I’m interested in discussing the interpretation behind the recent nursery stock holiday bonsai stream. It’s something that I’m going to try but I’m not sure what the ‘story’ is behind the end product.
Is it just a cool bonsai with shari up the trunk and coincidentally on the opposing face of the defining branch or is there a narrative that could explain how it would come about in nature eg where a major branch is subject to snow load and tears a large section of trunk away that subsequently recovers? Does anyone have any design ideas or examples for similar themes eg leaving the original trunk perfectly vertical, moving in the opposite direction, jinned almost to the base with the ‘defining branch forming a floating raft?
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Does anyone have any design ideas or examples for similar themes
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I like to view old conifers that were planted in cemeteries in the 1880’s. There is an old juniper in the one near my parents grave that has split and both trunks have survived at acute angles. A state park near us has an old oak that has split and one trunk is snaking almost horizontal with the other upright with good ramification. My explanation is strong straight line winds to cause a split in a weak area of the trunk. A rotting branch or a hole created by animals can allow water to collect and weaken the fibers from expanding ice caused by freeze thaw cycles . I have seen several examples of split trunks after this summer Derecho storm that occurred last August. An old cotton wood I removed had an animal hole near the two main branches and had filled the tree with water. When I cut it with my chainsaw, a torrent of water came out at ground level! So… I believe that natural splits do occur and I have split trunks to make poor representations of tanuki with old pine or juniper deadwood.
It’s hard to tell with the raffia on, but I believe the two halves were also gently rotated so the pieces of shari won’t be directly opposing each other.
But yes think the story will be that a once in a generation storm came through and split the tree but the tree was able to survive.
Thanks for sharing the images and both responses. One of my concerns is whether in nature, after the split, if the trunks would go on to twist or move substantially independently or if we should maintain some semblance of mirroring to suggest that similar movement existed in both trunks pre-split eg when applying three bends with a twist in the middle that the other piece should have same to a greater or lesser degree. That would suggest that the two were originally on the same ‘path’ and subsequently diverged due to natural growth once the split occurs. If one piece were left dead straight upright and the other piece of the same proportions dramatically bent and twisted then that might still have a pleasing outcome but not be as believable as a product of nature?
The example of the split oak with a horizontal trunk and a vertical trunk that I described have different planes because the tree split along the weakest part of the xylem and rotated as it fell away. So the two trunks were once one, but they now have callused and rolled to seal their wounds. The two trunks are very different and react differently to their environment because of their location. One horizontal, one vertical.
" If one piece were left dead straight upright and the other piece of the same proportions dramatically bent and twisted" We have several Black Cherry’s Prunus serotina, that have a main trunk that has died, and a lower branch takes over to become the main trunk after taking an obtuse or acute angle. To me this is nature overcoming an obstacle and surviving in difficult environs. A statement of an assymetric and ancient tree. If it can occur in nature, it probably has multiple examples. Look for photos of ancient pine, cypress, and junipers and use them as a model for your tree. I like to steal from the best, and there is no better artist than nature.
. I have seen several examples of split trunks after this summer Derecho storm that occurred last August. An old cotton wood I removed had an animal hole near the two main branches and had filled the tree with water. When I cut it with my chainsaw, a torrent of water came out at ground level! So… I believe that natural splits do occur and I have split trunks to make poor representations of tanuki with old pine or juniper deadwood.