Eric has a little unwrapping fun (a bit like Christmas in September!) as he works on 5 Japanese Black Pines that he last checked in on last winter. This video includes tips for early development work on exposed root, root over rock, and informal upright bonsai styles.
00:00:48 Tree #1 is coming out of the side of the container, so Eric thinks its an attempt at an upside down exposed root. He explains the purpose of pallet wrap around the mesh container – it keeps the roots from drying out too quick.
00:02:34 After removing the wires holding the mesh together to the bottom container, Eric combs out some soil. He wants to give the roots more shape and create more movement in a section of the tree that is currently too straight.
00:04:03 After trimming, 5 buds remain. Eric discusses the sacrifice branch and explains his wiring decisions.
00:06:02 It looks MUCH better, right ?!? Eric adds sphagnum moss to keep roots from drying out or getting scorched in the sun. Plus more plastic wrap and a tie-down.
00:08:21 Tree #2 has a bunch of forgotten wire that needs to be removed.
00:09:04 Lots of roots on bottom means the tree has grown really healthy. Eric cuts away the top couple of inches of the mesh container, instead of removing the entire container.
00:10:00 Close up of Eric combing out the soil and reviewing fine roots. The bigger roots are not quite big enough so he decides not to do any more work on this tree today. He discusses future design options at length.
00:12:22 Tree #3 is root over rock. Roots are starting to hug the rock. Eric removes the entire top container to expose the rock. He wonders why the color doesn’t look as good as on his other pines.
00:13:45 Problematic root either needs to be removed or moved. Eric pops the entire tree out of the mesh container.
00:15:12 View after removing soil from the top half of the root ball. Roots need to be more tightly wrapped around the rock.
00:16:25 Reorient and find bottom of stone for eventual smaller pot options.
00:18:08 Trees #4 and #5 are informal uprights that required wire removal and wiring, respectively.
Thank you for watching! Let us know what you think about Eric’s design decisions on these trees in the comments. Check out our Early Development playlist for more informative videos. Please like and share this video. Why not subscribe to our channel and receive notifications whenever we drop a new video?
