Page 142 - Ebook cây cảnh Art of Bonsai

142 Creating your own bonsai

Creating the clump

5 Thread the trees through
the holes: guide branches
safely through, and take care
not to damage any nodes.
Place the straightest trunks
in the middle and those with
movement on the outside.

6 Push the plastic down the
trunks as far you can without
damaging the bark. It should
stop just above the roots.
Rotate trunks with movement
to find the best combination
and orientation, and set the
clump on the soil surface.

7 Make final adjustments to
the position and orientation
of the trunks. Bring one
anchor wire across the plastic
then twist the ends together
at one side, to ensure the 5 6
plastic is held firmly in place.

8 Cover the plastic with a
layer of soil, ensuring it is at
1
least ⁄4 in (1cm) deep. This
helps root development and
compensates for the water-
resistant barrier in the pot.

Why so much soil? Over time
your trees will thicken up
and eventually outgrow the
planting hole, causing tissue
above the plastic to swell. As
the plastic chokes the supply
of nutrients from the roots,
the trees send out new roots
from the swollen area above
the barrier—creating a new
conjoined root system. The
old roots will then be cut
off and the plastic removed.

7 8