I enjoyed watching your progress. Required fields are marked *. Keep splitting the difference until there are no gaps left. I used 2mm clear painters plastic and some flexible wire similar to coat hanger wire. For any who don't know, this technique involves binding together some young and thin whips - however many you like - and forcing them to grow together to form a single thicker trunk. Read more about it in the "Bonsai Trunk Fusion" article. Close-up of the trunk. Ahhh I see. Ficus Bonsai Trunk Fusing Experiment. You can thicken a trunk at the base by carving three or four scars around the circumference of the trunk and letting them heal. Speed. 12/18/07 Update - I built a pine growing box to repot it in a shallower container to begin training the root system, and give them a little more room to grow. Keeping the seedling clusters together is definately the way to go. Pinterest. The frame was made from flexible wire and coat hangers during the preceding week. Seedlings planted side by side will have to compete for limited resources of light, water, nutrients and space. Another close-up of the trunk after I planted it in the 16″ diameter pot at 2:30am. We need to set aside a few seedlings to fill these gaps. This is a video of me in my tiny NYC apartment pruning Weeping Fig (Ficus benjamina) indoor bonsai. A couple days after the initial operation, it was suggested to me that I defoliate the trees in order to induce dormancy. I used about 70 feet from a 100 foot roll. Once it has had some time to stabilize, I’ll bend each tree over and tie it to the frame so that it looks like the section on the left. I would also aim to disturb the roots as little as possible for the same reason. 2 or 3 of the tallest seedlings are spaced evenly and tied to the bottom of the frame and then are tied to each other at the top of the frame to create an apex. Your email address will not be published. Trunk fusions are a grafting technique that use multiple approach grafts of seedlings or rooted cuttings to create a large base trunk with a dramatic even taper in a relatively short time frame. Thanks for your interest. If you have a west, south, or east facing window you will be able to keep the banyan inside. How does it look now, could you update us? Planting the tree(s) in the ground will give the roots room to spread out and lesson competition among the seedlings. This is probably not a technique that a Bonsai master like John Naka would use. Either constantly mist the roots or assemble the tree in a large pan with the roots submerged in water. The roots had filled the previous container after one year. Resist the temptation to do anything to the tree the first year other than water and fertilize. Explore. If I lived in a tropical area I could have simply planted a tree in the ground and grown it for 5 years to get a thick trunk and then worked on developing the branch structure. In 1982 Naka published his second book Bonsai Techniques II. Thanks Steve. He shows a drawing of “vines wrapped around an interesting branch, after several years the branch inside will rot away and eventually the vines will fuse together”. May 17, 2017 - Trunk fusions are a grafting technique that use multiple approach grafts of seedlings or rooted cuttings to create a large base trunk with a dramatic even taper in a relatively short time frame. Thank you for sharing your journey…I’m learning so much. I wanted to know what happened next, did you loose a lot on the trunk?? Defoliation has also made the apex visible which allowed me to finalize this area by isolating a single leader and making the rest of the trees exit at random points. Growth is very rapid at first but slows down with age. Thank you for your kind words and interest in my project. Thanks Steve. Or were they just what you had locally? Excellent. It is a real trial and error process. Close-up of the bottom – the hollow inside is mostly obscured by the roots. Your hard work and dedication has payed off…well done! I needed some inspiration for what to do with these two larch that were bought on impulse. Leslie. I am endorsing Carl. The best choice is hardware cloth or chicken wire can be substituted. It will take another year for the fusion to set. I think microcarpa has smaller leaves tho – so that would be better if you have access.. I’m rooting a bunch of cuttings of microcarpa now, but I’m interested in experimenting with benjamina. Attach the seedlings as close as possible so you don’t have gaps. The assembly for Bonsai trunk fusion is completed. Meanwhile, you can treat the banyan like your other tropical bonsai. Chinese maple bonsai trunk development. Posted by. Sign up. Although it can grow 100 to 120 feet tall with a three to five-foot-diameter trunk and spread 50 to 60 feet, it is typically seen from 50 to 80 feet tall in landscapes. I plan on doing something similar with a bunch of microcarpa cuttings, could you shoot me an email? Instead of separating the trees into individuals I’m now leaving the bunch together and simply planting it next to the frame and then bending the trees over to tie them up. Repotting allowed a better view of the trunk. I built a mini-greenhouse for propagating the cuttings that I will use to fill in the rest of the gaps. Thanks to my wife Tammy for suggesting this approach. Unfortunately I live in an apartment and so growing it in the ground is not possible, other than transferring to a larger pot, which I presume would have the same outcome. I decided to only remove branches and leaves that got in the way to minimize the trauma to the plants. Look at this picture – you can plant the clump next to the frame, and then bend each trunk over and tie it to the frame – this way you don’t have to mangle the roots and the survival rate is much higher. Today. Ces arbres dont la hauteur n’excède dans certains cas même pas 15 centimètres sont à la portée de tous. My fingers and back were sore the next day – I wished I’d had a workbench so I could stand up. Dead seedlings will leave gaps in the trunk that will lengthen the fusion time. Fusing many trunks to one fat Bonsai trunk. 53. It's the perfect climate for a tropical. Trunk fusion? This is an experiment that I began on 4/15/06 where my goal is to create a ficus bonsai tree that will appear to be very old, with an impressive tapered trunk, in a few short years. Look at my journal entry above that starts with ‘PHASE 2’ – I talk about my experience with that – you can leave the clumps together and just bend the trunks where you want them to go – you’ll have a higher success rate with this approach even tho it’s more challenging to position the trunks.. I’ve tried this way before, just tying them together, but was mostly unsuccessful. This part took a lot longer than I’d imagined. they have a small root mass which makes it easier to plant them close together, and c.) they can have a large diameter if taken from a large source tree. Some seedlings will dominate and some will die off or have slower growth. Struggling to recover after cold winter outdoors. Dead seedlings don’t fuse. Homesteading in Marin County, CA (sorta). Hi Amey, Pruned off the strongest shoots from the top to encourage more growth below. It felt very solid and unified. Probably going to loose a good portion of the trunk top as well. Do not let the roots dry out. You can follow the progression by looking at the date at the beginning of the caption under each image.. This project will take one person 3 to 4 hours to complete a 50-seedling Bonsai fusion project. Lawn And Garden. As they grow and swell the pressure of being firmly secured together forces the two pieces to fuse into one. 5/4/08 - Here are some shots of the fusing progress. I wouldn’t strip any leaves or branches at all if you can avoid it – that will just slow down the growth and fusing. The end result is a larger tree than I could have developed in the same number of years in my plant room. Bonsai trees and associated plants. Then I’ll start to focus on training and styling. User account menu. I have all of the gaps filled in now so that it looks like it did at the end of phase 1, and fusing is progressing nicely. Planting Ideas. May 23, 2018 - Trunk fusions are a grafting technique that use multiple approach grafts of seedlings or rooted cuttings to create a large base trunk with a dramatic even taper in a relatively short time frame. Separating individual trees from root ball while trying to keep root damage to a minimum. Do not trim the seedling or roots. Hi Ryan, Paper wrapped twist ties. It’s basically healthy again but most of the growth is coming from around the base. Archived. Written by: Greg Wentzel (website). Bonsai Plants Bonsai Garden Garden Trees Bonsai Trees Conifer Trees Deciduous Trees The Clumps Plantas Bonsai Ideas. About 70% of the leaves are now dead. Several branches on young trees normally originate from the same point on the trunk forming a tree appearing to be built of layers of foliage. The Juniper bonsai shown below had a reverse taper at mid trunk which was cured in this manner. Speed. A multiple approach graft involves securing seedlings side by side by side to form a trunk. Jan 24, 2017 - Trunk fusions are a grafting technique that use multiple approach grafts of seedlings or rooted cuttings to create a large base trunk with a dramatic even taper in a relatively short time frame. Developing Large Trunks for Bonsai by Brent Walston. This can be avoided by using rooted cuttings, which are an exact clone of the parent tree. It’s hard because I don’t want to cut the branches yet.. Maybe a couple more years and I’ll be able to get into some styling. 12/21/09 - Frost got to it before I could protect it. These plants can be collected from the wild (Yamadori) or backyards, bought at nurseries or grown from young seedlings. "Greg Wentzel lives with his wife Michelle in Virginia, USA. (#9) Bonsai trunk fusion by Greg Wentzel. Disadvantage: This is not straightforward and the resulting trunk is hollow, leading to potential trouble as the tree gets older (Insect infestations). However, the clump I have has trees that are a bit thicker, so I’m not sure how possible that will be. I do have some more recent pictures that I plan to update the site with soon. Thanks for sharing – it’s a good reminder that I can do this with cold-tolerant species. The tree is immediately planted in the ground before the roots can dry out. Expect additional time if this is your first project or find a partner to help. I want to keep our discussion public so that other visitors can benefit from it as well. The clump also lacked any sort of taper and even had reverse taper, unfortunately. Do they fuse faster? This tree required only a single scarring, which was repeated once in a two year period, to cure the reverse taper. Cuttings make the ideal source material for this type of project for these reasons: a.) Hi Ryan – thanks for the suggestion. Since they will be left in place and never removed it is important to use only paper wrapped twist ties. The cuttings did have about a 70% rooting rate, but I found that seedlings grow and fuse much more quickly, so I ended up using them almost exclusively in the end. Maple Trunk fusion| Valentines at The Bonsai Supply - YouTube This technique has already proved to be much more reliable in terms of survival rate. After fusion is complete the donor is removed below the graft. a grafting technique that use multiple approach grafts of seedlings or rooted cuttings to create a large base trunk with a dramatic even taper in a relatively short time frame. A frame made of wire. Have fun! The idea is that the tree will grow over the twist ties resultingin texture that will add character and age. Multiple trunks growing together and growing as one”. In this book Naka shows photographs of a small honeysuckle tree and describes how it was created “Several honeysuckle vines were fused together to form this entwined trunk KARAME-MIKI. May 10, 2018 - Explore Amelia Williams's board "Ficus and fused trunks" on Pinterest. Do you strip all of the lower growth from the trees? 10/25/09 - Continuing to thrive in it’s new home. 3/26/11 - Sorry for the delayed update. Trunk fusions are a grafting technique that use multiple rooted cuttings to create a large base trunk with a dramatic even taper in a relatively short time frame. As you can see in these pics, the frame is mostly bare. This is the basic concept of trunk fusions, however today we now use wire frames instead of interesting branches and tree seedlings or rooted cuttings instead on vines. Ken Fisher Bonsai. I’ll try to get some better pictures to capture the state of the trunk. That’s not what I mean. A few tips for assembly and care of the tree(s). A nursery local to me does have some in 6 inch pots. That was just what was easily available at the time. There may have been more I could have done to keep them alive – like encasing the whole thing in plastic to keep the humidity higher, and not defoliating them. Jun 17, 2020 - This Pin was discovered by Eva Šepeľová. Hi Dave, I would like to decrease the number of trunks though, without leaving marks at the base where I would need to cut. Must stay on top of this next year. Best I ever found. I saw your site at fusionbonsai.com – very cool and inspiring! Oh…..to answer the question before it’s asked, why would anyone bother doing this instead of putting the tree in the ground and growing it out? Once the fusing begins the growth becomes vigorous in that area. I had about a 10% survival rate of the original trees. One of our club activities last winter was a mini-workshop on trunk fusion. Sibling rivalry. 2/20/12 - I finally planted this guy into the ground in our Atrium. 3/30/09 - Repotted into smaller pot. Hi Greg, Keeping the humidity high should increase the survival rate. Explore. I started this project in '10, with a 2-year old cutting and a rock I picked up a long time ago. I did one more (hopefully) fusion, this time with only two trees. I am glad it survived the frost. Lawn And Garden. 1) Split the Trunk . Assuming the trees survive this initial trauma, I’m hoping that the trunks will start to fuse within a year or so. I’ve just been updating the post above by adding new thumbnails to the gallery. Thanks for you interest! Thanks Leslie – definitely a challenge to stay positive about it sometimes. I ended up having to get more of these when I ran out half-way through. All these branches died all the way back. They’re clumped like yours, but I could separate them. 8/24/07 Update - Here are a few shots of the fusing progress. You can see the curvature in this shot. Great nebari. Question though, I assume you leave the cone in forever? I planning on starting a ficus trunk fusion experiment and your step by step pictures were very instructional. Wow! Genetic variation. A technique not so often used is trunk fusion. Do not remove the twist ties. I put a few handfuls of soil inside the trunk cavity like stuffing a turkey so the roots would have some cover on the inside. You have fantastic patience. I have started several projects (Dawn Redwood, Trident Maple, Ogon, Chinese Quince and Japanese Maple) and encounter many similar problems. I’ll probably protect from frost w/ burlap this year. Unfortunately, seeing as they are clumped, I don’t think it’s very possible to disturb the roots as little as possible LOL. Girdling will occur where the seedlings are attached with the twist tie. You’ll essentially need to grow a number of sapling trees around a conical object, with them tied … Just shake out the dirt from the root ball to keep them compact when you plant it next to the frame. See more ideas about ficus, bonsai garden, bonsai tree. Explore. May 17, 2017 - Close-up of the trunk. The starting point of any bonsai is finding material with a suitable trunk and nebari. I don’t see the update you mentioned above, is it on a different website? A bonsai practitioner should be knowledgeable on how to thicken a bonsai trunk, for it is the trunk that gives a miniature tree an authentic, natural, organic appearance that represents the core values of the art of bonsai. Looking forward to your update. your own Pins on Pinterest Finished dimensions: 7.25″ diameter of base x 12″ height above soil to joined apex, 24″ total height w/ leader. Cheers. Three materials are necessary to assemble a trunk fusion project: The best time to begin a project is in early spring just before seedlings break their dormancy. I’ve been cutting the wires and pulling them out once they’ve done their job. Do not trim excess seedlings as they exit the trunk. PHASE 1 - After gathering my materials during the preceding week, I sat down at 1:30pm on 4/15/2006 to begin my project. (#10) Apple on Bonsai tree "Big apple on a tiny Bonsai tree". Usually 50 to 100 seedlings are used. I loosened half of the dirt out of the roots so that it would fit into its new home. Your email address will not be published. 8/4/09 - Making a strong comeback in the summer heat. Advantage: The fastest way to get a thick trunk from a batch of your cuttings, with very limited scarring. The traditional way to grow a trunk quickly is to plant a tree in the ground to grow and then chop the trunk repeatedly for several years. Fusion begins first at the point of connection and then spreads up and down between connections. The paper will dry and flake off while the wire will become embedded permanently in the tree. Trunk Fusion – Photo By Swindon Bonsai Society Merging the trunk is actually the fastest way to achieve a thick bonsai trunk, however, it will not work on an existing bonsai tree. Control of the tree design. It’s starting to look more like a single trunk now. I found your site very inspiratonal. Thanks for the kind words! Introduction Perhaps one of the least understood concepts in bonsai is that plants are grown and trained for years to develop large and interesting trunks. Focussing on styling bonsai, showing member's … Press J to jump to the feed. Have a few seedlings in reserve to replace any dead seedlings after the first year. I’ve built cones out of wire mesh, and they should work pretty well for me to attach cuttings to (once they root). Here is a close-up of an area that is starting to fuse. What an emotional roller-coaster ride! If the tree is assembled and cared for correctly fusion of the trunk can be completed in a few years on some aggressive tree species. To the right there is a bunch that has been planted next to the frame. This will make it easier for the trees to recover since they will not transpire moisture through the leaves. Yes, you would leave them in place forever and the tree(s) will just grow through and around them. These whips should be allowed to grow freely to help thicken the seedlings. Bonsai .. … You can see that one of the twist ties is almost completely enveloped by the trunk. As the tree grows the fusion will blend.
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