Saturday, I took a day off from work to go the the Bonsai Learning Center in Mooresville, NC to do a workshop that would help me create a Sharp’s Japanese Maple Forest.  (The guys doing the workshop prefer the word “forest” to “grove.”  I think that when it’s only 3 trees, “grove” is more accurate.

As you do, we denuded the roots and cut them back, using the nob cutter to keep the large outer roots as intact as possible while flattening the bottom. I feels really scary to cut out that much of the big roots. But, they all have good secondary roots and good feeder roots.

I used a plastic pot so we were able to simply drill the necessary holes for my tie downs. A couple of my classmates wanted to start with nicer pots so theirs needed extra work. Brad and Brian used different stuff but, ultimately, had the same idea.

They recommend aluminum wiring for the branches and say to make sure to rewrap gently as they start growing. If the bark grows into the wire, it will cause scars that will never grow over. So, rewiring may need to be done 2 or 3 times in a growing season.  I can use copper wire to anchor them without any problem.

There is a layer of grated sphagnum moss on top of the bonsai medium to help keep everything moist.

Pinching back the branches will help keep them from getting too long and leggy. I just need to keep an eye on them to remove the growth tips when they start to leaf out.

They need to be maintained for a couple of years as they grow a nice root mat with the roots of all 3 trees intertwined. Then, I can lift them all up in a piece for maintenance. And to move them into a more attractive pot.