Before and after

Most of the work that is included in this post was meant to be it's own post. Sometimes though it's hard to remember to stop and take photo's of the whole process. These were mostly in that category. So even though I can't share the whole process with you I think you'll enjoy the before and after shots.

The first few trees belong to clients.
 First up is an old Foemina Juniper that hasn't seen a scissors in a long time.  There was no longer any definition or separation in the branching, it looked like three mounds of foliage.

After a couple of hours of pruning, sticking my fingers and wiring I was able to rework the structure of the tree. A little drastic but necessary in this case.

Next is an old Kishu Shimpaku grafted onto California Juniper. It also hadn't been touched in quite some time and had formed pompoms in the branching. Kind of silly looking if you ask me. This owner insisted on only minor changes so I did the best I could.

I cut off the existing left hand pompom apex then lightly pruned and wired the tree. The trimming and wiring created separation in the foliage pads, better defining the branch structure. Then a little cleaning of the deadwood and live veins to finish the job. 

Next up is a monster of a tree. It took four men to move this one. It's a Eugenia aggregata- Cherry of the Rio Grande Apparently at one time this tree was part of the Kennedy family bonsai collection. This one needed a major haircut and wiring.

The result after a bunch of hours over two days of trimming and wiring.

The rest of the trees that follow belong to me.

This one is a variety of Chinese Juniper in the cascade style. It was first styled about 10 years ago and it is time to rework it. The foliage has gotten too dense and was throwing off the proportions of the tree. It no longer looks like a tree struggling to survive on the side of a cliff somewhere.

 Following a late night session of pruning and wiring the bonsai is re-born.

Here we have a California Juniper. The goal with this one is to lower the apex and to lighten up the branch structure. The first back branch is lower than the first branch and it's making the tree look to busy.

 I cut off and jinned the apex and created a new apex by lifting a side branch and wiring it into place. I also removed the first back branch and gave the tree a good haircut.

Finally , my prized California Juniper that I want to put in the CA. Bonsai Society show in March. Now it's time to do a little refinement trimming and wiring. 

On this one I wired just about every single twig. About 6 weeks before the exhibit I'll remove the wire and place moss on the surface of the pot.

Well I hope that you enjoyed these before and after examples. As always I welcome any comments, questions or suggestions.