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Author Topic: 4th July Cypress  (Read 29137 times)

ken duncan

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4th July Cypress
« on: July 07, 2009, 07:43 AM »
My good friend John G posted a video of the cypress that he worked on, on the 4th of July. It is true that we usually work on cypress on July 4th but I was spending time with my family on the 4th but we did get together on the 5th to do some work. John posted under the Conifer heading so I posted under the Deciduous heading since bald cypress are both.
Here is some pics of the cypress that I leaf pruned and wired.
Ken  
« Last Edit: July 07, 2009, 08:11 AM by ken duncan »
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Jay Wilson

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Re: 4th July Cypress
« Reply #1 on: July 07, 2009, 08:10 AM »
Ken, this is wonderful. Very tree-like.

Could you explain what you mean by leaf pruned?

Thanks,
Jay
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ken duncan

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Re: 4th July Cypress
« Reply #2 on: July 07, 2009, 08:17 AM »
Thanks Jay, most all of the leaves were removed so the tree could be wired, it makes the leaves look better in the fall also because the newer leaves do not get as ragged, and the fall color is better also.
Ken
« Last Edit: July 07, 2009, 08:31 AM by ken duncan »
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Rick Moquin

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Re: 4th July Cypress
« Reply #3 on: July 07, 2009, 08:19 AM »
Ken,

That is gorgeous tree and twin trunk. The denuded photo is the best and I'll explain why.

This is one of the better mother daughter combos I have seen, looks extremely natural. When in full foliage however there seems to be far too much foliage between the two and although we can see from the soil line that it is a twin trunk, the main tree's foliage overpowers the daughter, instead of a harmonious unity.
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ken duncan

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Re: 4th July Cypress
« Reply #4 on: July 07, 2009, 08:24 AM »
John and I go collecting BC around the 4th of July also, here are some pics of our collecting trip last week.
Ken.
« Last Edit: July 07, 2009, 08:54 AM by ken duncan »
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ken duncan

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Re: 4th July Cypress
« Reply #5 on: July 07, 2009, 08:30 AM »
Thanks Rick, The foliage was left to grow wild to make the tree healthier so it could be leaf pruned in mid summer. In a month there will be a lot of new foliage and I will pinch it to keep it compact.
Ken
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ken duncan

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Re: 4th July Cypress
« Reply #6 on: July 07, 2009, 08:46 AM »
Here is a pic of some of the trees after they were potted.
The water elms were put in buckets of water with a little bit of miracle-gro. In the past we have left the water elms in buckets of water for a year or more and they did just fine, these will be planted in the fall.
Ken
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weeijk

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Re: 4th July Cypress
« Reply #7 on: July 07, 2009, 05:25 PM »
Love this twin trunk Cypress, would wish we could find such marvelous pieces here in the Netherlands, sadly we don´t.

Only 2 things I don´t completely understand:

-The crown of the big tree is much more full of branches than of the little tree, howcome?
-The top of the trunk of the big tree has very little taper, why not wire one of the branches up to make the taper better and the crown lighter. (a tried to virtualize my thoughts)

Keep us posted, thanks for sharing,

Wessel
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ken duncan

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Re: 4th July Cypress
« Reply #8 on: July 07, 2009, 06:13 PM »
Hi Wessel, Thank You for taking the time to do a virtual, I like it very much and thank You for your kind comments. I have planed to remove some of the branches later, I let them grow to build a strong top. This has taken many years to get strong growth and I am timid about cutting to much.
This tree started out as a single trunk about 14 years ago. This is one of the first bald cypress trees that John G and I collected and was not that great. The top cut was to large to make a good tapered transition so I decided to carve out the middle of the trunk and make a twin trunk Bonsai. That was done on the 4th of July about 1995 or 1996.
Ken
« Last Edit: July 07, 2009, 06:17 PM by ken duncan »
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Heather Coste

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Re: 4th July Cypress
« Reply #9 on: July 07, 2009, 09:52 PM »
Timid about cutting branches, but not about carving out the trunk like that to make two trees?!?!

you have more guts than I will probably every have.

It is, as stated previously, a very natural looking tree, I didn't guess it was one tree until you said something about it. Very nicely done.
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ken duncan

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Re: 4th July Cypress
« Reply #10 on: July 08, 2009, 07:35 AM »
Thank You Heather for kind reply.
When I got the idea to make a twin trunk out of a single trunk there was not much to loose, only an ugly cypress stump and 4 hrs of work.
I think the top of the tree was weak because of the carving out of the center of the trunk. After so many years of care and development I would not want to risk weakening the top.
Ken
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Rick Moquin

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Re: 4th July Cypress
« Reply #11 on: July 08, 2009, 10:35 AM »
Quote from: ken duncan on July 07, 2009, 06:13 PM
The top cut was to large to make a good tapered transition so I decided to carve out the middle of the trunk and make a twin trunk Bonsai. That was done on the 4th of July about 1995 or 1996.
Ken
Haha! a cheater tree :) Nonetheless you pulled it off masterfully. Ya should have kept me in the dark  ;) JK

As stated earlier it is probably the best mother daughter I have seen, and is more beautiful now knowing the truth. Take a bow!!
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ken duncan

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Re: 4th July Cypress
« Reply #12 on: July 08, 2009, 01:30 PM »
Well You know Bonsai is all about illusion.
Thank You Rick for your kind remarks.
Ken
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Gary Marchal

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Re: 4th July Cypress
« Reply #13 on: July 08, 2009, 09:48 PM »
Ahhh YES Ken  !!!

Well Done !!

This bonsai brings my eye back to the swamp. It will only get better with time. Great Work !!

Best Always

Gary
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ken duncan

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Re: 4th July Cypress
« Reply #14 on: July 09, 2009, 06:48 AM »
Thank You Gary, I know that You love the swamp as much as John G and Myself.
Ken
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