Redesigning a Japanese White Pine (Pinus Parviflora)
by Patrick J. deSilva of The Way of Bonsai™
I
had the pleasure of working with Masa Furukawa of 'Japan
Bonsai' during the summer of 2003. 'Japan Bonsai' has been serving Portland,
Oregon for over twenty years and is well respected, especially for the creation
of saikei designs. During his studies at the Tokyo Agricultural University, he
entered into a ten year apprenticeship with Toshio Kawamoto, owner of Meiju-en,
the developer of saikei, and the Nippon bonsai Saikei Art Institute.
Mr. Ron Allison, a longtime friend of Mr. Furukawa, brought this white pine (shown left) to us for pruning and reshaping. Mr. Allison has been collecting and working with both native and imported material for over 30 years.
He was kind enough to give me permission to make any changes I thought necessary. With this tree and all other bonsai, I follow a process that, hopefully, further develops a tree into a good bonsai. I always keep in mind that the tree may pass through many hands as it ages and that I am only one person on that continuum. For the period of time that I am the caretaker, I try to do what is best for the health and design of the tree.
As I sat and contemplated the tree before me, I ran through a short list of variables that make up a bonsai:
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overall health of the tree
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style best suited for this particular tree and species
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exposed trunk, movement, and taper
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exposed roots
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branch location, movement, taper, and ramification
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a well-formed top to the tree
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position in the pot for overall balance
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size, shape, style, clay, and glaze of pot appropriate to the tree
Overall Health
First and foremost, never work on a tree unless it is in good health. Luckily, Mr. Allison has been taking excellent care of this tree. So much so, that after radical pruning and restyling Mr. Furukawa was able to repot the tree the same day, without fear of weakening the tree. The photo above shows lush foliage and original position in the pot.
Tree Style, Trunk, &Taper
All trees reach for the sun. At times, the trunk will twist and bend because of damage or in order to move around something that is blocking the sun from reaching the tree. This movement is highly prized in most bonsai.
Looking at our example, we find a straight trunk with little taper rising to the foliage. The trunk makes a rather unattractive and pronounced bend at this point, as if the tree is suddenly slumping sideways under the weight of the foliage.
I rectify this situation in two stages:
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Using raphia, wire, and two pieces of rebar, I bent the upper trunk to create a more pleasing trunk-line.
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I repositioned the tree in the pot at an angle to form a moyogi or informal upright tree.
Exposed Roots
Beyond the lack of taper in the trunk, another deficit is the lack of exposed roots. Of all the aspects of a tree to change, creating well-balanced exposed roots and trunk are the most difficult and time consuming.
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At the end of the reshaping, Mr. Furukawa repotted the tree using the same pot for lack of any other. By changing the angle in the pot, he exposed part of the roots. Having roots exposed on only one side is worse than having no exposed roots. However, at this time, it would shock the tree too much to eliminate so much of the root mass.
Branching & Wire
Looking at the picture above, we see that two of the branches are fighting for dominance. One or the other is not necessary and, if kept, an unsightly bulge would develop at the union of the two branches. I decided to remove the lower branch (the branch that is coming out of the main trunk at approximately 3 o'clock).
After the unnecessary branches were removed, the remaining branches were wrapped with raphia, if necessary, wired, and positioned to form an aesthetically pleasing arrangement.
A fault of mine is that I often spend more time developing the appearance of the front of the tree to the detriment of the other sides of the tree. So try to develop the overall tree when pruning and positioning the branches.
After going through the effort of wiring the branches, please take the time to position the branches so that they move in the same direction, as if undulating like a wave. I like to tip the buds up towards the sun at approximately the same angle in order to create a more finished appearance.
A Well-formed Top
The most difficult part of developing the top of the tree is to determine which branches are necessary and to wire the branches with as little wire as possible. It takes practice, practice, and more practice in order to become proficient. I like to think of it as a puzzle and take enjoyment in figuring out the most efficient way to wire the branches. Patience is the key to good work. Don't hesitate to remove wire that later is determined to be not the best solution to the problem and make the effort to rewire neatly.
Position in the Pot
After repotting, the balance is still off because the mass of exposed roots is preventing the tree from moving a little more to the right. In the future, after removing the exposed roots, a slightly shallower pot of the same clay and design would be appropriate. For now, it is repotted in the same pot to help establish more roots and because it was available.
Ron's white pine after repotting.
This article appeared in the Summer 2005 issue of American Bonsai Society Magazine.