Purchased Trident

I recently went to a regional bonsai show at the Dawes Arboretum in Newark, Ohio and really enjoyed my first show. I had a pre-set spending limit, and think I did pretty well for myself. I was able to pick up a nice pair of shears from one vendor and several trees from another. I was picking up a $650 bougainvillea for my work (a botanical garden). And I asked if I he would take 60 for a trident I was looking at for me, and a ficus I was going to get for my girlfriend for being so patient while I chatted it up with the vendors. He graciously replied 50 would do the job for both (great deal), and even threw in a free pair of concave cutters since I was complaining about mine. I was thrilled with the gesture.

Here is my new Trident. I have done very little so far. Mainly I just cleaned up some areas of crossing and straight up or down branches. Also I placed the tree in a tufa I made at work. I would love to hear opinions or suggestions. I really look forward to developing this tree, and am open to any guidance doing so.


The "front"

90 degrees clockwise


90 degrees clockwise again "back"


90 degrees clockwise again

Looking forward to hearing form you,
Mike

Sounds like a sweet deal to me, looks like a nice canvas to start with, cant wait to see how it develops

The tree has potential, but in my opinion you are going to have to do something about the roots. I like trees that have a nice root spread and these leave a bit to be desired in my book. I would suggest layering it just above the current roots next year after it has become well established. I find that a layer of weed block cloth between relatively fine bonsai soil (1/16" to 1/8") around the layer and coarse bonsai soil to over the current roots works well. It allows excess moisture to drain but keeps the fine bonsai soil moist. Of course you may like the current roots in which case please disregard my comment.

Yes. Those roots are a MESS. And they're so large, you will have to layer above them and start them all over again.

hi,
dont rush into layering new roots just yet as there is always more than one option - you just have to be able to see it (and root layered trees look very fake for the first 10 years or so !)

from what i see in the pictures these roots can be dealt with over 2 repotting cycles and you will have a lovely natural trunk base and flare. Because this is a trident all cut marks will callous and heal over perfectly,this is why you dont need to layer this tree.

first root to cut off totally is the looping one that goes over the top - carefully hollow the cut and apply wound sealant. This can be cut now if you like but just cut the end going into the soil off level, dont dig around getting the root out until next spring (it may bud and sprout leaves, you'll get a free little tree )

stage one root removed


stage two in spring: remove tree from pot, wash off old soil, now you can see what you are doing
cut off the heavy section of the front root. now Carefully split the medium surface roots in half longways to make 2 roots.add a small stick or stone between the 2 roots to hold them apart.


Stage 3 - this is the way the tree and roots will develop - as you see I've used the actual visible roots to achieve this - but continue these root methods all around the tree .


Now you have an alternative choice............have fun learning from whichever way you choose

cheers Marcus

Hi,

This is a link http://joaopires007.blogspot.pt/2009/05/reconstruir-base-do-tridente.html from my friend Joao Pires that gives you some ideas how to perform your task.

Cheers,

Rui