This is our annual Saturday workshop we have with Chris Thomas, his workshop covers all levels of skill from beginners to those with more experience.
You will see from the accompanying photos you bring your tree up for discussion on what you want to do with it, Chris may offer alternatives something we have found so useful especially when you have had a tree that was styled some years years ago.
You realise trees are never set and for as long as they live they will change as they mature and what you styled them as a young tree now needs to be changed as trunks swell and mature and branches develop more ramifications.
We have found these workshops so worthwhile you go away having gained more knowledge and your trees either styled to set them on their way or restyled to improve them to a higher level of refinement.
Here are photos ( apologies if some look double but there were two of us trying to cover what was going on during the day ) of some of the trees worked on it was a very busy and enjoyable day.
In these photos there are three trees that were styled some years ago and show how they needed restyling and/or refinement, the first is a Larch where the top has thickened and had lost taper.
A branch was rewired and raised to become a new apex which redefines the taper and lose the thick top branches, the old top was used to run a tourniquet to the new raised top and will be removed when the top sets in its position.
The Juniper was originally an informal up right but the owner decided lay the trunk down in the pot so the trunk now requires some substantial bending to bring the top back over to the left.
This was done with the use of rebar for an anchor point, wrapping the trunk in tape to protect it and copper wire tourniquet to bring it over and with some joint bending and yes you could hear cracks it has been brought back to the left.
Further gradual bending over the following weeks bit by bit it is hoped to bring it to the required point.
Finally a Mugo pine bought from a garden centre originally styled to have a long branch growing to the left but Chris suggested now using this as a second trunk raised up to form a twin apex again using rebar as an anchor point.
