So today I will continue to talk through the standard decisions and processes I carry out when pruning my Trident and Cherry Bonsai. I apply these principles equally to Japanese Maple and Fuji cherry.
So with the lawn freshly cut and the edges strimmed it is time to start blogging 🙂
The principles are the same as I discussed in yesterday’s blog though it is definitely worth highlighting that Trident maple are very apically dominant. This means they will push all of their energy into the upper canopy, often at the expense of lower weaker branches and growth. In the ‘bonsai’ environment this can lead to loss of branches if not managed effectively.
Unlike the Cherry the Maples produce opposing buds rather than staggered and this does lead to a different pruning approach. (Different guage of strimmer wire!)
trident maple
This bonsai has been with me for about 5 years and it has been in the wars a little. It is quite a large tree but really struggled in the bigger pot. This year I downsized as an experiment and it seems to have finally thrived. It avoided frost damage and has been kept in a semi-shaded spot of the nursery. The rocks are only to provide stability against the howling gales this garden faces!
It is definitely healthy enough to prune and I will definitely use the cuttings.
Most of the growth is in the top third of the tree and this needs to be rectified to ensure a proper balance of energy distribution is established. The new shoots have grown to 4 sets of leaf pairs and the growing tips still look keen to go further 🙂
Using sharp bonsai pruning cutters I select back to the first set of new leaf pairs and cut. This is repeated around the top third of the tree. The lower branches had less vigorous growth so I only removed some of the growing tips.
Don’t be afraid to be bold with your decisions. If the tree is healthy it will definitely still respect you in the morning 🙂
Be sure to examine all parts of the leaf mass and trunk as you carry out your pruning. I happened upon this common pest in the apex. It definitely should not be present and the little bug will happily suck the sap from your new growth.
I ended up removing about 1/3 of the leaf mass and clipped some of the large leaves by another half in size. This has had the following effects:
- Allows sunlight to hit all of the leaf mass
- Reduced leaf mass forces the tree to produce a second ‘smaller’ flush of growth
- Reduction of the apical shoots allows redirection of energy to the weaker lower buds
- Finding horrible, nasty bugs – then humanely ‘relocating’ them…
Cherry Bonsai
This was oringally a three foot patio plant that was cut back to a 14″ project in 2016. I took a number of air layers off of it in 2015 of which three are still developing as potensai. It produces a vigorous flush of blossom in late February which is the time to see it as its best!
As with all pruning decisions you must first ask what you wish to achieve? In this case my primary and secondary branches are already established and all I wish to do is clean up the growth extending beyond the pad shape required.
This should also enourage further tertiary ramification.
This is the same leaf mass pruned back to desired lengths. It does look pretty good when you get a tree to this stage of development.
However, this bonsai also has some branches requiring thickening so I have left them unpruned. This will mean it looks pretty unsightly but it is worth it when you see the longer term results.
In all of the pruning examples it is imperative that you examine the trunk and branch crotches for new buds or weak growth. If left on the tree it will cause energy to be wasted on areas you do not want.
I just rub it off with my finger or if a little longer then snip it back. As always, reduce any junctions of ‘three’ to two shoots.
I love this cherry project – it is really starting to flourish. The left side of the tree is in good shape but a lot more work needs to take place on the lower right branch and upper right rear facing growth.
The pot is too deep but is perfect whilst the tree continues to grow and develop.
Just watch out for leaf burn – it seems to occur with ,most of my cherry varieties. I normally cut the tips or remove the leaf entirely.
Time to go off for my weekly swim so I will end things here. Please ask questions or make comments below and feel free to offer any constructive advice for future posts.
I hope to cover Japanese Larch and Satsuki Azalea tomorrow.
Happy pruning…
