Opinions on a Style?

Hey everyone,



I received this Tigerbark a few days ago from a friend down in Florida. It stands about 2 feet tall and has a base of 2.5-3 inches. I know it needs rootwork, etc, but I just thought I'd gather some opinions on what kind of style I should go with.

Here's the tree:




Here's what I first thought of (rough virt):


Here is what a friend suggested:


Something like this, roughly (with more left on):



So, would you go with the more upright version or the more open canopy, umbrella like version? Or do you see something completely different? Comments are welcome.

Ryan wrote:
Here's what I first thought of (rough virt):

To me this is the beginning of a very interesting tree. Nice natural feel.

Ryan wrote:
Something like this, roughly (with more left on):

To me this is the beginning of a very boring tree. Why would you even consider this? A waste of a nice piece of material, imho.

Russell Coker wrote:

Ryan wrote:
Here's what I first thought of (rough virt):

To me this is the beginning of a very interesting tree. Nice natural feel.

Ryan wrote:
Something like this, roughly (with more left on):

To me this is the beginning of a very boring tree. Why would you even consider this? A waste of a nice piece of material, imho.

Great, thanks Russell. That's just what I needed to hear. I personally liked the first option, and that's what I saw when I picked out the material. The other option was just suggested to me so I thought I'd throw it out there.

I'll keep you all posted.

Then trust your gut and you'll have a great tree. That second idea - wtf? You could do that to almost any old piece of crap. Someone needs to start thinking outside the box.

Russell Coker wrote:

Then trust your gut and you'll have a great tree. That second idea - wtf? You could do that to almost any old piece of crap. Someone needs to start thinking outside the box.

That's really what I was thinking. It looked pretty typical to me, but hey, they thought it was a good idea. Granted, they'd leave more branchwork left on than in that last picture, but still.

It's a great idea for a pine or a juniper, or a satsuki that usually gets styled like a pine. Look back though this forum of the ficus on display in Taiwan and SE Asia. Mind-blowing!

Russell Coker wrote:

It's a great idea for a pine or a juniper, or a satsuki that usually gets styled like a pine. Look back though this forum of the ficus on display in Taiwan and SE Asia. Mind-blowing!

Oh I have and they are incredible!

For now, I've ring barked this one to get started on a new root system.

If you just received a Ficus from Florida, watch for leaf galls. Cut off affected leaves & spray with a systemic.
Iris

bonsaisr wrote:If you just received a Ficus from Florida, watch for leaf galls. Cut off affected leaves & spray with a systemic.
Iris

So that's what those are! I've been meaning to ask, thanks for that.

Thought I'd just post an update on this tree for you all. A month or two again the tree started losing leaves and the growth tips were turning black and dying off. So I cut it way back to bare branches:


I stuck it in an aquarium, covered the top, and placed a T5 light above, and here we are as of tonight:



I'll wait for the growth to harden off before I remove some of it.

Looking very good!
May I ask why did you debark it...I dont understand.

The debarking, and adding of rooting hormone is done to stimulate new roots to form. The tree had a massive root, rather than multiple thnner roots. After new roots have formed, the old root system can be removed leaving a tree with a balanced rootball

Good Job thus far Ryan,

should make a handsome Bonsai in a few more years.
Happy growing,
Thanks for the update.
Khaimraj

Thanks everyone.

Leatherback summed up what I would've said Neli, so there's your answer

I hope it can become a handsome tree in a few years, but that ball of moss and roots at the bottom makes it a pretty fugly tree for the time being

leatherback wrote:The debarking, and adding of rooting hormone is done to stimulate new roots to form. The tree had a massive root, rather than multiple thnner roots. After new roots have formed, the old root system can be removed leaving a tree with a balanced rootball

Thank You for the explanation.
I have planted a bougainvilea and it just started shooting up...it has a couple of very large roots which I chopped. Should I debark it also?

Anyone have a clue about how I should tackle all of this growth? It obviously needs thinning, but I'm just not sure as to which branches should be left and which should go...

Here's a current picture:


I suppose I could begin by reducing the clusters of branches down to only one branch:

After a quick trim to remove the places where there were clusters of branches:

What I write is from limited experience and some reading. When my ficus sprout branches in clusters like that, I choose the strongest healthiest, fastest growing one from each cluster and lose the rest. This is for the lower branches. Near the apex I leave 2 together in case one dies or they grow into a nicely splitting V branch. But also remove one later as back budding removes the need for 2 branches most of the time.

Also, I found on my ficus, any place where 2 or more branches grow in close proximity, eventually turns into an unsightly bulge on the branch.

If you let the branches grow unchecked for a bit longer you can achieve some nice thickening in a short period of time.

Nice work so far and keep the pics coming.

Cockroach wrote:What I write is from limited experience and some reading. When my ficus sprout branches in clusters like that, I choose the strongest healthiest, fastest growing one from each cluster and lose the rest. This is for the lower branches. Near the apex I leave 2 together in case one dies or they grow into a nicely splitting V branch. But also remove one later as back budding removes the need for 2 branches most of the time.

Also, I found on my ficus, any place where 2 or more branches grow in close proximity, eventually turns into an unsightly bulge on the branch.

If you let the branches grow unchecked for a bit longer you can achieve some nice thickening in a short period of time.

Nice work so far and keep the pics coming.

Thanks! That's what I did with this one, I tried to pick the strongest one, or the one that was in the best position to continue growth. I plan on leaving these to grow in my indoor hot house for a while until they get some thickness and wood on them. Hopefully it won't take too long with how this one's been responding with growth lately.

Growing like a weed:

I'm always fond of a twin trunk tree. Nice start.

Twisted Trees wrote:I'm always fond of a twin trunk tree. Nice start.

Thanks! Not shooting for a twin trunk though

Growth from the last two weeks: