Bonsaify | A Little Mischief with Three Mame Junipers

Join Eric as he works on three examples of mame junipers (mini-bonsai) in three different stages of development.
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00:00:18 The oldest of the three junipers is a bit overgrown, but it's got some great features.
00:00:57 The second tree is only 3 years old and has been in a mini-bonsai pot since the previous winter.
00:01:02 Eric starts with an untrained small juniper, adjusting the potting, making a shari on one side and then wiring and twisting the tree into an initial shape, with emphasis on making a lifeline that twists.
00:05:46 Back to the second juniper - Some shari creation previously adds character, but has not started to roll over to make the trunk shape nicer. Eric wired some of the branching to add movement and interest, but he's letting the tips run to continue building character in the trunk.
00:06:54 The older juniper now measures almost 4" tall so Eric decides to clean it up and reduce the foliage mass significantly.
00:09:54 All wire removed, Eric discusses using a different cutback technique than he normally uses on Kishu junipers.
00:10:45 Let the cutback begin!
00:12:30 Cutback done, and time to begin wiring the remaining branching.
00:15:40 Bending the new lower branch into place.
00:16:30 Most wiring completed, Eric starts to do more bending and twisting.
00:20:45 Still tweaking
00:22:00 Adding more wires - 22 AWG annealed copper wire
00:22:50 Restyling completed, Eric discusses the aftercare and what placement of budding he's hoping for as a result of the cutback.
Share your experience with mame and mini-juniper bonsai in the comments below and subscribe to our channel!

[@TheBonsaiZone]

They are so small, they want their Mame! Wonderful trees!!

[@seandoyle6688]

😂

[@thysillybilly]

😹

[@DavidScheltema]

“If I had 💯 straight junipers I wouldn’t want any of them.” 🔥🔥🔥

[@TheBonsaiGarden]

There is something magical and totally enchanting with mame and shohin trees. 🙏Thank you for your fantastic output Eric, it is greatly appreciated ❤️

[@bartstellink307]

I just love mame, we have a small apartment with a small balcony of like 1 and a half square metre (like 14 square feet?). So I am very restricted. So mame it is. Thanks for the good content!

[@bigtomatoplantslover6205]

Beautiful Bonsai ^^ Thank you for good sharing~ Like 240 My friend, have a good day

[@FrederikCE]

this was really help full to see you do almost uncut. I haven't been able to find videoes of this kinda of pruning of mame junipers, so thank you eric!

[@nickaleshin7149]

God your mame work is so satisfying. Expert use of tweezers, I love it so much

[@matttownson5646]

Loved watching you wire that third tree. I think I learned a lot just from that. I was going to ask how you can remove so much without reverting to juvenile foliage but then you answered it at the end, with typically fatalistic optimism. Thanks for sharing!

[@Bonsaify]

So far it has not gone juvenile but in the end those to wired bits might end up being removed. One of the slightly frustrating things about kishu is that they will bud back to a "node" or branch junction rather than on the side of small bits of foliage like that. So the tree is budding from the cut sites presently. Ultimately that will be better, but it's a slow process to rebuild the crown, even on such a tiny tree.

[@dermo1981]

Thanks Eric. Always enjoy your vids. Keep em coming!

[@davidk5953]

A fearless trim, well done. What an amazing little tree.

[@bonsaichaunguyen]

Amazing, Thank you for sharing

[@potreliefbonsaibatu5035]

All : beauty beauty beauty bonsai 👍👍👍

[@gabewashburn5756]

Absolutely beautiful. Exquisite work.

[@OjaiBonsai]

I love mame. Great trees. Thanks

[@wilfridmaffio1175]

Incredible !!!

[@Sayef_Li]

Really beautiful

[@PlantObsessed]

I was holding my breath for half of the video. Wow. I would be interested in hearing how you do the aftercare for this kind of procedure.

[@davidstokes925]

Thanks so much for this video!

[@henzobonsai]

Really nice 👏👏👏

[@wshow11]

Great wiring placement! Absolutely necessary, looks to me like.

[@rolando10]

Wonderful

[@jvbons]

you did very well my friend🥰greetings from the philippines.

[@arthurwatson897]

I was watching your juniper bonsai video when I received the one that I ordered from you. I love it. Don't know what I am going to do with it this winter.

[@sagebonsai]

excellent video on this topic, when I do mame and shohin trees my favorite wire sizes are 20, 22, and 26 gauge.

[@BONSAIenCORTO]

Qué chulada. Gracias.

[@9daywonda]

I think the small bonsai are better more unusual. You remind me of guy I was in school with here in the U.K.

[@slametsetiadi4293]

Mr Erick what a beautiful mame bonsai tree,i wonder the tree in a small pot can grow so well.

[@S-series1977]

Nice 👍👍👍🙂👍 video

[@chasingthefish9042]

This is intense.

[@bulebonsaibatam1758]

Great little mame trees. Big hands small tree syndrome. I am so scared to just strip the trunks for Shari. I have only a few junipers but they are all Mame.

[@rizkyrijzalbonsai6990]

Mantap

[@bulebonsaibatam1758]

Awesome tutorial. Can you do the Shari like that on 1 yr old Japanese Black Pines?

[@Bonsaify]

Yes, you can, although shari on pines is typically not considered desirable because the bark is the key feature. However, that's a Japanese convention, not a rule.

[@nanukvas]

thanks, can you let me know or is there a specific time you expect to have them.

[@Bonsaify]

If only bonsai manufacturing were predictable. I'm not sure, because it depends on how well they grow this summer. But the plan is vaguely Sept-October...

[@jonathanaristone2468]

Hi Eric: When you said you would put your last finished tree in a tray, are you saying a tray of water? If so do you leave all your Mame in trays of water? Thanks, and now I know why you used copper wire for fine work, for the strength. Could have used that today when I was fine wiring.

[@Bonsaify]

Actually, it's a tray of fine lava (like coarse sand size) and it has drainage. I nestle the bottom of the pot into the lava. You can see the exact tray on the "One mame trick to rule them all" video.

[@jc-wx3sm]

would a coast redwood be good for the carve then wire a seedling technique shown here? Would it be more same or less risky?

[@jc-wx3sm]

and I'll add bald cypress?

[@Bonsaify]

I've never tried either of those. They don't typically create lifelines (maybe bald cypress do more than redwood), but they're capable of doing so. Try it out !

[@brucedeacon28]

👍👌🙂

[@rogersfc]

Nice jobs! Do you always use perlite+cocconut coir for young plants? Or it's only for connifers? Salutes from spain!

[@Bonsaify]

Almost exclusively perlite/coco. I've found by tweaking the ratio a little, most plants do fine. Conifers a bit more coarse particles, deciduous a bit finer and more coco.

[@rogersfc]

@@Bonsaify thank you!

[@christopherrubino3614]

What type of junipers are these. My local box store only has Juniper parsoni. I have a Nana, parsoni, and a Itoigawa. I want to do some work on them but I want to pick up something from my local box store to play and experiment on but the parsoni seem to have really big foliage that wouldnt look quite right as a small bonsai. I could be wrong, I just struggle to see the possible look in my head.

[@Bonsaify]

They are kishu. You should be able to do the same with Itoigawa, but Nana and Parsonii are not small enough for this size. We have Kishu available on Bonsaify.com, but probably not as cheap as a box store tree.

[@bayareaspearoshorediver7535]

When's the best time of the year to make shari on a juniper?

[@Bonsaify]

You can do it almost any time. I tend to leave them alone in spring because the cambium separates so easily from the wood - that actually makes it easier to make jin and shari, but they might end up bigger than you planned. Summer and fall are good times.

[@nanukvas]

Do you have any mame junipers for sale...I would love to buy one!

[@Bonsaify]

Not yet, but we will have some soon! Thanks for asking.

[@gandolfgrey5385]

Where do you buy your copper wire from?

[@Bonsaify]

ptbonsai.com We may start offering it also, but he has it now.

[@aephix73]

what type of juniper are those?

[@Bonsaify]

Juniperus chinensis v. Kishu. Or just Kishu in common bonsai circles.

[@jamesancilleri3694]

What junipers culivar?

[@Bonsaify]

Juniperus chinensis, "Kishu".

[@jamesancilleri3694]

@@Bonsaify thankyou for the fast reply love your Chanel

[@sheilachuck3067]

Why do you have it in a plastic container like you do?