MySheen

Bonsai skills: an example to explain the branch drilling assisted bending method

Published: 2024-11-05 Author: mysheen
Last Updated: 2024/11/05, There are many ways to bend branches, and there are different choices according to different situations. For thicker branches or brittle tree species, some auxiliary means may be needed to succeed. Drilling holes in the branches is also a kind of assistance.

There are many ways to bend branches, and there are different choices according to different situations. For thicker branches or brittle tree species, some auxiliary means may be needed to succeed. It is also a common technique to drill holes in the branches as an assistant. But it will leave a scar forever. Fortunately, for bonsai, scars are not necessarily a bad thing. Let's see how the master plays.

This is a mountain-picked English Hawthorn, which has been raised for some time and is going to make a shape for it. We see that the position of the first branch is relatively low, very good, but the trend of the branch is not good. If it is truncated, it may take some time to re-cultivate new branches, and the effect may not be good. It would be easier if you could bend it down. But the branches of this Hawthorn tree are brittle and easy to break. So the bonsai master chose to drill a hole in the branch to help.

In order not to affect the beauty, the bonsai designer chose to drill holes on the back side.

First of all, you have to find out where to bend. The horizontal section of this branch is too straight, so bend it in the right position.

The hole is cut like this, it doesn't matter how big the hole is, but the premise is that the cambium can't be removed, otherwise the branch will be dead.

Pull and shape with two wires. According to the bonsai master himself, it's easy to bend.

After the branches are bent in place, they are fixed, then fill the gap with water moss, wrap them with black tape, and then wait a long time.

Two years later, the hole healed very well and should have been fixed.

There are two points to note when using this method:

1. The operating season must not be dormant in winter. It should be at the end of spring and the beginning of summer when the branches grow most vigorously, when it recovers faster.

2. As mentioned in the second point just now, the cambium should not be destroyed too much.

Any operation that causes damage to the branches may bring risks, from drying up to the death of the whole tree.

 
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