Creating Bonsai from Nordman Spruce

In this video I show you how to create bonsai of differing shapes from the Nordman Spruce Material.
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[@Drakey_Fenix]

Although I don't do bonsai myself, I do love watching your videos. It's very relaxing to listen to your voice and watch you care for these plants.

[@PolinaS-gq1te]

Try it, so satisfying! Got me two small junipers and cut a peach tree, using master Chan's lessons. Looks awesome.

[@Blaydrnnnr]

My main concern when I started trying, was just keeping the trees alive, and this is my main concern every year, but as the year goes on, the few times I get to sit down with all my trees, and prune, pinch, and consider ideas, is some of the only time I get with some peace....no matter how many times I've lost trees, I constantly keep trying, and ALWAYS wind up adding at least one tree to my collection...LOL

[@nathanaxel8758]

Instablaster...

[@NancyCase]

I'm on my third bonsai because of this channel. Thank you!

[@selfmade6142]

What an ingenious trick to split the trunk in order to be able to bend it better. I would never have thought of that. A great demonstration.

[@yopage]

Making a branch into a leader looks great and instantly adds to the height. So many options!!!

[@Blaydrnnnr]

I've had many of my trees for quite some time, and since I'm very much a total beginner, every year in February here, I try something I've learned, for the first time. It usually involves totally changing the appearance of my trees as I create new leaders from branches, etc... Its amazing sometimes how much a tree will change completely from what you THOUGHT you were aiming for. Don't be afraid to try new things...because what you do now, may not be what it will wind up being much later on....My trees have a mind of their own as the get older...LOL

[@davidmurray9844]

Thank You for sharing the joy of Bonsai with everyone.

[@billyckjelson]

Greetings from the US Peter and company. I’m such a fan. Thank you for the sharing your passion and body of knowledge with a new class of bonsai enthusiasts. I’ve learned so much from you books and your KZbin channel has become an invaluable resource for myself and a half million other fans! Excellent work to your whole team.

[@angie3504]

I like the ‘re-enforcing’ method. I find that helps me a lot. Thank you Peter for another excellent video...

[@kimrichardson8376]

Peter you always seem to do a video on exactly what I needed. I was wondering what to do with my spruce bonsai and now I know. Thank you. Kim🇨🇦

[@blahblahbleh__9046]

Watching this has reminded me I have a couple of small albert spruce i bought at Christmas. Time to think out a little forest grouping I think. Happy tree tending everyone!

[@dredgefreak9897]

Thank so much Peter,love this so much.

[@bonsaigusto1547]

Great video Peter, your creations are always an inspiration 👏🏼

[@PlantCraftDIY]

Good work Peter..you are so bliliant😍

[@BlueSkyBonsai]

Another enjoyable video - thanks! The snap at 29:08, that's happened to us all at some stage! Regards from Dave in Madrid

[@christinewi6276]

I love your videos! Super interesting and great info. All your trees are so cool !

[@almac2598]

Thanks Peter.

[@eveturner1260]

Love it, many thanks

[@NanoTLG]

Hehe I always love the intro music ;)

[@apearson79]

I usually watch while my birds are out flying and they always say hello to the birds in that intro 😊

[@NanoTLG]

@@apearson79 awesome

[@renevandenborre3629]

No one ever mentions doing bonsai with Sitka spruce. I used to live in Sitka Alaska and there they are one of the most common tree in the forrest. I started doing bonsai with them and was quite succesfull until I had to leave for a while and had someone care for them which job they failed at which killed ALL my bonsais.

[@thumperoux1528]

While it is right in calling these Christmas trees I do believe these are fir (abies) and not spruce (picea). The fir (balsam fir) is probably the most common Christmas tree grown and sold in eastern Canada for decorating. Hardy species like these keep me coming back to your videos. Many thanks for your generosity.

[@neilappeal20]

Yes I'd agree, I have bought a field grown fir and have been confused in identifying it. There's a norway spruce but not a nordmann spruce. I'm happy all the same. Great vid thaks Peter.

[@jacobkomnath7961]

ive got a massive one in my yard, the cones are indeed very large and make for excellent snowmen noses lol

[@amandamfds]

Yay, another video!

[@marekvagner5789]

21:18 ups :D snap a bit :D First little mistake seen from Peter of all video i seen :D i made this snap like milion times :D Again great work .... hope for end of COVID lockdown in Czech republic to visit your Nursey this Year....

[@peterchan3100]

We all make mistakes - thats how we learn.

[@BenGristUK]

Awesome video, been enjoying your content for quite a while now, looking forward to actually being able to head over to you one day after lockdown! Is there any chance your cameraman could turn down the 'Gain' on the camera microphone? It appears it is set too high and is causing 'clipping' or distortion to the sound. All the best!

[@peterchan3100]

We are still learning to improve our videos- please bear with us.

[@BenGristUK]

@@peterchan3100 your videos are incredible! Thanks for what you are doing 👍🏼

[@DRMtexas]

Thanks for the videos, I love to watch you make bonsai from ‘ordinary’ trees. Forgive me if this is a basic question, but does the color of wire matter in bonsai?

[@MidniteSan]

Abies nordmanniana, the Nordman fir or Caucasian fir. thx for sharing Peter 😁, Hope to see some updates on your last projects if u can 😁. Cheers

[@firetribe2112]

I was looking at the trunk and thinking that can’t be spruce looks like a fir, now I know I’m not seeing things, thank you

[@HigherInfluence]

I’d really like to see an update to see how it works out after a year of two if you still have the tree, It looks like a completely different tree, amazing transformation. BTW I’m just about to invest in a pair of Felco #2’s , what size are you using in this video?

[@peterchan3100]

Felco 2 are one size

[@EH18]

Thank you Peter. Would the clusters of branches coming from the same node not cause inverse taper? I have a large one of these that I'm waiting to work on but not sure if I should be cutting the extra branches. Thanks!

[@peterchan3100]

Absolutely right

[@Blaydrnnnr]

I have a branch splitter, it came in my set of tools I bought many years ago, and have never used it. I am constantly inspired to try, but scared. I have 2 Dawn redwoods, that are straight as an arrow, and was seriously thinking of splitting the trunk to try to add some movement to the trees, but it scares me to death that I will kill them. My Redwoods are about 2ft high, with trunk at the base about 3/4" thick, maybe an inch...Its already first week of April, so I think it may be too late for hard styling at this point. You make it look fairly easy.

[@jonnecleef5548]

They remind me of nordfolk pines.

[@yogideshmukh]

Ohh yes, to me as well

[@garfoonga1]

maybe the guy asking about a 1.2 metre tall bonsai was meaning to ask about bonsai techniques on garden trees. Which is totally a fine idea. Some fundamentals like removing dead material and wiring can make large garden trees look entirely new.

[@holyek7892]

I have a question. In the last tree: could you have made him out of the leader? Great video. Loved it!

[@TheDeeffr]

About the trunk splitting. I've split my first juniper branch last week, and wrapped it in raffia. I have a pine I want to do next, is it better not to use the raffia? Also, how to remove the raisinfrom the tool? Thanks for your great videos!

[@peterchan3100]

Yes Raffia does help

[@pansepot1490]

Use White spirit or mineral spirits, also known as mineral turpentine, to remove resin from tools. Works best when the resin is fresh. Also paint thinner may work if you happen to have it.

[@andersnrregren9087]

Is cuting the roots better then breaking the pot if roots grow thru the pot?

[@murbiyanto1074]

Baguuusss

[@joshhhuagarcia1890]

Good morning Peter. Another excellent learning video. When you use the log splitting tool I seem to see that sometimes it does not follow a continuous line but the cuts separate a bit. Is this the case in all cases or where do you know that it will suffer greater torsional force, should the cutting line be more continuous?

[@peterchan3100]

I guess with experience - you will be able to judge how far to go. I do it insticntivley

[@joshhhuagarcia1890]

@@peterchan3100 Okay. Thank you very much for answering (I am floating). I will first try ficus that I imagine are ideal for this technique (or not?).

[@traveladdict747]

Can you do a ficus religiosa bonsai. It has a very nice leafs

[@codyhelms3962]

Peter, do you have to do anything to the trunk, like cut paste, after you use the trunk splitter? Love the videos! Cheers from the US! Your like the Bob Ross of Bonsai!

[@peterchan3100]

No need to - the split will heal itself

[@thomasbeige1735]

chapeau!

[@apearson79]

I have a new dogwood tree that looks like a twig haha I have it in a huge pot so it'll grow faster.

[@teddygee7859]

👁 wonder 💭 who r the 2 people that would make a thumbs down 👎? This is a great video. U learn a lot when u have a bonsai. It’s a learning experience just like being in school 🏫. It’s a relaxing video.

[@paulus1412]

not sure if i can ask something here in the comments or if there will be a Q&A video in the future maybe? But i have 2 Ficus Ginseng (the ikea version :P). Bought the same time. They are both kept indoors. Same place, light, liquid ferts, good watering etc. 1 has still very dark green, shiny, fresh looking leaves. The other has matte, light green/white/brown leaves. Both are still growing new shoots and growing, creating leaves. So it looks its still alive. Also green bark etc. But 1 tree is missing the fresh look. Could this be a plant disease? Or missing ferts? Wrong soil (both are standing in pokon bonsai soil)?

[@peterchan3100]

Hard to advise without seeing a pic of the two trees - Email our office a pic

[@annaw1298]

I wanted to try bonsai. I bought a pre-bonsai online and it came almost two weeks late. It was in the mail for three weeks, and it never recovered from the stress of shipping. I am still trying to get it to bounce back but it has no leaves and looks dead. It has two leaf buds and I am just hoping it lives. Edit: When do you know a tree is dead?

[@peterchan3100]

scratch the bark to see if it is still green under the bark - If it is then there is still life there- if it is brown then the tree is dead.

[@ElSueno97]

Can you make a bonsai out of Japanese maple inaba shidare?

[@mcm9619]

how long does the wire stay on the tree ?

[@andreasweber1533]

Until either the limb has taken a set and stays in the intended shape or has thickened to a point where the wire begins to constrict unacceptably, whichever comes first.

[@mcm9619]

@@andreasweber1533 Thank you .

[@DuncSargent]

My wife, "That's gorgeous...that's amazing...let's go for a walk in the woods."

[@CHloE748]

Why are the videos 2 months behind?

[@GoodEnoughVenson_sigueacristo]

I've been wondering for a while why you use inches instead of centimeters.

[@peterchan3100]

Although I grew up in India and had all my education there - we were taught in Imperial (ie inches, feet and yards)- a relic of the British days - Even in the UK Imperial was used for quite some time. Its only fairly recently that the UK uses metric but the Roads are still measured in Miles and speeds are mph !!

[@GoodEnoughVenson_sigueacristo]

@@peterchan3100 Wow, I feel so ignorant. Thanks for enlightening me!

[@GoodEnoughVenson_sigueacristo]

@@peterchan3100 BTW, I love your videos. I'm not into bonsai really, but your videos are so relaxing, and I enjoy watching a master perform his art.

[@neilmcghee1016]

Hi Peter, seeing your great videos, I was wondering if you had /ever do a 'Peter Chan bonsai surgery' ? '

[@neilmcghee1016]

Viewers could send you questions and maybe even videos with questions, and you could then share your wisdom on video , obviously this would keep Herons nursery and it's content in viewers' minds for buying solutions to their problem. Do you think the surgery idea would give you even greater engagement with your 'fan's like me! ... still hoping that my wife and I will be allowed to attend our postponed lesson in May! Just an idea

[@peterchan3100]

@@neilmcghee1016 - I did a WhatsApp chat surgery for two months for anyone who cared to ring in, But I can't cope with the volume of calls. I would love to help but time is the big problem. I dont havent enough time. As it is I work 18 hrs a day. Its now 1.30am in the morning and I am replying to your comment.

[@neilmcghee1016]

@@peterchan3100 ah! I understand. Extra pressure is definitely not needed! It was just an idea in case you were looking for subject matter for your interactions with your viewers. Thank you for responding. Hopefully this pandemic has not hit you hard.

[@Najaxyutara]

👍

[@yogideshmukh]

I think it's nordmann fir not spruce

[@jomonjoy5507]

Hi sir

[@bradcarby3765]

I liked the shitty little one the best in the end.

[@vishalchhetri962]

Dad ❤️❤️ I am back

[@CHloE748]

These videos are pretty behind, now it’s April lol

[@makewithmegma]

❤🔥😍👍

[@XAlpharavenX]

Is any one else hearing audio issues?

[@ronniebruce]

yes, cutting in and out?

[@MikeyDunn]

The amount of reverberation on the audio really lets the video down.

[@FromSeedtoBonsai]

Any one from Bangladesh ??

[@obadiahpillay3968]

1

[@henrygrey285]

rip mic

[@shainemaine1268]

Medicine in every way

[@kurtkampmeier]

Second

[@Huzenッ]

Caucasian fir

[@elisabethparson8469]

I'm just now becoming interested in bonsai but at 67 in afraid I'd never be able to see the full potential of my work.

[@pansepot1490]

As they say: it’s about the journey, not the destination. Besides, no need to start from seed, that would be very slow and admittedly daunting. If you keep watching bonsai videos you’ll find that there’s plenty of ways to create nice bonsai in few years. My advice is to buy a few or at least one developed bonsai so you can both learn and enjoy taking care of a mature tree while you work on your own longer term projects.

[@alexisvazquez9632]

If you want to just recreate nature, why bother? Just look at trees in nature. I see bonsai as an art form and like any art there should always be room for creativity, and personal interpretation.