Making roots is always fun!

Al,

For those of use who are relatively new to bonsai, please describe the process you are using in the last two photos and what you are attempting to accomplish.

Thanks & Regards,

JRob

For those of use who are relatively new to bonsai, please describe the process you are using in the last two photos and what you are attempting to accomplish.

While we wait for the promised thread, looks to me like a standard issue air (or ground) layer to improve roots that would probably never make as good of a nebari as this tree deserves.

Sorry to leave you hanging as to WHY I'll have more to report.

4 root grafts in place as of yesterday.  I'll have more to report on their effectiveness/take-rate in a few months.

While your chop is showing good progress it is not large enough to blend in well enough with the trunk to look powerful. It is not pyrimidal enough.

I think I've asked about this particular snippet before, but I don't see a response.

Are you saying my initial chop wasn't low enough?  I heard that recently and initially didn't agree.  Thoughts?

Al, try grafting back at the junction between the first and second chops.

This tree sat.  ...and sat.  ...and sat some more.  It hasn't done ANYTHING after leafing out initially ...as you might expect after seeing the drastic root reduction.  I noticed this week that its beginning to put out new growth, mostly at the extremities right now, but I hope to get some good budding elsewhere.  Eventually it'll have to be chopped so if I don't get the budding I want now, I'll probably get it then.

As for the root grafts, I have nothing to say.  Since it sulked so obviously and for so long, I opted not to harass it by prodding around to see how the grafts were doing.  I'll have to be patient until late-winter to find that out.  By extension, so will you.