FuNonnnrNrnls OrWrnrNc BoNsnr

Wring end Bonsai StylingNowadays, it ls necessary to use wireof some sort to shapc bcJnsai. lf youwonder how people shaped bonsaibefore th€y be8an to use wire, askolder people how they trained bonsaiand study old bonsai magazines. Youlvill learn that bonsai were shapedprimari ly by pruninB and pinchingthe nelv Browlh. In those days theyplanted trees in contaln€rs and main-tained them for a lonB i ime and usedonly col lected trces thai had devel-oped l ike bonsai natural ly. Thentrained them further by pruning andpinching. This technique was cal led"hachi ue" or plant ing i rees andplants in containers. They controlledthe shape of their trces by pruningand pinchinS new growth and us€drather deep conlainers. When they

BV Tonr io Ya nr acla- r ltT , l t )5 t . t te { t l } \ | t . l tq \ \ . l ( t \ \ ( 'T

began to think of harmonizing treesand contain€rs, I was after \r,hat weknow now as the art of bonsai hadalready dcveloped considerably.

Howcver, subsequently theybecame dissat isf ied with styl ing onlvby pruning and then came to usehemp cord nnd wirc. My father,Kamajiro Yamada, explained thehistory oi wir inE bonsai in lapan to

When my Srandfather wasyoung, around the beginning of theMei j i per iod { late 1860! and 1870's),they used hemp cord and a specialform of hemp cal lecl "devi l 's hair" .Devil's hair was made by combinBhemp and removing all the finerhairs so the thick halrs remained.one would soak lhc devi l 's hair nndhold it in one's mouth and then

roughly shape thc l runk and branch€s pul l ing them rnd tying them \r ' i lhthc devi l t hair or hcmp cord.Nowadays we havc wlre so that iinf,-1y detai led shap ng of branches canbe done with precision. However,with dev'l's hair the tips oi branch..would only be opened f lat .

According lo my lather andothers, I belicve they began to uscwire shortly afler the lurn of the 2llrFcenlury. At that t ime, slncc copperwas st i l cons dered valuab e, thevused only zinc Salvanlzcd steel \ ! i r fHowever, if you ,"vanted io bend abranch an inch in diameter lv i th zin!galvanized steel wirc it would soonreturn to i l5 or iginal shape and i i \o-rvere luc\ i t nould bend half anlnch. Thus i f you wanted io bend abranch an inch with thls wlre yo!rvould have to bcncl it an inch and .:hal f . That was al l that could be doneso that thev used copper u,ire on[on those plants rvhich had realpolent ial .

Bonsaiartists really beilan to Lrilcopper wire r ighl around the end orWor d War l, not al thai long ago.My father was one ol the fitst. lnthose days there wcr€ still those $h.sqrled trees only by pruning andpinching. Ho\\,ever, major chan8in,rlhe shape of trees was only acco -pl ished atter the introduct ion of theuse of wir ing.

Using wire enabled one to doprecise work and aitcr a tree was

Selkecn Bonsai Carden in Amiya BonsaiVilale, lapan, the ttudia oi Tomio Yamada.Many famous bonsai nastetpic.cs are.tedled in thc wo*roon in he backqrcund. Oftennaju bonsai .o|\ec on. are maintained bt, Mr yamada and his daughb.

INTERNATIONAL BO\S I200i/No. .t

fdilo'Js Nore: Tl s Jn .lc has been repr nt€.i\vilh pcrmission oiAklri Shimizu, ediloror'\hrue Ard AonsrirShizc. To Sonsai macrzine, published b,v 5rnlusha CompaD LldTne rrl clc on $nifg f6r nppcared if ihe

; November r977 issue in hpancr. and ha!< been rrans Jr€n Jid cdiled fo, ou eadc(< TomioYamJdJ is thc thnd renenr onj propretor ofSeiko-en Bonsa Caden n a)miri2 Bonsaiv lase Japan ToBc6e, with his iath€,: hay have.r€nt€d numclols mrstepi{e bonn:i and hale au$orcd s.lcra lDkandad'.6

styled wlth wire l t could be soldimmediaLely. UsinS henrp cord asguy, lo pul l branches here and thcrewas not only unsightly, but mosily itwas tedious and bothersome.

Bonsai were originally dcvelopedby only pr!ning and pinchinB andsome fine bonsai were cfeated inthat way. However, one cannot dosat is iy inB work developing bonsaimerely by pruning and pinching.only a limitcd numbcl .Jf collect€dtrees could be used for bonsai usinghemp cord lvas the only tralning trchnique used for shapinS. Thus the useof wire on col lected mater ial s igni f i -cantly increased the number of trees

lf you ccJnsider the record oiiapanese five-needle pine bonsai it isclearthar the grafted cultivar 'Miyajima'

is older than the comrnon collectedlapanese five needle pines. TheMlyaj ima lapancsc l lvc necdle pineswere al l shaped whi lc bclng f ie ld8rown. They lverc plantcd in thcground, staked, pulled this way, bentthat way with narrow branchesbraced by bamboo. The collectediapanese fjve-needle pines $,eretrained aiter we began using wire, inthe late 1920's and cariy 19301, particularly thc lattcr

At that t imc thc species thatwcrc wircd incl !ded iapanese f lveneedle pine, Ezo Epruce and SargentsJUnrper

Advantages Of WiringThe greatest advanta8e in using wirefof bonsai styl ing is thai i t is easy tocreate a shape that appears natural.That is because people who want toexpress their individual i ty andcreativity can lo a certain degreemakc trunks and branches appear asthey would l ike them to by applyinSwire. To pui it another less desirableway, ii facllitates cr€aiive deceptionor manipulat ion.

For example, the fol iage whichspans a Srven area can De compresseoto f i l l a smal ler area by usin8 wire.Here decept ion or manipulat ion maynot be the proper word, but this is atechnique which throuSh i ts useimproves the appearance of a iree.

The reason that bonsai is flourishing nowadays is of course due torhe use of wire. It can also be saidthaL the number of bonsai hobbyistshas incrcased due to Lhe fact thaLthey can style trees using wirc, Yetihere are disadvantages as well as

advantages to the development oftechniques using wiring. For example,bonsai have been kil ed by wiringand scars are someLimes lef t in thebark oftrunks and branches by wiring.

Disadvanta8es Of Wiringl i one is not suff ic ient ly trained anduses wire to bend trunks and branches,a person can overdo it and brcakbranches or cause Lhem to witherand die- On the olher hand, l l oneknows what onc is doing and hassufticient feel ior ii and applies wireto bend trunks and branches, theywi l l not break or ki l l branches andconversely can use this technique tocreate beautifu bonsai. Thus howone appl ies the wire to the tree andhow one uses it is very important.

Thc harm that wir ing can do toirees depends on the variety of thetrcc. For exarnple, it ls rnore difiicultlcrr wire to cause scars frorn cuttinginto the bark of evergreen trees likepines and junipers and even i f onedoes cause such a scar on these lreesi t can be healed over quick y. ln conlrast, thcrc are somc varictics oldeciduous t fees which wi l l neverrecover trom such a wir ing scarAmong evergreens those that quicklyrccover lrom sucn scarlrn8 areiapanese f ive needle pine and

lapanese black pine. Hemlock k aspccics lvhich does easily recoverfrc'm such scarring. Because iheabjlity of trees to recover from wiring5cars difters in this way one mustlearn how to wire different types oitrees and distinguish between thcm\,vhen applying lhis technique.

Once one learns how to uscwire properly and is free to slyletrees as they please there is somedanger that they wi l l overuse rhisski I and will create trees u/ith toomany unnatural curu€s.

Model After NaturalTr€esThc mon important thjng io do pr iorto wirlng is to obserue the shapesand forms of trccs growing in nature.For example, i fyou look closely atthe branches ofa single pine youwil l note $at the branches andfoliage grow lushly as the branchesgrow oui. They develop curves thalgo downward and upward asbranches due to their weight tend togrow downward and then the tips ofthe branches tend to grow up seeking the l lBht ofthe sun.Various othermovements of the branches are dueto othcr natural condit ions such aswind and snow etc. By observingthese, individual difierences in tech-niques of different people become

tndoat tokanoma display at sciko cn Bonsai Gaden featurjng a lapane,e fiw.needle pinePin!s patujflora, s.rol/ and ac.essory planting.This wry fanous honsai$,as designed byTomia Yanada an(l has been carcd bv him fot sewral de.;rdes.

INTERNATONAL BONSA ] ]2005/Na) 4

Thus thcrc is no value ln j l rn$, l r ing an. l giv ing branches curvesbecausc rt scemt more i f terest ing orlrecaule som,aone Lo o )rou to wtre

Types Of Wire For Bonsai StylingNow.da,vs copper \r,lre andalumjnum wife are the Inain q?eE oi\ \ , i rc uscd in t faini fB bofsai and insomc cascs venr' aneap commerc abof!ai steel wire is used.

Characteristics Of Steel WireI have nelcr uscd stee w fe and I anragainst the use oi stee $,ire ior bonsa .Most commercial bons.r l . rre solclwrapped v! i th steel $ire ard thepeople rho bu1 them.rre ranlamaieu15. Since steei $, i re is r igkl i tcan t bc lemoved so thev eave it onand l l usual lv cuts lnto thc bark asthc trcc grows. Stee $,re js inexpensivc rncl as t is dl f f lcul t to use peo-plc buy ng the tre€s have the sirangenotlon that lt is better to ha\,e thetree alread,v wired. lsuppoEe vo!can say that l t is soiLablc that acheap tree be $lred \ i th cheap rv re.

Characteristics Of Aluminum wireAlumifunr tr , rc s css cxpcnsivothan coppcr \ \ , rc but i t is soi t andi lexlb e to begin wlth and is no morerigi . l a i ier bending and worklng i tlhan before. Thereiore aluminun-r$, rc can bc uscd cas l\' bv novices$, l thout breakini l or scarr ing trLrnksand branches. Nofethe e!5 t is nohelp $,hatsoever lf vou wish to make

ifee. lt appears to be good on v lormaking mifor modl i icar ions orglving vel 'Seneral shrpes Lo lrees.

Nowada,!s thcrc sccnrs to be ad vis ion oi labor whereby aluminumwire is $ide y used for ur i r ngdeci. luous trees and copp-.r wire

Characteristics Of Copper WireUnder normal condit ions copperwire i5 r lgld but once i t has beenheaLcd and annca ccl it soitenscofsiderab y Then once that port ionis beft i t retums to rhe or iginal r ig ic l5tate. Thus, once the .opper wlrc jsannealed i t ls ean,to col l aro!nd thctrunk or branches oi a tree. AiLer thcwire is coi led.found the trec l t isbent to gile iorm to thc port on ofth. tr.c $,h ch is n,recl and hardensln that posi t ion. Since i t $ i l l nol

]2 NILRNAI ONAL 8 . ) \SA200r,rNO I

return to the shape rl had beibrebcnding I ke steel wire cloes. i t ho clsi ts shape anrl hence i5 verv sui tableior use in shaping and stf l ng bonsai.

Cauges Oi Copper WireThe tvpes oi wire that a hobbvist dnda prolesslonal should havc on handdirrer afd you p'obrhl \ \ !on t bcabl€ to Lrse number. l and number {r\ i re unless volr ' re a proresslofal \ ! thcxperience and highlr deve op-.d Lcchn ques. So gencral ly, !ou shou dprobabl i h. lve n!mber 8 through 2lavai lab e. This cloesn t me;rn Lhat \ouhavc to have every one ol thenrava lab e but et's saf everv othef on-.l o r c x a m p e n u b e f 1 0 . n u m b e f l 2ctc. \ \hef u5 ng wife you shou dn' tcut shoir pieces blr t keep j t co lecl asis or wrapp-..] llke rope.

HowTo Anneal Copper WireFue ibr anfc.r l ing copper \ \ , re, r ice,traw is bcst ior prcvlding a goo.lslead! iirc. Whi c straw by tseli isgood ior anneal inS number l2throu8h 2-+, thicker gauges greaterthan nurnber I0 requlrc qui lc a ot olflcc straw so \\'e Lrse the strawtogether \r , l rh kindl ing.

Wh-.n annea ing coppcr wirc wep ace a steel or g.r lvnnized sl- .el p atcon the grolrnd and lhen on Lop oithat place roled and wadded upnewspaper. I we are Sorng to annea

heavy gauges we placc kind ing onthat. lnd then spread rtra\r , on thir t .Then we place copper \\, re on thatafd cov,.r lhal ur l th stra\\ 'orkincl l lnB and then l ight the roi leclnervlaper on rhe boLtom oi the pi l r!o that i t lgni tcs.

li fo! do not \\,ant the heat toescape place a stccl plate of the topoi al l th is. i ,vou do this thermalenergy cannot escrpc upl,arcls sothat i t extends ouL to thc si . les andprovldcs a good steady burn.

l f the amornt oi iue ls lnsui i ic ienr )ou ma! replcnlsh i t . Bei.rresla( in8,vou shou r l consicler lheamount of $, re vou $,ant to anneaand the amount of fLrel you \ \ ' i l l neerlso that the \r i re be ful y trnnea ed$,hen the i i fe bums our.

Have the $, re Lo l)e annca cd irrcois ancl p aca an anrouft oi straws! table lbr rhis. Do not havc thc$, ire a lp l - .c l up in onc place and i ipossible. lo nol havc thcm overlap. I tporsible afneal di i icrcnt s izes oi

When the coppef wire exudes abl!e ilame that shou cl bc thc critcrionHowevcr do not inrmecl ate v ceaseannea jng as soof as vou spoln l ) i l rei .1|ne. Remove lh-. wlre $,hcn l t iscomp etely . lnnealecl al lhe \ av 1.)the tips. For heaq g.ruges usc tonscto se€ $hether fie \\'lre bends e,rs l\ancl ii it rloes, lt is .lone. Howev,.r,

Sieel or galvanrzed sreel plate

Place copper wire on top ofthe rice straw then ignite ihenewspapers on the lrottom

Do not pile up all the copper wire in one location and if possible do nothavethem overlap. Anneal same sizes of wirc atthe same time.

be careiu fot to over.lo it as the\\'ire \\ i I lose its truc copper propeFl ios .1nd i t \v l l l crunrble an. l brcak

For he.r ' , r 'gaugcs, i i i t annealsqu ckl ! , i t \ ! i I take i ive or si \ min-utes bul gcneral ly \ \ i I l .ke about tennrinutcs so add fuel i rs need€d unri lIhen. Slrong i i res prov. l .d bv l tasetc. \ r , l l burn the w re fashort t i rne.rnd i t \ ! i l rcnr. t in r igid w thoutbeing annealcd.

\ \ ' i re that h.5 bccn annealedthou d not bc dropped in Natcr and'uddenlv coo ed. l l is bcl ter to al lowthe wire lo gradui lv coo natural lv-i i r i r coolcd sud. lerr ly i t wi l l havelhe opposlt0 ef iect lhnn what )our lei i re and \ ! i l l inslead hardcn.I f..\\ se do not pl.rcc tho wire on, t r ,1 spots l ike rocks ancJltones and.ne.r. la l lo\ \ . i t to cool graclualh by

r, . rL ng i t on thc Narm gal!anized. i fe P.r le or on the 8ro!n. j .

The tflecl Of AnnealinS Wire,\ r i fg Nork wi Ibe ei lher casy or: r t ! t rjepencl ng on ho\\' ihe \\ire. . . . rnneaLed. So i t is be( to anneal'_ . . re !o that i t is sui tnblc ior the

' . n\ohe. l . \o\rnclays anneal ing. I fe eleclr c,r l ly is \ !el l but this: . , rot coJnp clclv inreal the wirc. . . . f . rnne.r l i l onc ore t inre' ' tu !5 ns lhc w rc. l i you want to

.. {io goo.r \rorK .vou 'nusr pav

rareiLl al tent ion to snr. l l l dcta ls l ik€l h i ! .

wire that has l )een anfealcd,\ !hen i t is man pulnted ind bentrelurnr io ils original rigi.lity ,rnd thc\lorkers in our bons.l Bnftlen rca l!c l s l ike i t \ hen novi,-cs come in andp av wlth th€ $ire afd r tep on i t .

Thc cfie.t oi anneal ng once. lone $, i l l l rst so i t 's prol)nb v betterto prepare in advan.e. whcn storlngannealed \vire one should bc carefulnol to bend it an.l il shou d beplnced in coi ls or w.rDped around aco I l ikc a spindle for \ ! rapping cord.

Do Not Try To Do UnreasonableThings To BonsaiWhen one is nbout k) applt wirc toa tree lhcrc are two things to kcep innr ind. Firet, one rhoul( l . rsk " \ \ /hatcan I do to get thc Nire lo hold lhelree in the posit ion lw.rnt \ ! i thoutpl .r . lng an unduc sl fcss on ihe tree?'Thcn ii,vou havc an,v lecwalt ho$,dro! ld the r i re bc put on the tree solh.t t i t $, l l l not bc vis!ral l ! un.r t t ract ive.

Thcn no! ice!, in p.rr t iculatshould consider wir ing the i reehlice, in hro differenl staece ratherlh,rn the enrire l ree al l at ofce.Dest) i tc the fa. t thar rh(. 1r(r | is not, lccustomed to havinB lh. stress of i tlhal wir ing p ac€s on a l rcc, nov ceswl l l i requcnt l i , overdo i l and app vwlre lo thc ent ire tree .1l l nt once allhe \\,av out to the tips oi branchessh ch trequenllv caurcs br.rnches tocl ic. Trunks and hca!\ 'br.rnches arestronger than iBhter branches and l ilhey are al l wircd i l i l rhe Eametime they won l bc ki l lcr l . Thus i iwjr ing 15 done in two stages, a roughwir ing in the f i rst iear l )y npp v ngwire to and ini t l . r l lY st ! l ing the trunkand the heaYier branches. Then inlhe lecond vear \ ' l r inA nnd shapingthe enal lcr branrhes you a.c notl ikel ! to have any br inch dieback asa rcsul i or $, i r ing.

When To Wire BonsaiThe time to wire bons.1 ditJcrsdepcnding on the sPcc es oi iree butBcneral lv i t shoukl be done d!r ingthe period i rom enrlv iulunrn lnSeptenrber up unt | \\4ren ncwgro\rrlh appcars in March.

ln the pan peop e were to d thatdeciduous trees should be wlrcd inaulumn after the leaves h.tvc iallen.n( l t rained irom lhef unt i l the t imebu& break i f thc spr ing. Howevcr

tor sonre reason, perhrps bccause of\\/c.rther conditions, recenllv trces\\ ' i rcd in ihe earlv dutunrn haYc nothrcJ good bud breaks thc iol|:irlingsl) f ln8.

wiring vigorously Crowing BonsaiAn imPo.tant condlr ion for wir ing atree is lhat thc tree in l t ]0si ion be!ro$,ing vigorous v Trees that areunhealthv or are rveak should not be

Ccneral l \ t the bns c nr l ing andshaping oi ihe trunk ol a tree shouldbe done $,hi le i t is loun8 nncl r i re isnol unral ly appl ied lo nrature trunkson $,hich thick b.rrk hls iornred. Onlh.sc trees onlv br.rn(hes should bcwlr0d. l iowever lh s doe, not npp v\\ 'hrn rnakinS major ni() . l l i i .nt ions ton tree l ike changinl l the i ronl oi the

Careiul v wire r Young lrcOwhen ts shape has never bccn deter-nr red and has nevef be.n wiredbeiore. Slnce i ts shape has fot beenclelermincd, on€ should I i rst prunebrck the branches;ncl then rpply\ ! i re once thc tree is gr(^! inghe,rlth\l

LonB Term PlanningA lofg tenn plan s fecessar! ! !henstvl ing a l rcnsai. l f . t t ree hns bcen$rlrcd i t hkes about a ycar or ins0m0 [d!es hfo rears tor the lree torclr in the shape i t has been given bvthe wire and the $ i re kr begin to cutinto the bark. The \ \ ' i re should berenrolcd \ !hen i t begins t0 cut intothc l>ark and then trainccl as is iorlhrcc or iolrr years. Thls is esEenl ial . l ith is is done, the tree sho! cldeveloprcl l . ]nd the cl iamctcr ol the nunkshoLrld doLble in iour (Jl i ve vcarslepending on the 5pec cs. When thetree is i in i lhed to.r cc(ain e\tenl i tshoulcl be given i ts i inal s lv l ing.

The Ord€r Fof Applying WireAl)p,v n8 wire to n l rcc is used tonrodiiv the shtrpe ol i troe. Forc\.rmple. ior a trcc which has ncverbcen trained bct,:rr€, one bcgins bvdelernr inlng the iont oi the tree.\c\ t . al ter delermininB the i ront andlhcn cleciding Nhat stvle s 'oukl br ingout nnd erhan.o the in. l iv i . lL,r lcharacter is i lcs oi that t ree, . lctcrr f inewhat trLnk paLtern(.nhinces lhco\tcr trunk and rcmove brafchesnot v tal to that stv ing.

Then proceed with thc $ i r ing.First \ \ ' i re nnd shape thc Uunk using

I \TER\AI (J \AL 8 . ) \S \ 1 ]lrr0r \o 1

, , , ; j j

\lait untilblue flames are visibleand cool the wire Bradually

tudden coolins by immersing ins.!.r $ill harden rather than soften

wire sizes wh ch cof lespond t .r thrdlanreters oi thc trunk. lncl branchcsanrl begin bv wir ng the hea\,],.rbranches i i rst . F naly use l ightcrSaugc wire io $ re thc sma lerbtanches.

How To W;re The TrunkWire lhe t funk i i r !1. Becausc vou $ l lneed lo use hcavv r,ire trke a goodook at the foot dlsp ay afd basc ol

the tr l rnk. nscrt the wire r l iagonal )into thc \oi of the contalncr caref! lly \r,lrhout dnmaglng the r(l()ls andbend i t arnund the trunk so th; t i twi I holcl buL not be loose, move or! l p

Whcn d.r ing thi5 con! i . ler thcappearancc ol the \vrre on lhe trccand. loic l insert ing r in lhc so latthe iront oi ihe tree and place it atthe sid-. or rcar ol the tfee.

Befcl the wire bciore jnsert ing i tinto the so L This is l )e. .Lrse r l islomet mes di i l lcu t to befd on.e i t sin the soi l bccaure .r f the heavvBauge oi thc \\, re. li \'o! ir,v real !hard to benrl i t once i t is n lhc , io i

)ou mav injure lhe bark at the base of

When To UseTr|o Pieces Of Wirel f ofe plece oi !v rc s, i l l be sui i c errthere is no neecl to usc additioralwire. But. i i fou do n.r t think )oucan bend i t sal l r ia. tor i lv beca! ie oi

rhe hcav! g.luile wire .rf vou are notused t .r u5 ng i t . rather lhan doingsomething un\r ' ise !ou should |rsel\\o p eces of 5 ightl! ighter gauge

Evcn people $,ho arc a.crs-t.rmed to han.ll ng h.a! er f]alge\\, re $,ill inslcad use hr,o I ghrerSruge pieces to a\,oi .J hd! lng.i iiicult\,.

When using t \ 'vo picccs of n j rea wavs co I them arolncl thc trufk sothat thev are r lght aga n!t each olhcrand arc wired in the same.l r . , . t ionIt lo.rks bet ler i i Ihe! appcar as oneand thev wi I not hold as \ \ ,el l i t ic)

tnnance lne l runk ba\cAlthough \r,e s.1)l \'irc thc trufk.the port ion of lhc trunk iust abovethe basc is di i f icu t to ben. l .However, ir depcnds on the diameteroi the l funk, the inch or so juslabole \ herc the ro(Jt! efter the \oSifce the port on oi the lou,er tr ! fkls an lnhcrcnt part of the tree iL is oipf mar) importance to consldcr ho$,this poir on oi the trcc can beefhanced and ho\r, i is ro be p antedprior to wir ing. Then i i $,c cl scernthe best p acc bi, the curve oi th-.lo\ \ 'er t runk and plant i t f a nay thr lonhances thli \'ve usc \""'ire to ronrpensate for the p.r .cs where i t ls less

Use Wire lhat ls Suitable For TheDiam€ter OfIhe Trunklr the wire is not sui tdble ior the size0i the trunk to be $, red i t \ \ , i l l nothold anclr i l l fot hnvc an effect.Novice! rend to use $ re rh. l is tool ighr i . r r thc trrnk an. l i t usual v doe5nol do tho lob. One sho! d use

\ofnralv the trunk tapers.nr l

The lower trunL

foois is wherethe tree showsindividuaJitymore than anyother place, sowire it carefull\

NTERN TION/\L IIoNSA200 i rNo. .J

Add anotherprece or

wil l not hold

pieces of

each other

becomes narro$,er as it gets talLer.Yot] should 5elect a gauge of \r,lrethat is sul tab e for bendint thedes red ponlon of the nunk. Sincethe w re s app ied ironr below thereis no neecl to \\ire up to or abole rheportlon $,here the gauge of the wireis sui tablc Ior thc thickness oi thcLrunk. When wir ing a narro\\ ' - . rponjon of the l runk abole lhal spol

'I re

r,, ith

l ight

Trunk \! ilh no

( p i h p n p \ t ( m i l p r o , r , o p r , i r p

$,hlch s sui table ior the size of the

As much as possible npp y the$' i re so that the t lp oi the heaw Nireuserl on the trunk wi l not appear onthc iront oi thc trcc.

Extend;ngThe WireChanglfg the gauge oi wire on lhelrun k l rom a heav er 8au3e lo al ighter gauge. depends on the p ace$,here i t is to be chan8ed. Coi thebeglnning end oi rhe I ghrer gauge$,lrc to be uscd two or thrcc timcsaround a branch belor the p acervhere the lr,re is to be ertendecl. lfthefe is one wlre al lgn i t logether\ \r ih the heal ier \ \ ' i re on the trunk.Coi thc wire as much as nee. led l ilou are l lo ing to bend that branch. lown. l f there i5 no brafch belowthat point { th s ls very rarct, aLlgr thcighter rvire and the heavier w rc

together for severa turns around thctr !nk and t ie them together withextreme ) f ne light gauge \\'ire iftwo or three places and the ertend-ed port jon Lthe l ighter gaugc oi thct\ \ ,o \ ! , i r - .sr\ \ i l hold u,el and wi l lnot s l lp.

Left Coi l ing And Right coi l ingThe . l i re. t ion of the wire to be coi edand rhe direct ion that the branch isto bc bcnt arc closcl)' re ateai. t isimpo(aft to tw s he \\,ire aroun.lthe trunk whl lc bend fg l t whcnn,irlnB a tree. Thereiore the d rectionthat vou wrap the \r,ire aroufd thetrunk or brafch anl th0 r l i rcct onthnt vo! twist and bcnd thc trunk orbrafch mlst al t ra),s bc ln thc sanrc

l i the h\,o direct ions are oppositerhe wire w ll not hav-. an efiect andwil fot hold bccausc the \r i re that lsrvrapped arornd the trunk u, i l be

For example, when a branch ortrunk has been col led to the eft andthe branch or Lr lnk has been l)ent 5()that l t is tw stcd in thc samc dircct ion i t \ r , l l ho d r . l ther $el l $i thol tln jur lng thc vcc. Convcrscl)" l i thctfunk or bfanch is t . r b. twistcclandbent to thc r iBht, thc \ \ ' i rc shoulcl bc\\,rappell t.r tho fi8ht.

Thu5, one sho! ld, pr ior to app,vfg wire, f l rst delerm ne which direc-

Llon thc br;rnch and \ \ ' l rc are to bet\ ! ned and then applf the $ire in

\TER\AT O\AL tsoNSA ]5l 0 0 r ' \ O . 1

Use wire theright size tobend thetrunk

Wire was coiled to the fightand branch was bent andtwisted to the left so thecoiled wie on the branchbecame loose

lf wire is coiled iothe lef! twist to

the leftlf wirc is coiled tothe righi, twist tothe right

Hold The wire when Wir ingTh s s .rn c anrL,ntar\ precaut ion butwhen , \pl) l ,v ing \ , , l re, al \ !avs i i rnl l , "ho. l thL'port iL 'n oi the wlre that has.rlrei(l! been \\'ith thc oit hand righthand ior thoso r lho .rre len hanclcclr.rnd col l the N ire nroln( l thc trunk orl)r . rnch \ \ i th Ihe r iqhl h.rnd, letr handior tho\c Nho .rre len handcdr. Thenns \o! prol .eed to coi l the \ \ i 'cnroufd lh| t r !nk or br.rnch mo!c theposir .n oi the h:rnd holding thc $ i r€l0lhe l runk or bft inch.

\ 'Vh.n col l f t ] the \ \ ' i re aroundthc l runk 1)r br i rch n \ \ 'a!s ccr I i twhi l . h. , ld ing t t0 the trunk \ \ 'h i elwi\ l ing lhf wjre i t5eLf so i t wl l l notbc( ( ,nrf \ l . rck. Thls manfer oi coi ingr i r( , is di i i ic! t , and i f th-. wlre. hcrcs iSht l \ , lo lhe trunk i t s goodr ' l r i e i i l is r . ro t ight l t wi I c lr t intothc bark oi the tree uhen vou bendt. l i I is loo oosc I wi l not hol . l the

lrufk,)r br.rnch in po5lt ion u,hen voubcnd r.

Whc'f coi ing the \ ! j re aroundlhc l funk or br inch the \ \ ' i re shoLi dfcyl]r be kruching the b.rrk oi thelree dir f . th ' . Hc.\ ' \ \ ' re that isdi i i icul t t0 b€nd an. l Nrnp b\ handsln)!kl be benl af d coi led. l roundrhc r i t lnk ' rs inS pl ier\ .

Twist the wire as it is coiled aroundthe trunk or branch

Intervak Behi'een CoilsThe size oi lhc lnter lr ls beh!r. .n rhl.oi ls oi wire of a trunk or bran.hdiner dcpending on the r zo oi thrtree and grLge oi the N ire. \ t ]nr lxr8 \ \ ' i re is nornrdl ! userlon tr .cs\!hosc trunks or br.rn.h.s n( tsrf . r l ,lhan one'elghth in.h in dhnlclcLAssum nB that \ou \nnl 1, , bfn( l . rrrunk \ \hi .h ls one an. lonc-cighlhinch in r l iamcter vor sor lr l Lrscfumber 8 $ i rc anr l n rnP th. n i f t . .intcrr ,als of i ronr one ard onc r lLr.rrr 'to one eighlh l rchcs

Ho\\ 'e\ ,er th s $, I i lwn\s d i r( , r\!ith the sh.1pe oi lhc trcc so v(tr]fea ly crn t i lefcr. l zc. \ 'Vhef )or l$ant to do parl i .u lar l ! i i fc l )on( l rr !yot] wotr d narro$, thc lntcrvi l . r )( lconvers-.lt rl lou want to g vc ,lhr.rnch or trunk a more gefor i lstyLinB rou wou cl incrcirsc thc

l i v.ru make the nten.r bf lN,"\ \ raps too 5ma I i t becomes ik( rspr ing ancl conrerselv i t r r i l notho cl the br.rnch or trunk in pl .r t tand the wire wi l l rcal l ! nnnd olr t

N N\ { r ( )NAL 3( l \SA

When coiling wire be sure tosecure the wire ro lhe tnrnk or

bnnch w;th your hand

Wire spacing1 1/8b 1 1/4"

Carefully coil wire around thetrunk or branches

Whe coiled at close intervalsnot have a holding effect

lf you bendbeween thecoils of wire

il will controlthe wire on bothsides of the bcndfrom returning to

lhe originalposrtron

lf you bend thetrunk or branch

severely behveen thewire coils it may break

BendinB Ancle And wirc PlacementThe r ' l rc sho! | l )e I t i ( ed re nt i \c t r)Lhe arca th.r t s l ( ] l )c lxar i or thetrunk or brafrh. l l s lmlr ld b., wir .dso thirL L ls .rr l)olh skltli oi lhebcndlng afgle so lwi l sul)prcss l lclendencv oi n braf.h lo rr turn tL ' i tsor iginal posi l i . , f , . i l ( r t hns beenbent.

h lou berd i r po' l i , ' r i , r . r l )anchor trunk selere ! $hor. rh.r . , is noNire t ma\ break nr lh.r l l ) . intnr i t issaier to bcnd \ \hc( thcre ls Niretouchlng the brnnrh or rrurrk l i \ou\ani to se\efeh bfnd \u.h an are.r\oLr shoukl\rnp i l \ lh Lr i rLn orcl .r th to prolel l r ronr l )rerk r)g nfdspl i t t ing.

Aiter \ ' r ing the l ruf l . ' re shouLdproceed to $, l r i fg thl ] ln.r) .hc\. l t !impo(anL to 5Lf c thc brrnLhr\ soLhat thclr shapcs c{nrk)nn lo lheshape oi the trunl i tsc, l i .

Wire Two Branch€swilh One PieccOf WireA \!a\'s usc onf P ecc ol \\ rre toshape h\o branch€s. Firsl nr.rke sLrrcthat voL h.!e cnough \ l rc to \ \ ' relhc ower oi the hr() l ) r in. hes \ \ i ththe oose end oi thc \ \ i rc Thcn co I

the \ \ i re h! {c arolrnd lhc port ionthat s.1thche. l ro rho l rufk.r fc leave the rest oi thc,cnd r,r i the stranrl

ior ; r mofrfnt .rn( l (() i l the $, rear.rund the trunk. Al lh is t i e i i thereis a r , .adv wirc co lcd anrrnd thel funk co this wirr s() th,r l iL io o\rsthat prr l io ls V co l f r l ! \ ' i re Thcn co I\ ! i re nrolrnd thc uptrcr l ) r . rn.h. whcnconrp er.r . l , (ul \ ! l ( rronr the coi.1ncl relurf l ( ) lh(,r \ le l unN re. l Port ion oi lhe olhcr l ip or Ihe \ ! i re onlhc loNer l rrnnch.rnd i in lsh Nir ing

Est imating Wire tcngth\\hen \ r i rg br.rn.hf\ i r s helpiul rotr ! to en nule lhe ({rBlh r t wiren€ce!!ar\ to \ \ re b.rrh bft infhcs in. i .h ' , rnce The cfglh oi \ ! rc ' \ \ ' i Idepen. l pn( ly ( fr th! ' AnrAe oi \ \ , i ret{r be useclbrt geferrLv lou rra!expecL Lo usc n cfglh $h ch iE onenfd . hal i t0 two t mcs the englh oilhe branch. \ 'Vhcr !() ! r Ael Lred lo.J.ring this \'ou wi I l)c .rl) e 1oest lmate jud .boul lhe r Bhl nnrouft

anci tron t nee.1 to nx\rsurc aachpiece berorc \ou cur i t . Thef cut thepiccc oi \ \ i re dn(l lhe'r . rpp Y i l

branch with clothor raffia lo prcvent

brealinB and spli t t ing

branch rvill notbrcik lvhen it is

there i9 wire

\T IR\ , \T ( ) \ \L 8 | ) \ ! \ I tl l i r r \ o 1

Always use one piece ofwrrc to shape tlvo

One piece of wire is notlikely to hold and have aneffect when wirinS one

wir ing Onl) One Branch\\hen there is fol a br.nch neaf thehranch vou wlsh to wirc and voLnccd to wirc jun one branch. coithe wlre on.e aro!nd the branch andLhen col l thc w rc around the trunkand hold thls poir on of the ' , ! , j fel ight v so that l t \ \ i I not move.

From the \ \ ' i re appl ied to thebr;nch wire the branch o!t to \ \ 'herevou nant to stop and thls shou dhold W thout nrovi fg.

This technl. tu, . \ \ ' l l l not bcci icct i !c with trrnks \ \ 'h ich arehea!\ . In lhat case, un ess vou \ \rrapwlrc af l rufd thc trunk i rom belowthe brdnch severa times .1nd thefwrdp the branch the $, l fe $, l l s ipand \ \ , l l not ho d. l t s lmportant tohave the \r , re 5ecure,v anchorer l .

HowTo Lower Branchcs\\hen vou \\'anL Lo bcnd . hcav,!branch down and \ . lnr coi th.branch \\,th \\,re ancl ende.lvor tobr ng i t dowf !o! \ i I i i fc l Lh.t )- . rujust cannot br ing the brafLh do$,niom \\ 'here i t i5 atta.hed to thetrunk. l t wi l onlv be o$,erecl i rom ap.r int s l i lht V o!1 from the polntwhcrc i t ls cmerSing trom the trufk.

Hotrlv0r, the wav branchescomc down di i ters ard depends onthe oleral shape of: ne-" and thcshapc oi Lhc trunk. For cia plebranches $,h ch Bo .lo$,r iom thepoint oi at lachmenl of thc l runkexpfess thc ! \al t f r8s gro\! natura -L\ ' In n v-ar\ scvcrc cnv| lonn]cnt.

\'\'hef Vo! \ ant to bcfd abranch down sharp ! ike th 5 \ 'ou

maf cra.k or. !L thc un(lers de oi t l r 'brafch a he po nL oi .r t tachment.lbu nray kl lL Lhe branch i , !o|1 don' lrnow what )o! fe d.r jng so i i ! pr. i ,ab,v bes o lust bencl thc branchdo\! ,n wiLh \ i r . .

When Vou u5€ $ire to br ng nbranch doln,vou shou c1 not trr tobr in8 l t al l thc x,a\ dorn to rhere!ou s, l : ]uld ikc t t . r be. Divide l t f :lwo stngcs. Thc i l rst t me br ing t r . r 'wa\ down and then trlo to fournronths later befcl t rlown to r\'hen-vou \\,ould ike to havc t.

l i , \ou tr ! to do thi ! al at onetime vou are Ver,v ike,v 1(l \!.rak-"r

The ',\,.rv to \\'lr-. bftrn.h Llp\ ithe same in a Icases afd onl\ d ai . -ln rhe g.ruge oi wlrc \ 'ou n€el to r :-

Cut or crack the

devcloped in a

NTER\AT oNAL L](]\SA-t1l0i \o n

the buds to face

wrnnS

l a

Clack or cut

Face Ih€ Buds Upnards\\ 'hen you br ing a branch dorvn thei ips oi thc branches face out io thesldcs so use f ine number 2l or 2,{\\lre lo make thc buds iace up\4/ard5.Ho\!cv.f , with t ime, the budr wi l lnat!fallv tencl to f.rce upwards cvenr \ou do nol . lo thG. Thcreiore i i you, i .nt to diEplay the bonEai soon after, .1ir ng I iace $e buds upwards.

Pul l ing Branches Down: \ . ru have a branch that \ i l l not,)nre oown Dv afY orner means 0r aI in.h thai ,vou do nol ! !ant to stress. Lr mal pul l the rvire appl iecJ to a' . rn.h . lo$,n with l ight gauge wirc

' ' ,T a .onvenrenl p ac-a on a'- :n.h Secure i l lo the lv lre coi lcd_ 1:- . r funk, thc bottom oi the con-, i ' . r or a convenienl place l ike a' . il brifch \\,itho!t stresslng thc. . ,nl i t $, l l l ho d reasonablv wel l .

Lse \o.2l copper\ire to make the buds

Methods Of Shaping BranchesWhich Do Not Rely On WireBranch t ips in boft olr l and youngtrees spr ing hack up on voungbranchcs rvhlch are u, i red clou,n. lnsuch cases there are techniques iorbr inginS l)ranchcs do\ n \ \ ,hich donol rel) , on wire such as Pifchingne\v gro\\ ' rh and tr imminS oldfeedles. This redLcca thc numbcr ofleaves or need es and al lows thc sunto gei at \teaker buds growlng in therecesscs ol the trce.

IfYou Wire/ Do Not ForgetloRemove ltIt is poftant to noL ea!,e !\ ire of ntree for a long t ime. Whef i t beginsto cut into $e bafk i l \ \ i I have h.rdthe desired ei lect and l t should ber-.movcd at this t ime and not reap-pl ied aga n for a vear or t$,o. Thisallows thc trcc tn rest and regain tsvr8(rr.

Posidon the bud tips toface upward whenwiring and shapinS

Trees are often damagcd whenthe wire i ! remove. l ralher qu ck,v toreus-. l t lat€r. Sln.e iL is rc lat lvclyeasy lo obta n coppcr wire i t islmportant to remove the $, i f - . bv cutt ing i t ol i so Lhat uees arc not dam,nged. l i you arc determined torcmovc l t without cut l ing i t , uEep iers .rnd do it crrliul ,v v,.,itho!tcausing dam.rgc to thc trce ii possible.At this t lme Eec!rclv holr l the port ionwhich ls u/ l r- .d in your lei t hand.rsyou dld r \ ,hen applying the wir- . anclgradual lv remole thc n' i rc.

All 6e sn'.ll pine btundl tipr rhauld b.,a.-.d up)rard u\int iinc \rnc. Note thet-.neLt p$ittoninE oi hands \rh.n |ititlgta a\ai.l injur| to the pine needles

INTERNAT' ]NA] BO\5A] ]9200 i rNo l