Demo by Bruce Baker

Puget Sound Bonsai Association

Demonstration by Bruce Baker

Coastal Redwood, Sequoia sempervirens

I started with a 15 to 25 year old collected specimen of Coastal Redwood, Sequoia sempervirens. This one had an atypical bend in the trunk, somewhat like a crossbow. Most members of this species grow ramrod straight, leaving only a limited number of styling options. Some devious members of PSBA tried to force me to study this tree the night before my demo, perhaps hoping to frighten me. I declined, thinking that any familiarity with this problem tree would unnecessarily raise people's expectations for the final result. I felt that my only hope was to leave myself with plenty of potential excuses in the event that the results were less than acceptable. "I've never even seen this abomination before this evening. Who collected it and why?," or something to that effect is usually all that is needed to absolve the artist of any responsibility for the end product.

Like most redwoods I've seen collected, this one was growing from an unsightly burl that had a cluster of smaller trunks sprouting out of one side of it. From my vantage point the trunk and base resembled a warped croquet mallet with a ragged hangnail. I tried to keep this fact from the audience while I clipped off the lower branches. Conifers look best when their significant branches hang at least somewhat below parallel to the ground. The limbs of the old trees become weary and weighted down with foliage. So, one can usually begin the styling process by removing everthing from the lower third or so of the trunk.

Here you can see the cluster of small trunks at the base. The discoloration of the lowest part of the trunk was due to the fact that it had been buried in the soil. I always begin styling by identifying the best view of the base of the tree. The base of the tree is the center and most important part of any bonsai composition.

I have a theory that designing bonsai is easier than many people believe if you follow a process that delays decision making until the last possible moment. I start by cleaning up the specimen, removing branches that I know I can't use. The lowest ones go without a thought. Anything overly large or ugly goes as well. .

One decision that I did want to make early with this tree was to determine how to handle the apex of the tree. The trunk itself had no taper at all. None of the upper branches had much weight or character. After carefully examining the options, it became clear to me that I would have to kill a portion of the trunk and develop a live apex and a dead apex. With such a young tree there was no character I could hope to find lurking within the wood itself. The best I could hope to get away with was something that might look lighting struck without resembling a grotesquely sharpened pencil. Selecting the proper branch for the live apex would set the tone for the rest of the branching. I don't rely on rules or forumulas to determine where the apex should go. Instead I try to follow the visual sweep of the trunk to what feels like it's most natural conclusion.

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