Ideas welcome for my headscratching spruce??

Hello to everyone on the forum and thankyou for all the info provided by its members!

Here's my spruce collected just over 2yrs ago, its doing well apart from a little black/whitefly infestation last summer.
I've spent many hours studying this multi-branch/trunk tree but just cant bring myself to start hacking away at it, it seems to fit into a high alpine [dead main trunk ] spruce profile? it has some nice features on the dead trunk so i'd like to keep that??

Any ideas would be more than welcome as iv'e stared at this one a little to long i think?!?!

I hope it triggers some ideas in someones head?


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[left]

Hello Aji. I think the first pic offers the best front but is there anything alive on the scarred branch? This tree isn't healthy enough to perform work on at the moment. Any severe bending would probably kill it. You need more strong healthy foliage first.

Thanks for the quick reply Will!
it lost alot of its needles last year to black/whitefly?!?!?! which i didnt think could do alot of harm to a picea but i was wrong? the photos are about a month old i should have posted some more recent ones, will leave it gain some health and have no real plans to to shape it soon. Just thought it would be good to get some outside ideas on shaping.
thanks again Will.

Spruce are very prone to Red Spider Mite. This is also one to watch out for. Hold a piece of white paper under the foliage and tap the branches. you will need a magnifying glass to see the offenders.
You haven't said whether the front curving branch has any growth?

The front branch it totally dead!! hence the design problem.
I've worked in the horticultural industry for over 15 years and have had problems with spider mites in the past!
the spruce was tucked away with all the other bits and bobs in the bottom of my garden and was absolutely covered in red/blackflies!!?!?!, they're usually on my tomatoes not my bonsai? it was a new one for me??, maybe there were spidermites there under them?? a couple of treatments and the tree was fine again with new buds allover.
thanks again appreciate the advice.

here's a quick sketch its a bit predictable??? I was hoping someone may have an idea a little bit more interesting?

It's not often I say this but because the only bit of this tree with any character is dead, I would confine it to the garden borders. Theres much better material and in better health than this one. If I saw it in the flesh, It might be possible to make a tree from it but it may look a little contrived.
Don't let my comments put you off. I had a lot worse when I started

aji wrote:here's a quick sketch its a bit predictable??? I was hoping someone may have an idea a little bit more interesting?

Nice artwork Aji! If you could reproduce that in three dimensions with your tree it would make a very nice image IMO.

As Fuzzy said..Great sketch. The problem with it is you said the front characterfull branch is dead. In the drawing it has bark on and looks alive?

Cheers Fuzzy!
Yes Will the front is dead and i'm not to sure how long the bark will stay as its dead, perhaps it'll have to be carved when it starts to deteriorate?,All the life is hidden behind it but seems a shame not to keep it tho as its barks pretty good?

aji wrote:Cheers Fuzzy!
Yes Will the front is dead and i'm not to sure how long the bark will stay as its dead, perhaps it'll have to be carved when it starts to deteriorate?,All the life is hidden behind it but seems a shame not to keep it tho as its barks pretty good?

Give it a try but get the health back first

Thanks again Will imfo much appreciated.

hope this mock-up explains a little?