An open window into the comings and goings of students and their trees attending our regular weekend and midweek bonsai classes under the ever watchful eyes of John Hanby.
Classroom Corner – The Juniper and the Buxus
These two trees turned up recently at an open workshop. The Juniper was imported from Japan 2 years ago. You can tell by the new growth extension just how vigorous this tree is and that he is ready for styling.
First of all the dense foliage was thinned out and branches were selected. There was also a lot of work involved in cleaning up and identifying the live vein so that the shari could be more clearly defined. The contrast between the live vein and shari on this tree is very important and is a dramatic feature.
The branches were then wired and positioned. There will be some more thinning out of branches to do as the tree develops further. It will be repotted in spring.
The Buxus had been allowed to extend and grow strong so that it was very much like a bush again. It’s new shape for the future needed to be defined and set out.
A short stiff branch at the top of the tree was removed but most branches were retained and wired. Once styled the shape of the tree is now much more obvious and this will make it so much easier for the student to continue with it’s future development.
