Page 152 - Tài liệu cây cảnh Bonsai4me Bonsai Basics

power. Once it has set into position it cannot be re-used. Wire cutters are also

necessary for removing wire from branches and for cutting suitable lengths.
Bonsai wire cutters are available but ordinary wire cutters are adequate if the
wire can be cut at the very end of the cutters jaws.
Aluminium wire is sold in mm thickness. The thicker the wire, the stronger
it's holding power. Copper wire is sold according to its gauge or sometimes mm.
Typically, you will need a wire thickness a 1/3 that of the trunk or branch you
are trying to bend. Copper will hold better and thinner wire can be used;
aluminium the reverse. The actual size needed to bend a branch will vary
according to the strength and pliability of the tree species you are wiring.
You will need 3 or 4 different thickness to fully wire a tree; try buying reels
of 1mm, 1 1/2mm, 2 1/2 and 4mm to start with. As you gain experience you will
be able to identify exactly which sizes you tend to use for the size and species of
bonsai you are wiring.
Note that Iron and Steel are very poisonous to Junipers and some other
coniferous species. Steel produces a chemical reaction with the sap causing a
disease called 'black-rot' that quickly spreads through the tree causing it's death.

Wiring
The wire you use must be thick enough to bend the branch effectively and
for it to remain in position but thin enough for the wired branch to be
manipulated and for neatness.
The process of wiring and bending causes a series of minute splits and
fractures in the layers underneath the bark of the branch; as the cambium layer
repairs and heals this damage, the new position is 'learnt' by the branch. The
faster the branch is growing the faster it heals, the sooner the wire can be

removed without a return to its original position. Wiring a branch during the
Spring or Summer when growth is vigorous can lead to deciduous branches
taking to their new positions within as little as two or three weeks. Branches that
are wired in Autumn or Winter can take months to fix into position. Similarly,
naturally fast growing species such as Elm and Maple will require far less time
to set into their desired shape than slower growing Junipers or Pines, whatever
time of year they are wired.