Hi everyone. I just bought this wonderful Liquidamber
Styracifuna. It's got
a great trunk with good taper and is starting to develop a
really
interesting cork on the bark, and has almost perfect branches;
the classic
spiral up the trunk. It's dormant at the moment, and was just
repotted at
the nursery. I want to trunk chop it just above the 6th branch
I intend
keeping, which will make it about 14" or so high at the chop. I
want to air
layer it above where I intend to chop it so I can get another
great tree.
I'm in Newcastle Australia (Zone 9 I think) and its mid winter
here,
although it's still very mild.

First Question: When is the best time to air layer a
Liquidambar? It is like
cuttings, best done in early/mid spring? Or can I go ahead and
do it now?

You have chosen a difficult tree to turn into a really decent
bonsai. I've been working for years to do it, and have not be
too successful -- but then, maybe that's just me.

Trunk chops on sweetgum take forever to heal and will leave a
swollen scar if you are not VERY careful to hollow out the chop.
And the cut below the layer you're talking abut would be a chop.

As far as air layering them goes, I've never thought to do one
because the trees are nothing but weeds in my area. My guess,
though, is they will be difficult to layer, as sweetgum do not
have fine hair roots (or have very few of them). I HAVE tried
cuttings (I hate to waste trimmings!) and none have taken.



Second Question: I want to wire some of the branches now while
they're still
quite supple, as the tend to point upwards and I want them more
horizontal.
Should I wait till after the chop or do it now?

Do it now, but when the buds swell in the spring keep a careful
watch and be ready to take them off. you'll have to re-wire
immediately. Sweetgum branches have a long memory. So you will
have to keep careful track.


Third Question: I haven't taken it out of the pot yet to check
its roots. As
it's dormant, would it be a problem to do a bit of a root prune
now? Or
would it be better to wait until I do the trunk chop?My main
concern is that
it was just repotted at the nursery, so it may already be too
stressed for
any more work at this point.


Patience in bonsai is a virtue. Wait for at LEAST a year --
maybe more. As I said, sweetgum do not have fine roots, any
further disturbance could be damaging. These also are NOT trees
that you transplant every year. So work on the top and forget
the bottom for a good long while. The top will be sifficient
challenge. It sounds to me as if this tree alreadys has had
some bonsai training at the nursery???????

Leaf trimming (defoliation) will get leaf size down considerably.
It seems to do nothing much for ramification. Sweetgum
internodes tend to be long; you will have to continuously cut
branches back to get smaller ones. In late winter every year
(except THIS one and other years after you do major root work)
you will want to remove the terminal buds on the apenx an at the
end of every branch and branchlet. Thanks to Brent W. on this
one, because after he suggested this I immediately started to get
smaller leaves AND (somewhat) smaller internodes. BREAK them off,
being careful not to disturb the invisible secondary buds just
below them. The trees do bud back fairly well (on branches!),
but getting a sufficient number of main branches and then getting
short internodes will be a major problem. Branches will also
always tend to be a bit on the heavy side -- especially if they
develop corky wings or knobs.

Getting taper on a sweetgum also can be difficult, so you may
want to study your chop and see if there is a branch that can
produce _some_ taper at the top.

Good luck.

Jim Lewis - - Tallahassee, FL - The phrase
'sustainable growth' is an oxymoron. - Stephen Viederman

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