Juniper in process...

This Juniper was lifted from the "wild" in Denmark back in 2002 and kept in a large plastic container up until spring 2008 were it was transplanted into its first bonsai pot. I'll over the next couple of days post a few pictures showing the transformation from the ugly duckling to The Viking Sword.

I started in 2010 to slowly remove part of the living bark without risking the health of the tree.....the process was rather slow mainly due to lack of motivation...but the tree loved me for my laziness

A first raw carving was conducted in early 2011 together with some cleansing of the folliage

I still need to apply some more detailed carving and especially with regards to the rather heavy top jin....this work will be carried out over the next couple of days together with the styling of the foliage

More to come…

Very nice work so far. Can't wait to see it with some wire on it.

Thx JKD - I'll hopefully upload pictures this weekend after initial wiring

Enclosed pictures from this morning...

very nice tree but if you don't mind that i say i would shorten the jin that is at the top of the tree as it takes away from the focal point of the tree the deadwood at the base.so once you style the foliage you wont have conflicting focal points but im looking forward to see what the tree will look like when its done

andre_f wrote:very nice tree but if you don't mind that i say i would shorten the jin that is at the top of the tree as it takes away from the focal point of the tree the deadwood at the base.so once you style the foliage you wont have conflicting focal points but im looking forward to see what the tree will look like when its done

I would only touch the top deadwood after deciding on a foliage design. It's hard to grow back after it's removed (although there are techniques). Perhaps some thinning. All in all, a nice progression so far.

I think you have done a great job with it. I would think about hard the to jin before any additional removal.
Tona

Very nice! What species of Juniper are you dealing with? It looks very compact, almost like Shimpaku. You said this was harvested from the wild, I was not aware that Denmark had such outstanding material.

Thx for your feedback - much appreciated.

I'm not exactly sure about the variety of Juniper - my best guess is Juniperus expansa - maybe one of the IBC members has a more qualified guess? I dug the tree up from a former garden which over the past 20 years has developed into quite a wilderness.

I'm aware of the "controversial" jin - it's rather dominating and I agree the that there is a risk that it will become too dominant and remove the focus point from other and more attractive parts of the tree. However I did leave the jin for a purpose when I dug up the three - I wanted to style it with a very dominant jin in order for it to stand out from the other more "typical designs". However I need to refine the design of the jin and make it more elegant. It's currently way too bulky.

I hope to upload new pics around Sunday evening.

Thank you for the response, you're saying that it harvested from a feral garden and may not be a native species.

As to the dead wood: I would leave it alone until you have a definite idea and plan in your mind what you want to do with it. You can always reduce it down or remove it altogether, you cannot replace it once it's gone.

Where in Denmark can you find trees like this ?

Jeppe

Hi Jeppe,

I have found this one and some other Junipers around the area of Vestegnen close to the higway. They are not an easy catch - but they are out there.

BR Jens

What's up with the Charcoal in the wooden box?

- re the Charcoal in the wooden box - this is oak charcoal which I use for Juniper and Pines when transplanting as a bottom layer in the pot. I add more than you see on the picture of the pot(normally around a handful). Charcoal should sweeten up the soil and prevent it from acid due to fertilization. My Junipers and Pines seem to like it.

....just a quick update to those following this post

The tree is now wired and styled. I have also added a bit more carving and character to the deadwood - including the top jin. I have applied lime sulphor and am now waiting for this to whiten up such than I can make some decent photos to share with you - I expect this to happen over the next couple of days.

Can´t wait to see it :-)

Jeppe

I finally managed to do a few pictures of the "final" design. I have been struggling getting enough height to the canopy/apex due to lack of foliage at the top which is why it looks a bit too flat for my taste. I have decided to leave it as it is for now and then refine the apex after another season of growing. Please note that the lime sulphor does not whiten up as quickly due to the very cold winter we are currently experiencing in Denmark these days.

Your comments are most welcome - a virtual for a new pot could also be interesting

looking really good great job

yes, keeps getting better. very beautiful tree!

hello, i think that dead woods are still too apparent, too massiv, and the conicity off the trunk not good on the head off the tree , virtual project
[img][/img]

Coming on really nicely Berner
I do agree with abcd - if the jin stays it should be reduced so as not to compete with the focal points.
Another consideration could be to shift the balance to the other side as in my rather crude virt:

but justin by doing so as you did in your vert now the trunk and the foliage are conflicting instead of being in sync.

I really like where you've taken this tree Berner! Great carving job. I too have a juniper with huge jins that I've been afraid to tackle. Good inspiration!

Thanks guys for all you kind words and comments on the design . I agree with the comments around the top jin and appreciate the virtual that demonstrate the need for further reduction of the top jin.

I’m not sure about the reduction of the lower jins. I observe those jins as essential to the design though they are currently standing out quite a bit to the overall design. However the foliage will develop quite a bit over the next couple of years and the intention is to build up a fuller foliage mass which by then should balance out the large lower jins.

The intention is to keep the foliage in the shape it is today by having the left area as the lowest position and perhaps even removing the lowest branch at the right to create an even further scalene triangle.

I’ll post an updated photo mid-summer.

Best bonsai regards
from Denmark
Jens Chr Berner