Detailed explanation of the production methods and styling requirements for rock-attached bonsai

In recent years, bonsai has frequently appeared in homes, offices and other places, and the high ornamental value of bonsai brings it broad market prospects. Among them, rock-attached bonsai is deeply loved by people. Rock-attached bonsai is a typical close-up of nature's trees on rocks, cliff-hanging upside-down trees, rock-coiling trees, rock-leaning trees, rock-embracing trees and so on. It is an expressive form that blends the essence of landscape bonsai and tree-stump bonsai into one. So how are rock-attached bonsai made?

1. Two prerequisites for cultivating good rock-attached bonsai

(1) There must be tree species with especially strong vitality suitable for growing attached to rock (commonly used rock-attached tree species include Chinese elm, Fujian tea, small-leaved banyan, serissa, pine, boxwood, plum pine, etc.), and tree roots of sufficient length must be cultivated;

(2) There must be fissured stone materials, and Taihu stone, ax-cut stone, Yingde stone, weathered stone, sandy accumulated stone, stalactite, reed-pipe stone, etc. can be selected.

2. Styling forms and styling requirements of rock-attached bonsai

(1) Cliff style

The trunk diameter of cliff-style material is generally 2-3 cm, attached to a 70-80 cm high stone mountain, and its styling is mainly about danger and movement. It can be divided into large cliff style, semi-cliff style, horizontal floating style, downward-branch style, etc., determined according to the posture of the selected stone material and the shape of the tree stump and the standing condition of the root crown. This type of bonsai takes a relatively long time to cultivate, and large ones take 4-5 years to take shape. As shown in the figure, it is a cliff-style rock-attached bonsai.

(2) Tree-on-rock style

This form requires the lower part of the stone material to be slightly larger, giving people a sense of stability. The focus of the styling lies in the expressive art of the tree and roots, and floating branches are often used to seek an expansive tree momentum, while the crown is required to be majestic and thick. It is necessary to seek variation on the basis of steadiness, without being rigid.

(3) Rock-coiling style

The tree roots wind diagonally around the rock, like a giant python seizing food. The stone material is required to be relatively round and slender, and can be straight or slanted. Attention should be paid to the smooth beauty of the tree roots. The key point of creation is to regard the stone material as the trunk of a large tree, and the small tree attached to the stone as the crown and side branches on this large trunk. In branch technique, the falling-branch method and weeping-branch method can be used to gain momentum and strengthen the unity of opposites between tree and stone.

(4) Rock-embracing style

The focus is to express tree roots like bent iron and broken hairpins clinging to the rock like eagle claws. The stone material is required to be tall and large, as long as it allows the roots to tightly embrace it. The posture and shape of the tree are very important, and it should have the charm of being ancient, rugged, strangely interesting and naturally formed, with the tree as the main body. The curved-trunk style, slanted-trunk style and large-tree type in stump bonsai can all be used in this form. The key point of creation is that the roots must grip the rock firmly.

(5) Interdependent style

What is expressed is a mood of being hard to separate and part, with tree and stone depending on each other. The stone material can be majestic or elegant, and the key point of styling is to consider the overall effect, achieving majesty, elegance, clarity and singularity.

Rock-attached bonsai can be large or small, easy to source materials for, exquisitely carved and full of charm. In modern living rooms, it can be placed alone or combined, and it is deeply loved by the broad masses. It is a bonsai form with great development prospects. The same tree species or different tree species should be clearly distinguished as primary and secondary, and can be carried out by grouping, with attention to the sparseness, density, gathering and scattering of trunks. Sparse means there should be space around important and essential branches and trunks; dense means trunks and roots should be pressed close; gathered means branch supports and the crown should form clusters, achieving such density that no wind can pass through; scattered means independent trunks at the outer edge should have the effect of a finishing touch and independent viewing; emptiness and density must complement each other to produce a realm where a horse can gallop through the sparse.

3. Production steps of rock-attached bonsai

(1) Selecting stone

In addition to selecting hard stone materials with natural hollows or natural stone cracks, soft stone materials with many holes and good water absorption, such as sandy accumulated stone, reed-pipe stone, pumice, sea mother stone, etc., are also selected. It is best to select a soft stone material with a hard surface and loose interior, and the surface texture should be endlessly varied.

(2) Selecting tree

For tree selection, it is suitable to choose plants with an aged posture, small leaves and short branches, and their habits should be suitable for growing on rock, with many fibrous roots, tolerance to drought, tolerance to pruning and easy shaping. Commonly used ones include elm, serissa, pine and cypress types, water privet, banyan, etc.

(3) Processing stone material

Generally, it is required that the solitary stone be formed, full and steady, with simple surface lines. The proportions of the tree body and the stone material should be coordinated, and the artistic spirit should run through.

(4) Planting

It is divided into two types: hole planting method and attached planting method.

① Hole planting method: drill holes in the stone material according to the planting position, plant the tree in the soil within the holes, and let it grow until tree and stone become one

② Attached planting method: the stone material is not drilled, and the tree roots are directly attached to positions on the surface of the stone material, covered with soil, and the roots and stone material are tightly fixed with palm fiber, using the characteristic of plant roots growing toward the center of the earth so that they naturally penetrate into the stone.

[Rock-attached bonsai] How to make rock-attached bonsai

Today let us share how to make rock-attached bonsai

Rock-attached bonsai is a bonsai styling art in which stone is the main element, trees grow attached to the stone, and stone and tree are joined into one body. Trees are planted attached among stones, with root systems extending into stone cracks to grow, and branches and trunks winding into stone holes or growing in clusters on the stone, or hanging down below the stone, or slanting sideways beside the stone, making strange stones and ancient trees set each other off beautifully.

Rock-attached bonsai is divided into two types: water rock-attached and dry rock-attached. Water rock-attached mostly uses soft stone materials, such as water-absorbing stone, sandy accumulated stone, etc. Holes are drilled where trees need to be planted, and mostly trees of initially formed shape are used. First lead the tree roots into the stone holes, fill the stone holes with crushed mud, press the soil and tree roots firmly with a bamboo stick, spray the soil and stone thoroughly wet with a watering can, then place them in a shallow water basin and put them in a cool place. Spray water on the stone and tree every day to maintain humidity, and after the tree sprouts new buds, it can be allowed to see the morning sun and gradually adapt to sunlight.

For the dry rock-attached type, hard stone materials are mostly used, such as Yingde stone (with diverse textures). The tree roots are inlaid into stone cracks to gain momentum and form (see figure). Tree species with long root systems such as Fujian tea, elm, baby's breath, etc. are mostly used. The leaves are all picked off, the soil at the roots is cleared and straightened, and according to the texture of the stone material, the tree roots are led into the stone cracks and then bound with wire rings. To prevent damaging the roots, wooden strips wrapped with rubber can first be padded and the tree roots urged to cling more tightly to the stone cracks, then the stone and tree are placed on the pot soil, and the fine roots of the tree are buried in the soil. The initial maintenance method is the same as the water rock-attached type, but do not let the west-slanting sunlight directly hit the roots in the stone cracks, so as to avoid burning the roots after the stone absorbs heat.

Generally, banyan is suitable for making rock-embracing style rock-attached bonsai.

After the plant is attached to the rock, it cannot be changed, so before production one must think carefully and select the appropriate stone and tree forms accurately.

Production of rock-attached bonsai