>> Ben: This is a collected privet, & one day it's going to be a bonsai
♫ bluegrass music ♫
It's the end of May which means spring is ending and summer will soon be starting.
I would like to update you on some of the trees I've been working on.
This is a privet that I collected three years ago.
The majority of the structure of this tree was created by a cow,
not by myself. I've only removed a few branches, reduced some of the lengths,
and worked on ramification. As you can see, I certainly have plenty of long shoots
from spring growth, it has a healthy root system, and was repotted this year.
It's not the finest material - there are plenty of faults in it, But I do like it.
There's a branch on this backside, this one, which has been curved around,
and is now fused with the trunk.
This long large thick branch here is actually thicker than the main trunk.
I may end up removing it, or removing the top, to balance it out.
Feel free to leave your comments on what I should do in the section below
Now, let's update you on some of the projects you've already seen.
This is an American hornbeam I collected this spring. The video for the collection of
this tree, as well as the other trees you'll see in this video, can be found in
the description below.
There has been really good growth over the last few months.
As you can see here, it was slow growing up here at the top, which you can expect
if you have some die back, but I do have new buds coming here and there that
I might be able to use for a new leader for the new top.
I do like the movement of this tree. It has a flared base which is buried
underneath the soil.
This tree has long large leaves at the moment, but those can be reduced in the future
I think this tree has excellent potential for future bonsai.
This is another American hornbeam I collected this year.
This one was found near the side of a road. As you can see it has excellent
movement within the trunk, beautiful flutes, as well as a flaring base that
cannot be seen below the level of this pot, but it's there.
I have new shoots that will allow me to choose branches and a future top,
potentially here, or even a strong branch in this area.
In the video where I found this tree,
I noted that there was a rock that may have left an indentation in the base.
As it turned out, the root laid on top of the rock underneath in a sloping manner.
I was able to remove that tap root, and as you can see, it's in fine health.
This viburnum was collected earlier this spring.
In two and a half months, it's had very good growth.
I'm fertilizing it now, and getting good water to it.
I have plenty of buds to choose from when it comes time to start wiring branches
for creating a new top.
This tree may end up being a formal upright, as it has a good trunk.
But I may end up slanting it,
because viburnum naturally grows in a sweeping motion.
Right now, the main thing is to let it grow and get healthy.
This is a dogwood I collected at my friend Larry's place.
A video for the collection of this tree will be coming soon.
I chose this tree, because it had a good base, it's got some very interesting
bark in here.
It also has some interesting scars, which I think will show off very well in the future.
I like dogwood. It's one of my local trees. It also has beautiful flowers that
happen in the springtime.
This year, I'm just letting it grow.
This beautiful green hawthorn was collected at the beginning of March.
It's now the end of May, and as you can see, we've had some excellent growth.
It's been getting plenty of good water, plenty of sunshine, and good fertilizer
to help in it's growing process.
I'm letting this tree grow wild until I'm able to make some decisions about
where I'd like to prune and cut. Some of these back branches
I may end up cutting off. They do have some interesting features, but that
doesn't mean it's going to make for good bonsai.
I do like the look of this branch right here in conjunction with this one,
which means I may remove the two larger back branches.
Feel free to leave a comment below on your thoughts.
This is the large hawthorn I collected in early March.
Again, being the end of May,
we've had almost three months worth of solid growth.
I'm feeding it heavily. It's getting good water and good sunshine.
It's growing beautifully. I'm only hoping that the root structure below is doing just as well.
I believe that it is.
The secondary trunk, though an interesting feature,
may not be the most interesting thing for this tree.
There's a large piece of dead wood attached to it where the branch has been
damaged in the past, probably by cattle.
I'm debating whether to remove it.
Feel free to leave your thoughts in the comment section.
These other large branches may end up being removed in the future, but at the
present time I'm just letting it do its thing.
All this growth right here will end up being pruned back some this coming fall
and allowed to grow again next spring.
I'm not going to be doing any major wiring.
If anything, only a few branches here and there to start building structure.
Let's get a look at the back side.
[pot scraping on concrete]
The back of the tree, as you can see, is a little bit more bare, though it
is getting the same amount of sunshine.
I do have good branches growing here. This large cut that I made will end up
being hollowed out for an interesting feature in the future.
Again, what do you think about this trunk right here? The deadwood section from
previous damage is down just below this pot line.
I'm actually rather excited for the potential of this tree!
As an extra bonus, here is another tree that I have collected.
This privet was collected two years ago
from the same field as that the other privet I showed you earlier.
This one was along a fence row, and the farmer had actually cut this off.
I've only cleaned it up, and will eventually hollow it out.
Last year, it remained in a pot and was allowed to grow.
This is all brand new from the last two years.
It's even got little flowers, which I think will make for a nice feature in
the future tree once it's ramified. In the meantime, I'm just fertilizing it,
letting it grow stronger,
thickening up some of the branches, and will be deciding more about the future of
this tree later down the road.
Thank you all again for watching my video.
Like and subscribe! There is more come!
♫ bluegrass music ♫