Next steps on a field grown Trident maple bonsai tree

[@jameshall1536]

You make the absoloute best quality, informative, thorough yet simple and straight to the point videos on Bonsai available. Thanks and keep up the good work.

[@TerryErasmusbonsai]

Thanks so much James!!!

[@ZacharyAaronHere]

I have watched the video of you digging this thing a thousand times. Amazing to see the progress

[@TerryErasmusbonsai]

Thanks man! Great to get that feedback.

[@borkobonsai]

Thanks

[@TerryErasmusbonsai]

Thank you so much. I really appreciate it 🙇🏼‍♂️

[@SazzadAli-u1g]

My goodness that thing is unbelievable

[@TerryErasmusbonsai]

Thank you 🙇🏼‍♂️

[@hassimgora]

Most informative. Thanks for sharing your wealth of knowledge so freely. I learnt a lot.

[@TerryErasmusbonsai]

Glad it was helpful Gora! 🙇🏼‍♂️

[@richardnathandaniels2534]

I love update videos!

[@TerryErasmusbonsai]

Thanks Richard. Me too! I’ll try to do more of them going forward.

[@dermo1981]

Excellent. Thanks Terry.

[@TerryErasmusbonsai]

Thank you so much! 🙏🏻

[@andrewclack4881]

minus 5 here in London. Come on spring!

[@TerryErasmusbonsai]

I wish! 38deg C today here. Thanks for watching.

[@apostlewoody]

Very informative, greatly appreciated.

[@TerryErasmusbonsai]

Glad you enjoyed it! Thank you.

[@snejinka_in]

Loved this video ! Very informative, keep going !

[@TerryErasmusbonsai]

Thank you! Will do!

[@ThatGuy-cs3nb]

Love your channel! I think you are one of the best

[@TerryErasmusbonsai]

Wow, thank you!

[@Chuy007GDL]

Thank you for sharing Terry very informative all your videos!. Beautiful Trident maple!!.

[@TerryErasmusbonsai]

Thanks so much! I like it too, thank you for the compliment. I have at least another 15 which I have also grown in the field and all are at least as nice as this but with different shapes and sizes. Hopefully I will feature more of them before I sell them off.

[@Chuy007GDL]

@@TerryErasmusbonsai We need to see them Terry. I really like your technique, style and explanation!.

[@W9SL9Y]

Brilliant as always Terry, was hoping this one would feature again this summer! as with some of the other comments that is the first I have seen that wiring approach and am excited to learn something new. 😁

[@TerryErasmusbonsai]

Glad you enjoyed it Wesley. That wiring technique is somewhat limited and you do need to hold the wire securely while applying it as it is not really anchored. But it works well when applied correctly.

[@razor2ts]

Excellent work Terry, fabulous tree! Thank you! Have a healthy and prosperous 2024 :-)

[@TerryErasmusbonsai]

Thank you so much, I look forward to your support in 2024. All the best to you too.

[@frankhubbs5104]

greatly appreciate your disclosing geographic location as important in managing my expectations and timing of activities ( I reside in Canada). You do an excellent job in explaining techniques and your efforts are highly regarded. Cheers

[@TerryErasmusbonsai]

So nice of you Frank! I appreciate your feedback. I try to think of most things people will want to know. Please send a little of your cold my way, I hate the heat! :)

[@equisader]

That's amazing! I saw the first video where the tree was dug up. I was convinced it couldn't possibly survive. Quite incredible.

[@TerryErasmusbonsai]

Thanks! Yes it is amazing that these trees can endure the work but they’re loaded with energy being healthy and field grown. Also, they’re Trident maples - but all the deciduous I work with can be handled in this manner.

[@XaviersBonsaiRetreat]

Another brilliant and well explained video. I hadn't seen that wiring approach before but will definitely apply it myself. That approach graft over the dead wood is brilliant and I look forward to seeing just how that develops in the next few years. I am annoyed because I missed the opportunity to do major structural work on my smaller Tridents this Autumn. I want them all to go back into development baskets and reduce them to just one or two new shoots. Always too much work and not enough time :)

[@TerryErasmusbonsai]

Thank you so much for commenting. The wiring tip is handy, particularly when working with thick trunks - I hate having to wrap wire around a trunk like this. Yes, the graft over the deadwood works great. In fact you can do it multiple times. Too little time is the bane of my existence too. So many times people ask when is the best time to perform a certain task, for me (and it sounds for you too) its when you have time. :)

[@thinkbonsai]

Great video, and always looking forward for the next one! On field grown tridents, when would it be advisable to do the first major cut to start adding taper and movement? Should I wait until it’s the thickness I want or should I do the first major cut when it’s halfway there so that it can start callousing? Thanks 🙏

[@TerryErasmusbonsai]

Great question, and one which is not too easy to answer as it’s somewhat subjective. However read this article I wrote as it might help: www.bonsaitree.co.za/blogs/tree-talk/75247555-field-growing-bonsai-trees

[@sueb1317]

Thank you so much for this very helpful video! Really enjoyed the step by step examples and explanations. Some great tips I'll be sure to try this year. How do you decide which small branches to keep along the trunk line - especially when you have so many lovely choices?

[@TerryErasmusbonsai]

Thanks Sue. Great question. Well I guess firstly keep more than you will need so you have choices later. Then you want to have branches spaced apart reasonably and growing in different directions. Other than that there isn’t a recipe really and you don’t want one I think, so you can create something unique. Good luck!

[@voitasrusek]

Great video. 😮 What kind of healing paste do you use?

[@TerryErasmusbonsai]

Thanks! I did mention on the video and it is tagged as well. Please check it.

[@arnopienaar8111]

Bravo

[@TerryErasmusbonsai]

Thanks Arno!

[@GrowingBonsai]

Nice work!

[@TerryErasmusbonsai]

Thanks so much Jelle!

[@fennhoppe1746]

Im a little confused about deciduous trees with branches that angle any direction other than horizontal or up. In nature these trees rarely have even a horizontal branch so where does this idea of bending a branch down come from?

[@SecwetGwiwer]

Actually, the thicker, heavier branches at the bottom of the tree will sag and become horizontal or point slightly downwards at the base. It’s important, however for that branch to curve upwards at the tip to mimic the shape that occurs in nature as the branch tries to point back upwards, towards the sun. This is called photo morphology.

[@TerryErasmusbonsai]

100%. Thank you for helping Fenn with an answer. I want to get to a keyboard so I can reply in some detail too.

[@TerryErasmusbonsai]

OK, I am behind a PC now so can type a response.... I am not sure why the trees where you grow do not have any drooping branches but this is very common actually, certainly where I live and have travelled. I would agree that horizontal branches are less common and very species dependent but they do exist although they look a little odd and when used as the majority branch angle in a bonsai I find the tree rather boring. Yes, in the apex the typical branch angle is up - makes sense as branches grow towards the sunlight. However this all refers to what happens in nature, but I never stated I was trying to achieve a naturalistic tree....I am making a bonsai and there is little that is natural in putting a tree into a container and then shaping it with wire and pruning it with scissors. Bonsai is an art. I am the artist. I can do anything I like, just as you can. If I want others to appreciate it too, well that's when things get a little more complicated. If its well executed then people should/will generally be able to appreciate it if they can look beyond simple rules. Although bonsai's "roots" might have been attempts at reproducing nature in a pot, today bonsai can be very stylized/sculputural/naturalistic/abstract and everything in between. The term "bonsai" simply means a potted plant. On a practical level, bending the lower branches down gives me more space to create volume in my canopy but it definately is inspired by nature as typically old trees exhibit this trait. If you want your bonsai to appear aged then lower your first branches. Hope that helps a little, but your question is a loaded one and not so easy to answer in words.

[@fennhoppe1746]

@@TerryErasmusbonsai i really appreciate your response, and i agree bonsai is an art and the artist can do what they like 👍🏽

[@cl3069]

Also I believe the lower and older branches in nature on many trees like this show sagging due to the effects of snow in winter. The older the branch, the more it's been weighed down with snow each year. Hence replicating that sag in bonsai adds to the effect of age. Excellent technique and explanations Terry. Thanks for sharing and covering this off so well.

[@fatstratcatdaddyo]

After digging a field-grown trident, can I expect to have some shoots result from the roots that are left in the ground?

[@TerryErasmusbonsai]

No I don’t believe so. I’ve never experienced that with tridents, however Celtis seem to do that.

[@pietropieroni5685]

Hi Terry, it's me from Italy. I have a question about a white pine. I got it from a bonsai center, something must have happened to it, the size is between mame/shohin. it has partially green/yellow needles, but I have seen that some needles on each bud are always green. we made a deal he priced it low and if he dies I get a voucher. apart from this, if I could send a photo it would be better, that's what I'd ask first, in your opinion, I'll do a false repotting, removing a bit of old soil around it and then I'll impust it and put it in a cold greenhouse while praying. Thank you

[@TerryErasmusbonsai]

Hi Pietro, thank you for your confidence in me. However I would rather recommend you speak with someone in your area who has the same species as they would be in a better position to advise you. I am not familiar with your climate or how goyomatsu respond there.

[@danhip2442]

Hello. Why do you make a bulge on the cut, while some people, on the contrary, make a depression? What would be more correct?

[@TerryErasmusbonsai]

Great question. If the cut is fairly small it heals quickly and I believe the rate at which the callous forms can be too fast and it causes a bulge. If the cut is large and will take several seasons to callous fully it is better to shape it slightly protruding so that when the callous forms it does so in a more rounded rather than flat way. This may change from species to species. Which is correct? Well I think you should try both and see what works best for you.

[@danhip2442]

@@TerryErasmusbonsai Thank you for answer.

[@TerryErasmusbonsai]

No problem and good luck.

[@rommelrosales8318]

What trunk diameter size do grow your trees on the ground before you dig them up?

[@TerryErasmusbonsai]

Thanks for the question. I’ve not actually measured. I guess at least 20cm diameter.

[@Gonecrazy666]

@@TerryErasmusbonsaiand with perfect conditions how many years does that take Terry? Thank you!👍🏻

[@TerryErasmusbonsai]

Perfect conditions, mmmmm. Field growing, at least where I am doing it is anything but perfect 😂 but let me try to answer your question. 6 -8 years from a whip, in perfect conditions with a Trident maple and without doing any root work during that time.

[@Gonecrazy666]

Hello from California Terry, I’ve planted 12 trident maples in the ground last winter, they are 2’-3’ feet tall, I believe they are called ‘whips’. They’re doing well, my question is should I just let them grow naturally or should I top them to make lower branches sprout more? Thank you! I love your channel!!! And I always listen to what you say👍🏻

[@TerryErasmusbonsai]

Thanks for commenting. That’s a very good question. I would say there are 2 ways (most likely more) as a single trunk or as a sort of multi trunk (Check out Celtis bonsai from Taiwan for examples) if single trunk then I would grow the whip till it’s roughly 2/3rd as think as you want and then chop. This results in a large scar and a change in trunk direction and taper. The second method is where you use side branches in the structure and also to help thicken the trunk. The latter results in smaller scarring and no major trunk chop.

[@Gonecrazy666]

Thank you Terry!

[@TerryErasmusbonsai]

My pleasure. Hope it helps you decide.

[@garden--23]

Awesome

[@TerryErasmusbonsai]

Thank you so much!

[@josephjansenvanvuuren5314]

Update please

[@randolphfriend8260]

💚 🎉

[@TerryErasmusbonsai]

👍🏻

[@liperosden4606]

I think you have a distorted image of a bonsai, you use some bonsai techniques but for me you are kind of a "cartoon sick, mad, crazy doctor evil, that experiment those trees" what you do is very far from what bonsai is meant to be...

[@TerryErasmusbonsai]

Are you just copying and pasting this comment or what? If you want to insult me, please try to be original with each insult. It’s far more fun for me to read them that way.