Thank you for being a patient and insightful teacher. Joanie, who is very much looking forward to seeing you in Anaheim this November.
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#7
by
Will_Heath
on
1-Jun-2005
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Al,
I could go the route of others and just say you're wrong and scream misinformation and start another thread, but I prefer to do things differently. The tree doesn't know what is holding the branch down Al. Snow, it's own weight, a fallen branch, coiled wired, a string with weights or a guy wire. A tree doesn't know and a tree could care less. The fact of the matter is that after lowering a branch, the tree is out of "balance" (see my other articles) and the tree will respond by attempting to raise the branch back to it's rightful position. You see after we lower a branch by whatever means the new wood cells change their secondary wall differentiation to produce totally different levels of growth stresses, the upper side of the branch tries to shrink by producing higher tensile stress and the lower side tries to expand by producing wood with lower tensile stress or even with compressive stress. The result being an uneven distribution of growth stress that bend the branch back up toward vertical. In soft woods like pine the underside of the branch creates compression wood, in Hardwoods like Maples the upper side of the branch develops tension wood. Compression wood pushes and tension wood pulls. I explained all this so that we could understand that A tree will react the same way, no matter why the branch is being pulled (or pushed) down. This being said, Guy wired have their purpose and a limited one at that. Regular wiring is much more effective only because you can wire in three dimensions instead of the two given with guy wires. Will Heath Last edited by Will_Heath : 1-Jun-2005 at 02:42 PM.
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#8
by
Will_Heath
on
1-Jun-2005
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On another related note....while tending my bonsai early this morning I was thinking about this thread and realized that using wire to shape bonsai is a relatively new technique in the world of bonsai. In fact it was looked down upon for quite awhile before it was finally accepted as a legitimate practice.
Before wiring for shape was accepted, you had clip and grow, strings as guy wires, or strings with weights. These techniques worked for many years without wire, it is truly strange to see guy wires being called ineffective now. Will
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#9
by
mkonig
on
1-Jun-2005
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I think I may be able to settle this argument
.The juniper in my thread here had a more or less straight trunk until last July. The movement you see there is the result of guy wires being applied. The trunk has never been wired. I could go out tomorrow cut the guy wires to see if the tree springs back. I think that could settle it. Unfortunately I can not do it today as my daughter has "borrowed" my camera  Watch this space! Mike
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#10
by
Emperor Fish
on
1-Jun-2005
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Al,
Much of the effectiveness of guy-wires vs. coiling wire depends more upon the species being wired and its level of refinement. Guy wires can be effective for fine-tuning display trees (as you commented), and also for making adjustments to deciduous trees when you do not wish to have any possibility of wire scarring. I have seen maples that have been wired set to shape completely within weeks, and pines with heavy wire and guy wires change position overnight after 18 months of wire. Regards, Fish.
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