Tag Archives: root over rock

Root over Rock

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I’ve been growing and developing root over rock bonsai for many years and gradually developed some techniques that help me produce reliable results. Check out some of the Shibui Bonsai root over rock trees.

Trident root over a low rock
Closer look at the rock and roots
Close up of the rock and roots

More recently I’ve been working to develop some really good smaller Root over Rock bonsai. Like other styles, shohin ROR are much more difficult to get right. Getting good trunk taper, good bends and branching in a smaller tree is challenging. Adding extra height with the rock makes shohin ROR even more difficult.

Smaller trident ROR – about 30 cm tall.
Rock and roots.
Another smaller ROR trident.
Shohin sized trident ROR. The pot is 15cm diameter
Another shohin sized ROR under development.
Trident ROR in development.
Roots clasping the rock.

Most of the Root over Rock trees I grow are trident maples. That’s because they grow fast and the roots develop quickly so we end up with roots flowing over the rock much quicker than with other species. The same techniques can be used to develop ROR plantings with other species. Here are a couple of Shibui Bonsai pine ROR but I’ve also developed ficus and Chinese elm as root over rock bonsai. I’m still working on developing branch ramification on these pines so the branch pads still look distinctly hairy and unkempt.

Japanese Black pine ROR
Red pine roots
Black pine Root over Rock
Japanese red pine ROR.

I’ve already shown some of the smaller ROR I’m attempting to grow but bigger ROR is also possible. Just allow for the weight of the rock. The following tree does not look very big but weighs around 20 kg so is more difficult to move for pruning, repotting and other maintenance tasks. The assistants who were helping dig trees from the grow beds that year christened this one Root over Boulder as they struggled to lift the tree and rock out of the ground.

You can find this year’s Shibui Bonsai ROR trees available for sale on the ROR catalogue – Root over Rock

Root over Rock pre-bonsai can be costly to ship due to the weight. For those attending the AABC National Bonsai convention in Canberra in May we can bring selected root over rock trees with no delivery cost. Make sure you get your orders in well ahead to avoid disappointment.

I’ve been asked to present a demonstration of Shibui Bonsai methods for developing Root Over Rock bonsai at this year’s Bonsai By the Harbour in Sydney in June. That’s your chance to get all the tips and proven Shibui techniques. We’ll try to bring examples of ROR at all different stages of development to make that session a really practical how to session.

For any NSW growers who fancy skipping the 3-5 years of growing, Shibui Bonsai will have a sales table at Bonsai By the Harbour so you too can order ROR trees from the Root over Rock catalogue and cut out the delivery fees. Don’t let the Convention attendees get the best trees. Make sure you order well in advance. I’m happy to put a reserve on trees and hold them until delivery at BBTH in June.

Digging 2021

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The winter solstice has come and gone and that is a prompt for me to get into the grow beds and start digging the deciduous trees. I don’t think the trees mind when I dig. I just use the solstice as a reminder to get started or I won’t have enough time to dig the beds and do whatever repotting is required in the nursery before spring.

I usually start with the root over rock trees, just because I can’t wait to see what has happened under the soil and foil wrap. Opening these is always like Christmas.

Mulch scraped back and the trees have been loosened with a shovel
Closer look at some of the trunks

After cutting roots with a shovel I can lift the trees and shake the soil off the roots.

as they came out

To make them easier to handle the long roots and long branches are pruned roughly before making any further decisions.

after a rough trim top and bottom

Now comes the moment of truth. Unwrapping the foil will reveal how well the roots have developed over these rocks. these trees have been in this bed for just one year. Note that the aluminium foil wrap is starting to deteriorate. Some have split the foil as the roots and trunk expanded during the growing season. Roots have also penetrated through the foil in a couple of places.

roots escaping!

This is a good reason for checking every year. The closer to the surface the stronger trident roots grow. If this was left another year that escaped root would get huge and would distort the roots closer to the rock, possibly making this a dismal failure.

A few of the better examples from this year’s crop

Now it is time to do some more detailed work on these trees. I assess the whole root/rock/trunk arrangement to find the best possible lines. At this stage I’m just looking for a trunk. branches come later.

from one side – nice possible trunk line, good roots.
This one also looks good from the other side.

I think the curving trunk looks far better than the straighter section so I’ll prune to remove the straight section. Pruning like this also gives some taper.

After final pruning

Now these are ready for potting and the start of the next phase – branches and ramification.