It was claimed that this was a shimpaku when I bought it but I’m convinced that it is a different variety of chinensis but I’m not sure which. Anyways, I’m pretty confident in the direction I’ve taken it so far (given where it started) and this may be more of a horticultural question, but does anyone have any insight on how I could promote more pad-like growth, or trim the “pads” that exist that are too bushy? The growth it has is very long and Also any constructive suggestions to improve this tree overall are always appreciated.
Photo from yesterday photo from when I got the tree.
1 Like
I’d compress the branches down even further towards the trunk. The trunk is so slender. You’ll want a really feminine design with this one. That will likely mean shortening the branches as well. I’d reduce the apex just a tad. I tried to illustrate the altered apex with my crappy MSPaint skills. 
1 Like
There’s a few good videos in the Mirai library on how to wire out the pads. I believe there is one called Detail Wiring that might give you a little more insight. It seems to me that you’ve already basically wired the structural branches into their desired positions. I do think if you lower them too much more it will start to look slightly artificial, but that’s just my opinion. I think with where you’re at, a good next step would be to wire all of your secondary branches into a more lateral position. After that you could go through and trim any shoots going straight up or down. My feeling is if you did that, you would be well on your way to achieving the pad shape you desire. With it being a more feminine design, this would narrow the thickness of the pads giving you a more delicate feel. From there you could play with lengths of branches and segmenting pads to add further interest. Keep us updated, I think you’ve made great improvements already.
There are two branches that definitely take the bends too far and look seussian. My hopes where to create foliage over time that was dense enough to obscure them, but it just keeps producing leggy long foliage and I don’t have the skills to nail down how to refine it. I’m watching the juniper refinement video at the moment to gain some insight. The only advice I’d received from other forums was to let it grow unabated, but that was when I was still under the impression that is was shimpaku which would (to my understanding) naturally produce more compact growth. At any rate I’m only 3 years into practicing in to practicing bonsai and perhaps 1.5 of doing it in earnest so I’ve got large knowledge gaps I need to fill. I appreciate your feedback and definitely agree that given the trees feminine trunk I need to shoot for a more delicate appearance.
1 Like
Ah I see your question. I would think if you want to encourage more compact growth there’s two things I would do. Pinch new growth as it elongates to encourage energy to be transferred to interior growth and allow the roots to completely fill the container. Obviously the second is something that will take time. Having a medium that scales with the roots helps produce finer roots as well which makes refining the tree easier. Good Luck!
1 Like