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This article is a produced in corporation with www.wafu.com, Higuchi Takeshi

Text: Morten Albek/Higuchi Takeshi

Photo: Higuchi Takeshi

All copyrights reserved Morten Albek and Higuchi Takeshi

Mountain Liquidambar

The bonsai used in this case, is a Mountain Liquidambar but the method is the same for Japanese maples and trees with the same type of leaf growth.

When maintaining and managing a bonsai, it is very important to pinch correctly. Bud picking Maples and species alike is an important job in order to level the vigour. When dealing with small trees, balancing growth between weak and strong parts of the tree, and develop back budding, is even more important than when growing larger bonsai. Pinch stronger growing areas harder than weaker areas. Pinching will also develop new buds further back, that with time can replace outgrowing branches.

This work also prevents the internodes of a vigorous tree to extend too much.

The series of pictures below shows the basic technique of pinching new growth.

A pair of tweezers is used in this example. You can also use your fingers.

Why pinch or cut the branch 3 weeks later?  

If branch B is cut now at the present development stage, you risk causing the future main branch A to grow out of control. Now the stronger growing branch B takes energy from branch A, keeping the A branch shorter and more compact.

If the branch A is let to grow freely at this state by removing branch B already, branch A will gain to much strength and the distance between each leaf pair will be too long. Therefore branch B is kept in app. a three weeks period, before it is cut off.
 

A bonsai needs to be controlled in growth in order to direct energy to the branches you want to develop. This is done by balancing the strength of growth between the branches. To keep growth compact next step is to prune back branches.

In this case, 3 weeks later you cut branch B, to discard the part of growth unnecessary for the design.