I believe a bonsai is never finished. It's a living, changing entity. Thus a branch may fit the design today, but 20 years from now it is all wrong and can't be changed so it is altered or cut off. So my thoughts are; my bonsai is only finished when it or I am dead.

I guess for me, anything that gets me good material. The only thing i'm lacking is an air-layer that I did myself (soon rectified). There is one more catagory everyone forgot; Oops maybe I shouldn't have pulled on that.

Darrell

I agree about bonsai never being "finished".
I'm trying to think of the category we missed...
What kind of trees are pictured? They are great.

LOL.
Zelkova that i ripped out of the yard, literily. I grabbed them and pulled. That's why I said we missed "Oops shouldn't have pulled on that. They had good roots so i potted them.

Darrell

snuffy wrote:

I believe a bonsai is never finished. It's a living, changing entity. Thus a branch may fit the design today, but 20 years from now it is all wrong and can't be changed so it is altered or cut off.

I have seen on videos that some bonsai 'masters', not only in Japan, leave some branches, they know that they will be cut off in the future, but they let them grow for like 5 more years, because it supports the tree or has another function Also branches promote the thickness of the other branches/trunk

Youri1995 wrote:

I have seen on videos that some bonsai 'masters', not only in Japan, leave some branches, they know that they will be cut off in the future, but they let them grow for like 5 more years, because it supports the tree or has another function Also branches promote the thickness of the other branches/trunk

Haha, I have a few Larix youngsters in my garden where I trimmed all branches to stumps with only one bud, except for 3 at the first 1/3 of the trunk; THese are well over 6 inches (Last years growth) and also this year they get to grow freely, while I keep all other foliage short. Aimng for a Larix with solid base and not so top-heavy as you often see..