Why Prune Pine Bonsai? A Full Analysis of Three Major Benefits
Gardeners who love bonsai will certainly not miss out on pine bonsai. During the care of pine bonsai, pruning is also very necessary. Pine bonsai is also quite malleable, and pruning pine bonsai has three major benefits.
Pine Bonsai
I. It helps strengthen technical management:
1. It makes it easier to observe the growth and distribution of pine buds; 2. It makes it easier to carry out operations when shaping the pine, mainly binding and bending; 3. It makes it easier to handle pine buds, mainly bud selection, bud removal and bud cutting.
II. It helps promote balanced growth:
1. It facilitates ventilation; 2. It facilitates light exposure; 3. It facilitates exposure to rain and dew; 4. It forces buds on areas lacking buds, promoting balanced development of pine buds. After new buds emerge and grow for a period, the old needles that were cut will gradually turn yellow and fall off naturally.
III. It helps improve the grade and quality of the tree:
The shaping of a pine cannot be completed in a single attempt; it requires multiple sessions to complete. This lays the foundation for future re-creation.
Wound Treatment When Pruning Pine Bonsai
Wound Treatment When Pruning Pine Bonsai
For wound treatment, the timing for pruning branches is mostly more appropriate in late autumn. First cut to about 1 cm from the base. If the tree is vigorous, no special treatment is needed; the pine resin that flows out will dry naturally and protect the wound. If the tree is weaker, it is best to apply some healing agent to avoid excessive loss of sap and weakening of the tree (if the tree is too weak, it is not suitable for too much pruning). (My crudest method is to smear mud on the wound, then check after a few days; if resin is still flowing out, apply it again, this time mixing the mud with the flowing resin, which gives a better effect.) After the remaining branch dries out (about 1 to 2 years), cut off the remaining part from the base. At this time it is best to use fork branch shears, and the trunk will heal better.
Fork branch shears have a curved design at the cutting edge, so relatively small branches can be cut with a slightly concave wound, which helps the wound heal. For relatively large branches, use a sharp blade again (if using a utility knife, both hands must wear cotton gloves, and do not shave too thickly at one time, to avoid the blade breaking and cutting yourself) to remove the already dried wood, smooth the wound, and then apply healing agent to protect the wound (regardless of whether the tree is strong or weak, slightly larger wounds all need healing agent applied to avoid too much sap flowing out and affecting the tree's vigor), speeding up healing, and making the wound smoother and more attractive.
The timing for treating wounds is more appropriate in the season when sap flow is fast and growth is vigorous (April and May), making use of the plant's physiological condition at this time to rapidly grow healing tissue.
Citation: Bonsai Shari Silk Carving -- Zheng Chenggong
...After years of studying the physiological phenomenon of plant healing, as well as the different healing conditions of various tree species, it has been summarized that the speed of tissue healing depends on the following four conditions: 1. The strength of sap flow. 2. The angle of sap transport. 3. The quality of the initial wound treatment. 4. The degree of wound protection. Among these, the most easily overlooked is the angle of sap transport. Experiments show that in a circular cut, the places that heal most slowly are the topmost and bottommost points, as shown in Figure 1 (below). The reason is that sap is transported along the shortest distance, and the two ends of the circle are exactly dead corners, so these two points are where healing is slowest. Therefore, when working, carve the two ends of the circular cut into an eye shape without dead corners, as shown in Figure 2 (below). In this way, it can conform to the principle of sap transport, forming an obstacle-free space, allowing sap to flow unimpeded, accelerating healing speed, and also making the scar smooth and attractive.
Note: During the experimental stage, because the wound often had to be surgically extended longer, intuitively one mistakenly thought the wound had become larger and the healing time would inevitably be prolonged, and even worried that a larger scar would be left, so one hesitated to act. On the contrary, experimental results proved that this method is highly effective; it can not only shorten healing time, but also make the wound smooth and natural.
When viewers appreciate a work, large branches and large cuts often, according to the general growth state of mature trees, cluster more in the middle and lower part of the trunk, and this area generally has less foliage to conceal it, so it easily becomes the place where the viewer's vision converges (a shortcoming).
How to Make Pine Bonsai: Common Types of Pine Bonsai
There are nearly more than 80 species of pine in the world. They have majestic and vigorous tree postures, tall bodies, and long lives, and have important ornamental value. Although the vast majority are tall trees, a very small number are shrub-like, such as the Japanese stone pine and the ground pine. People often make small pines into bonsai for appreciation. Now let us take a look at the process of making pine bonsai!
The Process of Making Pine Bonsai
1. Material selection: For making pine bonsai, Buddhist pine (Podocarpus macrophyllus) is generally the main choice. The material for Buddhist pine bonsai is usually obtained mainly through artificial propagation, and can be propagated by sowing or cuttings. Wild Buddhist pines from mountains and fields can also be selected; those growing in stone crevices that are short, have ancient and elegant branches, and beautiful forms can be collected. First cultivate them in open ground for 1 to 2 years, then transplant them into pots and process and shape them.
2. Pot selection: Pine bonsai has an ancient and elegant posture, and purple clay ceramic pots or glazed ceramic pots are commonly used. The pot shape is determined by the tree shape. For cascade style, use a tall deep cylindrical pot; for slanting trunk style and lying trunk style, use a medium-deep rectangular pot or oval pot; for exposed-root style and rock-clinging style, use a relatively shallow pot.
3. Soil: Pine bonsai is suitable for fertile, moist, loose-textured, well-drained, slightly acidic sandy loam. Place a layer of coarse sandy soil at the bottom of the pot to facilitate drainage.
4. Planting: For pine bonsai, transplanting into pots is best done before sprouting in spring. Large seedlings should retain some original soil, and dead roots and overly long roots should be cut off, so that the fibrous roots spread out in the pot soil. Firm the soil so it closely contacts the root system, which is beneficial for growth and survival.
5. Shaping: The shaping of pine bonsai cannot be done carelessly. When potting, shaping is mainly by wiring and binding, appropriately combined with pruning. Wiring and binding should be done during the dormant period, using palm fiber for binding, making sure the palm fiber is not exposed. The main trunk is coiled and the branches are twisted, with a natural posture. Small branches and leaves are pruned into layered sheets or hemispherical shapes, with staggered and orderly layers.
Common Types of Pine Bonsai
1. Forest style: Forest-style bonsai is a miniature version of a forest. Forest-style bonsai is formed by combining multiple trees, creating a bonsai rich in layering.
2. Slanting trunk style: In slanting trunk style bonsai, the trunk leans to one side, and some trunks are slightly curved, with branches extending beyond the pot. The overall shape appears relatively steep yet stable. Slanting trunk style bonsai can embody the complete artistic effect of the tree's momentum and the balance between movement and stillness.
3. Lying trunk style: The stump of lying trunk style bonsai can be divided into three types: flat-lying style bonsai, supine style bonsai, and semi-lying style bonsai. In flat-lying style bonsai, the entire stump lies horizontally, and the tip top must not exceed the height of the trunk itself. In supine style bonsai, one fifth of the upper part of the stump is slanting or upright, while four fifths of the lower part lies flat or lies slightly tilted upward. In semi-lying style bonsai, the lower half of the stump's stem lies horizontally or lies tilted upward.
4. Cascade style: Cascade style bonsai is divided into two types: large cascade style bonsai and bonsai in which the trunk extends beyond the bottom of the pot. Semi-cascade style bonsai is also called small-ground style bonsai. The trunk of the bonsai extends beyond the pot, and the trunk hangs down but must not exceed the bottom of the pot.
5. Exposed-root style: Exposed-root style bonsai means exposing the root area above the soil. The roots are like coiling dragons, or like eagle claws hanging high. Exposed-root style bonsai reveals an elegant feeling.
6. Split-trunk style: The main trunk of split-trunk style bonsai must undergo decades or even hundreds of years of external natural forces, and after it becomes dead wood, the bark is peeled off, leaving only part of the xylem and epidermal layer attached to it. In some parts, the life of the bark and branches is not interrupted, and the branches can still grow new foliage, possessing an ancient artistic conception.
7. Epiphytic style: The main trunk of the stump in epiphytic style bonsai appears as dead wood, also leaving only part of the xylem and cortex to support it.