Shohin Hornbeam Airlayer

A few shots of this promising bit of material airlayered from a parent tree two years ago.  It’s been recovering from its first rootprune and repot earlier in the year.  No new shoots this year so I’m leaving it to bounce back and next year I’ll consider pruning and styling.

The front showing a possible reverse twin trunk image

From the back showing good trunk movement and taper

Future nebari needs covered and thickened

Amur Maple Airlayer

This tree (of sorts!) recovered from its problems last year and after letting it leaf out and harden off, I’ve decided to follow a friend’s advice from two years ago and air layer the top.

Here’s hoping it takes.  I’ll let the bottom grow out and decide what to do with it after the layer is removed, hopefully later this year.

Field Maple Thoughts

Thinking a bit ahead for what I want to achieve with bonsai material this year, I’ve decided that when the time is right, I’ll have a go at air layering a couple of cut back branches on this field maple growing in my hedge.

I’ve identified these two which are low down with good movement and I really like the corky ridged bark that has developed.  Fingers crossed that I get round to it and that they take root ok.

Looking around the rest of the garden I decided to inspect other field maple material in the beds.  This one was planted in the ground two years ago with a tourniquet in order to grow new nebari.  I plan to dig it up and investigate how successful it was as soon as the buds begin to swell.

Over the past year its developed a very interesting feature, corky bark similar to the potential air layer branches in the first couple of photos.

I had always thought of field maple as having smooth bark, even when mature but a while ago a friend showed me an unusual bonsai tree that at first sight I thought was a winged spindle.  Turns out that it was a field maple!  Seems I’ve got the same cultivar growing here?

However it is interesting to note that this only appears on the branches and not so much the trunk.  The trunk is showing a bit of maturity  with its textured surface but not so much cork like. Strange.  I think I’ll air layer the top of this tree as its needs reduced anyway.