A couple weeks ago, readers saw the last year of struggle for this Japanese Maple. Fortunately, it is on the road to recovery, and it’s time to remove wires and handle some light pruning and perform a partial defoliation.
Here’s where we left off with the last post, and start the work:
Wires dig in quickly this time of year, and scars can remain nearly forever, so it’s important to stay vigilant. Removed…
And back on the workbench for round 2…light pruning.
And finally, partial defoliation.
Remove one leaf from each pair.A close-up of the apex showing plenty of space for light and air circulation.
Partial defoliation allows sunlight to reach the interior of the tree, encouraging bud development closer to the trunk. This is important, as it is necessary to always have new branches growing to replace older branches. Older branches slow down in vigor, get fat and set in their ways. Replacing them gradually over time keeps the tree young and vigorous.
After unwiring and partial defoliation, the tree looks a bit wind blown, but it will settle down in a few days.
I have been studying bonsai since 1994, in an ever-increasing obsessive fashion. In our last 5 years prior to moving from Iowa to Alabama pursuing a career in the foodservice industry, my bonsai collection was limited to a few varieties that could survive brutal winters outside, or winters under dim light in the dank basement of our humble duplex...my wife puts up with a lot. Including the trailer hitch I put on our brown 1983 Chrysler New Yorker to pull a U-Haul full of trees to Nashville for a 3-month stop along the career path that led us to Alabama. 12 years later, we no longer have the New Yorker; and not a single one of those trees remain on my bench, having given the last holdout to a new club member this summer. I prefer collecting native trees and buying the classical species used in Japan, feeding organic, and reading everything I can get my hands on.
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Nebari Bonsai 
excellent! good reminder……I need to go to work.
Reblogged this on Wolf's Birding and Bonsai Blog.