Taxodium distichum 'Secrest' is a dwarf form of Bald Cypress that originated from a witch’s broom. Check out this page for a mature landscape view amongst this nice collection of Bald hybrids. The garden centers in Lincoln had their stock out a bit later than usual this year since we didn't really have a hard freeze until mid/late November. There were about five to choose from at Campbell's on Pine Lake. The sun was shining and temps were decent, so I took my time to study them.
The chosen one did not have the most trunk girth, but I liked the subtle movement from the base of the tree until the first branch. I figured that I may be able to get a little more bend out of this section, then focus on creating more trunk movement after the first branch.
The chosen one did not have the most trunk girth, but I liked the subtle movement from the base of the tree until the first branch. I figured that I may be able to get a little more bend out of this section, then focus on creating more trunk movement after the first branch.
First, I removed some of the unnecessary branches and wrapped the trunk in raffia. It sat that way for a few weeks until Haidar stopped by with some heavier wire. He suggested that I wrap some electrical tape over the raffia to increase the flexibility and cover any tiny spots that may have been missed to avoid any wire scarring. I broke out some Scotch 2242 and began to wrap. It reminded me of gripping a tennis racket. Using the tape cuts the application time drastically in comparison with applying raffia. So, I have added yet another item to my bonsai tool bag – electrical tape.
We managed to get some significant wiggle out of this tree after a bit of a workout. As Tom said later in the day, “That's some serious bondage."
We managed to get some significant wiggle out of this tree after a bit of a workout. As Tom said later in the day, “That's some serious bondage."
