The Ancient Art of Bonsai

Additional Training Techniques

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Before wiring became standard practice, bonsai

practitioners manipulated the shapes of their plants in other ways. These methods lack the relative unobtrusiveness of wire, but they are still effective training techniques.

Bending Branches

If you need to make a simple downward bend in a branch, there are three reasonably easy ways to do it:

Tying to the trunk: Branches too stiff to bend by wiringcan often be bent by tying. You simply attach wire to the branch, bend the branch down and tie the wire to the trunk. You can use a thinner gauge of wire for tying than for wiring a bend. Encircle the branch with a loose wire loop, protecting the wood by slipping padding (such as cloth, paper, or rubber) between the branch and the wire. Also place padding between the wire and the trunk where the wire exerts pressure against the trunk. Make the bend gradually in order to avoid breaking the limb. Start by pulling the limb about 1/3 of the way toward its desired position. After two - three months, bend the branch a bit more, and then give it more time

The Ueno Green Club (Japan) on the left is the three story headquarters for the Japan Bonsai Cooperative where exhibits, auctions, sales and meetings are held. During the National Bonsai Exhibition the parking lot is transformed into a sales area, in addition to all three levels of the building.

to adjust to that position. Repeat this process until you eventually achieve the bend you desire.

Tying to the container: You can also wire branches to theplant’s container to pull them downward. Loop a strand of wire under the pot and up over the soil, then tie the ends together snugly. Now run a separate loop of padded wire from each branch that you wish to bend down to the wire that goes across the pot. Pull down on the wire until the branch is in the position you want, then secure the branch wire to the pot wire. As with the previous method, it’s best to do this in gradual stages so that the branch doesn’t break.
Weighting a branch: A third way to bend a branch downis to attach a weight to it. Fishing weights suspended from the branch by a string are traditional, but any object heavy enough to exert the desire pressure will work. Choose the weight with care - if it’s too heavy, it may break the branch. Don’t use this method if you bonsai plant is in a breezy location: in a wind, weighted branches can pump up and down to the breaking point.

Spreading & Snugging

If your bonsai has a pair of branches or trunks that are either too close together or too far apart and you can’t separate them by wiring, these two training methods off a simple solution to the problem.

Spreading: a simple wedge can permanently spread apart two branches that are growing too close. This works particularly well to separate parallel trunks and forked branches. Take a small piece of wood, cut it into a triangular or trapezoidal shape, and gently wedge it between the limbs until they are separated as far as you want. Be very careful when separating forked branches; too much pressure can cause a split down the fork. Remove the wedge after 4 months. If the branches

If you grow just a few bonsai plants, you will have no problem displaying them. All you need is something that elevates the pots so that you can view them from the front rather than from the top down.

return to their original positions, put the wedge back in place. Eventually the branches will lose their tendency to spring back when you take away the wedge.

Snugging: to bring branches closer, especially parallel ones, loop a soft cord or a small belt around them and pull them into the desired position. Or form a piece of sturdy wire into an “S” shape, hooking each branch into one of the curves of the “S”. In time, the branches will stay in place on their own.

Dealing With Breaks

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Even if you are very careful, you may bend a branch to its breaking point while wiring. If the break is simply a fracture with the broken part still partially attached, you have a chance of saving the branch. Very gently ease the broken part into place, carefully fitting both ends of the break together. Wrap the break with garden tape or raffia and tie it securely, but not too tightly. Within several months, the fractured branch tissue may knit together. If the break is complete or the ends fail to unite, you have several choices. You can cut the broken branch back to where side branches grow out from it, or you can cut it back to its point of origin.

Care After Wiring

To help your bonsai recover from the trauma of wiring, keep it out of direct sunlight for several days. It’s also a good idea to keep it sheltered from wind

for several weeks. Water the plant routinely, giving the foliage a daily sprinkling.

Removing The Wire

To give wired branches a good chance to grow into their new positions, leave wires in place for a full growing season. Then, in early autumn, remove them to avoid any constriction during the next growth phase. If wires are left in place too long, the bark will show unsightly spiral scars for years. With stiff copper wire, it is best to cut it carefully from branches to

All bonsai begin their development in training pots, where they stay until they have a good, fibrous root system and relatively full foliage development which make them look like bonsai rather than just a shrub or tree in a pot. Training pots help trees grown for bonsai make the transition between a deep nursery container, a balled and burlapped root system, or landscape, to the shallow confinement of a bonsai pot.

avoid inflicting damage by uncoiling. Aluminum wire can be uncoiled, starting at the outmost end and carefully uncoiling toward the anchor end. If wired branches still need more coaxing to achieve the desired positions, they can be rewired at the appropriate time for another year of training. When you rewire a branch, vary the wire position from that of the previous year.

All bonsai pots have large drainage holes, which are essential for the rapid drainage that promotes root health

How To Train Your Bonsai

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Often considered the most difficult training technique, wiring is used to bend the trunk and branches of a tree into the shape you would like your bonsai to

take. Beginners can learn to judge tension in different sized branches, and the various ways of securing wire, by first practicing on a small branch from an ordinary tree or shrub. Never rush.

Deciding the shape your tree will take is a lifetime decision, so be sure to examine all angles and possibilities. Copper wire, though expensive, is most suitable for wiring a bonsaito-be such as the juniper above, because it remains soft. Galvanized iron or plastic coated wire may be used, but they tend to look rather ugly and detract from your tree. Remember, the larger coniferous trees will be wearing their wires for 12 - 18 months, so please take care in choosing the best “look” for your bonsai.

If you study very carefully the way trees grow in nature, it is possible to design a realistic looking bonsai without knowing the names of styles, etc. The most important part is always remember that you are working with a living plant. Look carefully at its natural characteristics and you may discern within them a suitable style, or styles. Once a certain “shape” begins to reveal itself, you will find that gentle bending of a branch before wiring will increase its flexibility and give you an idea of the correct strength of wire. What you are looking for is a wire that will give you a tension slightly more than the

tension of the branch. Tenderbarked trees, such as maples, should be trained with paperwrapped wire to protect the bark.

When To Wire

Deciduous trees should be wired after their

leaves have matured, in early summer, and the wires removed in autumn to avoid wounding the bark. Coniferous trees should be wired during the winter months, since they take considerably longer to become fixed in position. All trees should be protected from hot sun and heavy rain for a month after wiring.

Wiring A Bonsai Tree

Begin wiring from the base of the trunk, anchoring the wire in the soil. You may need two wires to hold the trunk in position. After securing the base of the trunk, proceed to the main, and then the smaller branches, ending with the highest twigs. Wires should be wound at about 45 degrees to the line of the branch. Gauge the tension carefully, as tight wiring will cut into the bark, and loose wiring will slip.

Bonsai Wiring Rules

Size of the wire is 1/3 the size of the branch for copperwire. Aluminum wire is slightly larger.
Apply wire at a 45 degree angle to the branch. 50 degrees is better.
Spiral gap between wire loops should be equal.
Spiral should be closer to the way the branch bends.Never leave gaps between wire and branch.
Change the thickness of the wire as the branch thicknesschanges.
Wire heaviest wire first to the thinnest wire.
Wire 2 branches with one piece of wire, not far apart ortoo close.

Top view of a section of the bonsai exhibition. Here one can study the placement of each bonsai display and also the overall silhouette of each masterpiece.

End of the wire always faces backward and upward. Endof the wire faces upward to support the tip (bud) of the branch.
Positioning of your hands and body is fundamental towiring because it is important to achieve the 45 degree angle of wire placement.
Hold branches underneath when wiring.
Hold wire from the end to keep wiring hand free of thetree and not to disturb buds. Hand tension holds the branch bottom while the other hand holds the wire.
The left hand is stiffwhile the right hands are loose when wiring (Right handed people).
Never move bothhands at the same time. Move inside to outside when wiring.
Over wire thickbranches and under wire thin branches.
Wire on the outsideof the branch where pressure is to be applied.
Always support theweakest part of the branch when bending.
Wire from thethickest branch to the thinnest branch.
Wire from thebottom of the tree to the top of the tree.
Start wiring fromthe inside to the outside of the branch.
Always bend the branch first, not the wire.
Wire the branch to bend it in the direction of yourintended movement, i.e. wire on top to bend the branch downward, wire on the bottom to bend the branch upward, wire the back to bend the branch forward, and wire the front to bend the branch backward.
Wiring at the branch junction is very important.

Crossing wires should be avoided. This causes gapsbetween wire and the branch and it could result in damaging parts of the tree when underneath wires are removed.