A Little Trim: The Fantastic Forsythia Tree [Bonsai]
Lifting lower levels lighter
Puffing powerful pressed pistons
Bestowing buds beautiful blooms.
A Little Literal Literary
An Original Nonsense Poem by @creativetruth
This is another one of my posts in which I share some before and after photos when I trim my bonsai. It is fun to share the nature of the maintenance work I do in this simple backyard hobby of mine, so I hope you enjoy.
Let's check out the past details on this tree...
ID: 0016
Nickname: Daisy
Type: Forsythia
Age: 2.5 years
Grown: cutting
Last repotting: May 2018, October 2017
Wired: Spring 2018
This young tree is in a training pot I made, more like a colander, because I am working on developing more roots and a thicker base on the trunk. Having lots of drainage and air holes around the roots is supposed to force the tree to create a dense mass of many roots, rather than a thick taproot that would coil around the base of a normal pot.
Now let's check out some photos of how this tree looks after is was trimmed.
Mostly all I did was shorten the stems so they weren't vining out like long snakes from the main branches. When I trim it down, it gives perspective on how few branches and growing ends there actually are on the tree.
I always like to trim down the fat new stems to about one or two leaf nodes away from the main branch. It keeps the tree small and allows buds to form closer to the main branch instead of extending the stems longer.
Note: If you are following along and learning from my posts, remember to never prune off wood with bark on it during the growing season. Only prune green stems. Otherwise the tree might bleed out sap and weaken.
Fortunately, this species of tree is extremely resilient. Pruning it just makes it divert growth into new ways. Since I pruned the stems shorter, it cannot send growth into making branches longer, so instead it makes more leaf buds, which will become more stems.
See? Here is a more recent photo only a few weeks after it was pruned. This is the new leaf buds forming on May 23, 2018.
Nearly all the pruned stems are showing signs of new leaf buds.
Here is what the tree looks like today, May 29, 2018.
Full of new green growth.
Almost ready for another trim.
Looks better with the wire removed, doesn't it?
This cherry tree stump acts as a bench where I usually let it remain while it grows.
Only nine more months until this tree produces flowers again....
Past posts by @creativetruth featuring this tree:
- bonsai tree into a training pot
- Some minor enhancements to a Forsythia tree
- Fading Memory
- Golden Flowers on Bonsai Tree
- Week Two: Preparing to prune trees in Winter
- How I plant a tree into a bonsai pot
- Little bonsai tree waiting for Spring
Photos in this post are all #originalworks by @creativetruth.
Find me on discord and chat with other tree growers, bonsai enthusiasts, and gardeners. We have quite a few accredited experts filling out our ranks, and a helpful Spanish-speaking community.
Have you watered a tree lately?
