Czech Yamadori

My first birch collected in spring  2007 2014.    The main trunk has died some time after the collection.   In the meantime I have made an approach graft to create new leader. ( The trunk on the right side ) 2017.    Two new approach graft have been added.   At the end I have kept only one of them - lowest branch on the right.  The top section of the trunk looks its age  of 3 years.  But that will change with time.   Ramification should be improved - no problem. I know how to do it . Reduce the size of the leaves.  I hope we can do it.  There are some other flaws that  I cannot change.   The strange drum like thickening in the mid section of the trunk as a result of the approach graft.   The dead wood at the bottom part of the trunk - well in fact,  this was a burl - uncontrolled growth  that can be seen quite often on birches. And it is in my oppinion so...

Pears are really keen to show what does the autumn colours mean.  The Grandma is no exception. In years to come I am going to build the new apex . That is the point about the long shoot on the top.  As the time passes the "weaker" left side will get more volume while the right one ... well, I will try to keep it back to have more balance.   Just more.  If we go too far,  we can lose the character made by the Nature in the span of a few dozens of years... Previous post about the Grandma  here

Dremel wood burner Expectation high - result well below my expectations.   The wood exposed to the high temperature flame has just got black without any visible cracking.  Blind alleys are indispensable part of learning.  If only there are not that many with this little friend... Dremel rotary tool back in action Luckily, as a back up  I have ordered  new carbide carving burrs - 0,8 mm in diameter.   Spent some time in clouds of dust and smoke  and there are the results.    Not entirely happy with it, but enough is enough.  I need to stand back for a while. And I guess this little guy feels pretty much the same. Target height:  50 cm  =  +/-10 cm above the top of the jin Before. After.  Sept 2017 Dead wood_Front Dead wood_Left side Top jin Left Back Right

In the course of the  summer as my heart and nearly broken sole have recovered from the blow - see the previous post -  I have started to circle around the tree closer and closer.  Finally,  it has landed on my workbench again  and we have started the second round. At the ring bell I have focused my effort on the upper dead branch.   A place where I felt a soft spot on the tree.  And yes, I do belive I have managed to remove a good amount of wood.  Now I think there is a good movement and taper. At least if you look at it under the condition of a deteriorated visibility and perhaps you are in a reasonable distance of more than 10 metres from it.   Unfortunately,  if you get any closer you will be able to see the naked truth - NO GO again. Autumn 2017 Determination.  Persistence. Innovation.   All these characteristics helped our predecessors to get down from the trees and to conquer savannahs. ...

In the early spring I have decided to move a little bit further with the work on the dead wood of the cornelian cherry_double trunk. The existing deadwood looks really great.  I wonder if I could get any closer to the Nature with my hands.... And the quality of the bark makes a nice match with it... Initial work completed in spring 2016 Target: a) convert the top dead branch in a lookable jin              b) remove the visual weight of the dead wood in the middle section of the trunk Before sharing the pic of the results of the first GO I should say that the wood of this species is much harder than I thought...Bad luck.  The result looks bad.  Well, not just bad,  but B A D.   Definitely needs better tools than just chisels. Clear KO in the first round.  So it is  1 :  0 for the Cc. At least on the first sight but in fact it is a clear loss for both of us... btw Back in 201...

Another tree that makes me happy this year.   Good development and promise for years to come. Maintenance 2017: A summer reduction from 60 cm to remove  the top section of the trunk with no taper. Defoliation on 10th August.  Fully leafed by the end of August.  I am curious  to compare with the other birches I have to see if there is any impact of a bit late defoliation on the timing of the leaves drop or they colour. Current height: 45 cm Target height:   55-60 cm Nevertheless... This tree will never make a typical lowland birch silhuette.  The trunk is a bit more stout than it should be and the structure of branches looks again hmm well different to put it that way.   You may find similar outline on slopes fully exposed to the south with restricted water availibility though... The way we were in 2009 More details about this tree in  here

The older you get it is more easy to loose your balance or to stumble over something...   As I am quite clumsy I do stumble quite often.  Sometimes it is a tree with a good potential to become a bonsai or a nice piece of wood... This is the result of one of my stumbling over a piece of root: hand made jiita... Plates cut with the foxtail saw The texture of these plates is excellent   38 x 15 cm Drying.  I have found that old newspapers are quite handy for this process. Rough removal of the bark with steel brush  Manual cleaning with a steel pricker What's next?   Drying, drying and drying. ...to be continued.