Yes I have noticed this too. Thanks for sharing.

Thanks Yevhen! If you find the content helpful you could thank me by clicking the "Thanks" button found just below the video. Thank you! I am sure this technique will work for you, and you may also try grafting onto those currently unusable branches.

Very welcome Matt. Works like a charm. Also produces loads of budding on the trunk due to the concentration of hormones in those swellings.

Glad you liked it Julio!

Thanks Andrew. You will not remove the leader for many years so such a video is not relevant to you now. Be patient with these trees and it will be rewarded.

It really works. Good luck.

Thanks Richard. Sure! Don’t see why not. Just be careful when applying the wire that you don’t dislodge the tree from the rock.

I am glad you found it to be interesting!

You can definitely use cage wiring on older trees. Whether they will form buds one this older wood I am not sure. If it has formed noticeable bark it’s unlikely.

Its an interesting proposition, although I don't think it will work. You can give it a go of course but you need to wire all the way from the base to this point and then you are going to have to allow an escape branch. I think you are better off scion grafting below the problem and creating a new trunkline. "Hope" when it comes to budding on a pine is a risky strategy at best...ha ha ha. Nope, never tried to remedy a problem you have with this technique. Therefore I cannot say it will not work.

You can grow it in the field or you can use progressively larger containers. Good luck!

Thanks! Sure I can. I have learnt a lot from the expert pine growers in Takamatsu, Japan. They use decomposed granite, which I do not have but what I use instead is silica stone or lava stone. I add 20% akadama to this. So its a very free draining mix, which I place into development clay pots (not colanders). As it drains so well I do need to water a couple times a day in summer but this means I can fertilize strongly (so I am using a lot of solid, organic fertilizer).

Thanks Christy. I am guessing as I do not know from fact…. For this technique to work you should use a species which is going to bark up. This technique is perfect for black pine as it develops a good bark. For something like a Japanese white pine which for the most part has a smooth bark it would leave a scar for MANY years until it’s very old indeed. Grafted trees are here to stay and for a reason. The best is to look for a tree which has been grafted well to begin with. A bad graft will most likely remain a bad graft.

Great question José! I have only ever seen this technique being applied to pines. You could use it on junipers but this will influence the sapflow so might be done in preparation for making shari. Deciduous are usually grown, the trunks chopped and then grown again until a sufficiently thick trunk is achieved.

​@@TerryErasmusbonsai thanks!!! great channel. Take care.

@@TerryErasmusbonsai great to see this technique. Many Indonesian also apply this it for tropical trees, such as Tamarindus Indica, Streblus Asper, etc.. Salam...

@@avocatrok4186 thank you. That’s interesting to know. I was not aware that this technique could be used on those species.

@@TerryErasmusbonsai you should try it...

You could apply the wire when you repot for sure.

This does not mean to put 2 strands of wire on. It means that you remove the 1st wire when it is biting in a lot. When you do this this you apply the next wire next to the groove left by the 1st wire. This is then the 2nd wire.

Thanks Mark for the question. It’s best to remove the wire IMO or it will cause some pretty ugly swelling. I’ve also never heard/read of keeping the wire on permanently. It could be that when field growing pines and using “cage wiring” it’s not possible to remove the wire in time but the resulting scars are visible for a very long time. However if you for instance refer to the well established techniques as described in the earlier Bonsai Today publications, the wire is removed before it is completely enveloped. This is the technique I use although I fully respect there are variation or simply other ways of doing things. By the way, the use of thicker wire is not only to cause swelling and thus accelerated thickness - it’s also for giving the tree some exaggerated curved at a young age. You definitely will not be able to give curves with a thin wire unless you’re wiring very young pines indeed.

@@TerryErasmusbonsai thanks so much for the prompt response. Love your videos and enjoy learning from you!

Cảm ơn bạn!

Very good question. You can start as soon as it’s possible to put wire on without damaging the seedling. Realistically say in the 2nd growing season.

I would suggest that you do NOT cut anything when you are thickening the trunk as all this growth helps to speed up the trunk thickening process. It is only once the tree has reached the thickness you want that you can start removing the trunks, in stages - never all in one go.

@@TerryErasmusbonsai Thank you very much! It will help me right now!

Good question. I am not sure, I could speculate but thats no good. I just know that it works very well.

The constriction of the wire causes the tree to swell around it as the tree adds on new growth because the wire will not stretch it pushes the new growth up between the wire. When the wire is removed the tree fills in the gap left causing the thickening.

ha ha ha, thank you

I’m only aware of it being used on pines. This is due to the extreme wire bite. Theoretically any species could be subjected to this but it all depends on how the bite will be covered over, disguised or repaired.

@@TerryErasmusbonsai Thanks for the quick answer, i`ve been thinking about trying it on a larch .. it`s quite vigorous so it should be worth a try i guess?

Yes but usually red pine is appreciated for a more slender and longer trunk in the bunjin style.

2 years old I believe, from seed.

You are of course welcome to do as you feel. However it is my opinion that it’s not a good idea because you keep changing the sapflow. The biting in causes the direction of the flow to change. Once this has been established and you then alter it by 180deg I assume this will not be good. So my comment is not based on scientifically sound evidence, it’s merely my observation and theory.

Thanks for the advice Stan. This video was done about 100 videos ago, do you find the same shortcomings in the later videos?

Sure! If you have been styling trees for 35 years I’d be surprised if you did learn something from my elementary videos.

A hater is here. LMAO

What a strange comment.

Oh, please show us your instructional videos showcasing those 35 years champ. jeez

Hmmmm …..