We will now persevere with the foliage to try and get it denser and more compact. At least we now have a good foliage canopy to match the impressive deadwood. There is potential here to create a really good tree.

I will keep you posted and if we do feel the need to resort to plan B I will follow it up with photographs and explanations.

For now let’s just enjoy the tree we have!

At some point in your bonsai life you will lose a tree. If you have been doing bonsai seriously for any length of time then sadly you will have already experienced this, and more than likely, more than once.

Sometimes it’s down to you! You did too much work, you expected too much, you didn’t give the tree time to recover. Maybe you neglected the tree or got something wrong.

Because we are dealing with a living thing sometimes it’s down to circumstances beyond your control. Like any living entity unfortunately trees can just die! It could be attributable to pests and diseases or it could be extreme weather conditions.

Fortunately, the more experienced we become, the more diligent we are, the less likely we are to encounter this sad demise. When I look at my students and think of the large number of trees we actually have as a group it is very rare that we lose a tree.

I had to do something with this amazing deadwood to try and salvage something for my client. I will show you what I did in Part Two.

I still get a buzz when I see the result of that initial styling whether it be a tree we have created in class or pictures on social media. To see the styled organised image appear out of a dense unkempt bush is still an exciting transformation for me.

This instant creation from seemingly nothing was what fired me up all those years ago and kept me coming back for more. I feel sure most bonsai enthusiasts will relate to this.

Once you start pursuing the hobby more seriously you soon begin to appreciate that this initial styling, as dramatic as it may be, is really just a start, a beginning! This has to be followed by the routines of watering, feeding and general care. When the time is right the necessary interventions have to be made to select, to prune, to create space, to guide the tree to his next level.

After that initial transformation of seemingly biblical proportions I am afraid the subsequent journey to anything approaching a reasonable specimen takes place at a much more sedate pace. Time is what you need to develop branches and twigs, create dense foliage clouds and allow the tree to put on a show of mature bark under a breathtaking canopy.

I suppose you can be sucked in to this sedate pace, maybe becoming a little despondent but the tree creeps up on you! One day carrying out your normal routines you may just catch the tree from a different angle or maybe you weren’t in such a hurry this time and actually looked over him. Suddenly it’s a WOW moment. You realise that after all this time the tree has finally started to arrive. The shape is good, branches are uniform and in the right place, you now have lots of twigs/leaves. You can see and appreciate the results of your work over the years.

This journey after the styling can be a source of frustration and disappointment for many enthusiasts. People can have a tree for 10 years or more and not see any significant change. You have to intervene at the right time and then do the right things. My intervention helps my students manage this precious time to achieve the desired result.

Most of my students are excellent bonsai technicians. They just need that intervention or guidance from me often only a couple of times a year just to keep them on the right path and to pull them back if they are going astray. Some students attend classes once a month, some come just a few times a year. Many students now have me go to their garden to go over more of their trees especially where these are larger and difficult to transport.

Below are pictures of some of my trees which have benefited from time…..years of care and attention but mostly just being left to grow. Leave them alone, let them grow, and then when the time is right you intervene….then you let them grow again. Some of these trees have left me now but hopefully the new owners can take them to their next level. After all the time I put in to them it was like parting with my children.

Enjoy the euphoria of the initial styling, marvel at the dramatic change, applaud the artist…….just like I did (and still do!)…..but then appreciate that this is just a start, a new beginning…….now the real work begins and its time to create your tree!