Double Butt Ugly Pine

 You know that material that you purchase and get it home and it's not what you think you bought? Such was the case for this piece of material. I looked for some photos of this tree when I purchased it, and the subsequent photos of the first styling. Obviously, I was not very happy with the purchase or the newly styled tree to even take a picture of it. So, this article begins with the tree as it is today, two years later.

This is the pine in all its ugly glory. The folder on my computer where these photos are stored is titled "zig zag pine". This trunk emerges straight up, make a 90-degree turn, continues perfectly horizontal and then turns back straight up 90 degrees. A perfect zig zag.

A quarter turn and it gets no better. It's ugly from any view. Two years ago, when I first styled it, I spent a lot of time to wire the branches and set them into place. Each day when I went out to look at the trees, I would look at this tree and shake my head wondering why I bought this.  

This large branch on the bottom right corner of the tree is really large. Almost as large as the trunk. It would be good if the proportions were good and it was in a good place, but this tree has neither. It must be removed.

I had to saw the branch off and found it had wire embedded in it.

The removal scar.

Now that the branch has been removed, I can begin figuring out what I can do with the trunk to make this thing serviceable and something that I wish to continue working on. I paid a fortune for this tree and I can't just throw it away or sell it for five bucks. I have to make something of it.

To get a better idea about my idea, I need to have it out of the pot to see just how shallow a pot I can go. I do remember it had a rather deep trunk and did take a rather deep pot. My idea while radical, might just be the ticket to saving this piece. Upon removal from the pot the roots are filled with Mycorrhizae fungi.

The top of the tree is just too tall and will need to be cut down. I decide to behead it at just about the point where the thick wire crosses the trunk.

I make the cut and the top falls to the table.

Here it is in a small dish. 

Here is a better look at the top where it was removed.

The next hour or two were spent rewiring the entire tree since most of it had to be removed to cut branches off.

So after about four hours a lot of them just standing there staring at the tree, I was able to get it into this pot. I'm going to call it a modified slant style, and it will take a few summer months getting the needles to orient themselves to this new direction the trunk has taken. My goal for the tree was to make better use of the large trunk and the vigor of the tree. I have no doubt that this tree will respond well this Spring. Making new branches in better scale with the trunk will be one goal, and developing the apex will be the other. So far, I am happy with the look and don't hate it so much currently. I know by this time next year it will be a better tree.

The real take away of this article is that the second picture in this story has the recently styled juniper in a pot. When the Hell did that happen?