8
DESIGN SKETCH
Bonsai Focus
From the Rockies
Jan Culek sketches options for the spruce of
Eric Schwartz
Text and photography: Jan Culek
This medium-sized spruce, with its rugged trunk, is a native of the Rocky Mountains of
the United States and was lifted from there. Its normal habitat runs from northern New
Mexico through Colorado and Utah to Wyoming, but today it is used as an ornamental
tree in many places far beyond its native range
Have your bonsai material
judged on its qualities and
future potential. The design
sketches will help you visual-
ise the potential of your tree.
From the photograph below, it is difficult
to see from where the main branches
start — the most important branches to
form the shape of a tree. The trunk does
have a stable base with lovely old bark,
but it continues in a less than attractive
ninety-degree angle, which is a weaker
feature of the tree. It is, however, the only
possible trunk line to follow for the new
design. The original trunk died and is now
simply a massive jin which may well be
incorporated into a future design.
The foliage and branches together act
almost as a separate item, as they are
too remote from the
main trunk. They
should not only
form a crown at the
top, but also partial-
ly cover the unat-
tractive angle of the trunk. It's crucial for
any future design that we can unite them
harmoniously.
It would be a good idea to try changing
the planting angle to the right as far as
the current base of the tree allows. This
would alter the view of the unattractive
angle and remove the horizontal line in
the central part of the trunk.
The next step will be to try bringing the
apex much closer to the right side. The
left main branch can be formed with the
existing foliage on the left side. That will
bring the natural flow of the tree to the
left. Following that is a very important
balancing branch on the right side, but
unfortunately from the photo it's very
hard to determine whether such a branch
is available for that use. This branch
Details
It is difficult to see where the main branches start
Colorado spruce (Picea pungens)
Owner: Eric Schwartz (USA)
Origin: Mountains of Colorado collected by
Todd Schlafer
Height: 43 cm / 17"