When to start training bonsai
Bonsai: Styling Your First Bonsai Tree
hello my name is Peter Juan I'm a bonsai
professional and I studied in Japan I
travel all over the world teaching
bonsai and I've used my experience and
knowledge to bring you this new book
bonsai by DK we'll take you through the
basics of caring for your first bonsai
tree on a popular first tree the Chinese
elm starting on your first tree may be a
daunting prospect the trick is to be
clear about your aim so first things
first assess your tree to get an idea of
the direction you want to go in start by
looking to see what the most interesting
character features of your tree are and
how you can accentuate them one of the
most important things to look at the
root system on the surface is this is
where the movement of the tree starts
take away the top layer of soil and moss
to get a better look with this tree
there's a very strong root on one side
so if we have an upright tree this is
going to create a sense of imbalance so
one way of utilizing this very strong
root to its maximum is to change the
planting angle of the tree move on to
look at the branches and figure out a
possible styling I do like the wildness
within the branches as they have very
natural movement so we'll look to
accentuate that move some branches over
to the right and go for a dramatic
windswept look it will be a classic
Chinese abstract style tree
work on creating a strong structure
first before you tackle the straggler
growth in this area here more than two
branches emerge from the same Junction
or node so we need to take saw these out
so this area will not thicken in the
future
removing unsightly branches creates
space inside the tree so look for shoots
are growing back into the center of the
tree shoots the grow directly upwards or
downwards shoots that to straight will
also work on this branch here there's
one strong straight line starting at the
base of the branch moving into this
midsection here with two slightly
thinner branches on outside will remove
the middle section which will change the
direction and create a bit of space
making a lighter and more elegant
imagine an idealized branching structure
and work towards achieving it don't
worry if you accidentally take off the
wrong branch as young shoots may be
repositioned with wire to fill any gaps
in your design it's very important to
clean the wound to make sure it's nice
and smooth this will help it to heal
over more quickly or more attractively
treat all of the cut areas with wound
sealant from more detailed look at how
to make cuts and seal wounds see our
other bonsai videos in our playlist
remove any dead branches to get a better
idea of what you can use to create the
tree use pruners to take out the larger
dead shoots start to prune to shape
reduced branches extending out to the
silhouette ensuring they have leaves or
visible buds before you prune back this
will encourage new shoots to grow
wiring the branches enables us to
manipulate them and place them where we
want the main thing to remember is to
ensure that the wire is on the outside
of the bend that you are trying to make
and to use two hands to support both
sides of the bend always stand back
every now and again to look at the
overall structure proving the style and
quality of the top will give you a lot
more enjoyment so consider looking for a
new pot to transplant your tree into for
more detailed video on how to prepare a
new pot and reap our bonsai tree check
out our other videos on the playlist
first ensure any fixing wires on the
underside of the pot have been cut and
then use a root saw to cut through the
soil in contact with the pot walls try
not to cut through any large roots take
the tree out of the pot but don't use
force if the tree is stuck cut around a
little more gently rake out the soil and
start to prune any strong roots back
trim fibrous roots down to size with a
sharp pair of ripped pruning scissors
check the tree fits in the pot in your
chosen position and then add some soil
tie the tree in and use pliers to fasten
the wires until they sit tightly at the
root base
cover the roots with soil and work it in
between the roots with a chopstick wash
the relate to clean out any dust or
debris and keep watering until the water
runs off clear
the Finnish tree has an open graceful
structure on which new growth can be
built
you
