I’m proud to say I am making progress in my goal to improve the quality of the bonsai in my collection. I have spent way too many years playing with SIPs (sticks-in-pots)! But as my trees improve, I am discovering one of the down sides — one tree can involve LOTS of wire!
This privet is a good example. Since it is relatively early in its styling and development, a nearly full wiring job was necessary this spring. I was able to apply the wire with all of last year’s leaves removed — in winter image as it were — but removing the wire was a far more delicate task that required great care not to damage the leaves that now cover the tree.
Removing so much wire really gave me some time to reflect on this as a bonsai practice. I was able to think about what I have been taught, what my own habits are, and where those two don’t necessarily line up.
So how are we supposed to remove wire from bonsai?! (And how do I do it?) The shortest version of the story is this: The experts say you should cut the wire off, but I tend to unwind in many cases, but not all. Which I choose is based on the safest approach for the tree.
When the wire is particularly thick, I usually cut it. Using a good pair of bonsai wire cutters with a blunt tip to cut once every rotation allows you to remove the wire in pieces without the force of the thick wire pressing in precarious ways against the bark and causing damage. Trying to cut thin wire, however, is more risky.
Thin wire is used on thin branches. Cutting thin wire would involve a lot of very close encounters between a cutting tool and a thin branch. In my opinion, the risk of cutting a branch is too great, so I unwind it. But this also needs to be done carefully.
To unwind, I find the end of a wire as a place to start. If necessary, I use jin pliers to grab hold of the tip of the wire and begin pulling it away from the branch. I will sometimes continue to hold the tip with the pliers for a few rotations, but other times I get it started and then guide the unwinding with my finger tips.
Either way, I am always very careful to keep hold of that last bend at the end of the wire. The sharp tip, plus a hook shape makes for a very effective leaf tearing tool. So keep hold of it to prevent that hook from being pulled through the leaves you are trying to protect.
The most effective process I have found for unwinding may seem obvious to some, but let me briefly explain it anyway. Unwind it the reverse of how you put it on. Find one end. Unwind it back to the branch intersection where the wire turns onto another branch, and stop. Then find the other end of the same wire and unwind until the first half comes free. Support the branch you are working on as you go, similar to the way you support it as you apply wire.
Once the wire is free of the branches, carefully remove it from the interior of the tree making sure the sharp hook at the back end doesn’t catch leaves on the way through.
There are, of course, times when it’s not so easy. When branches get a bit too dense, you may need to unwind a bit, then cut a part of the wire off to continue without having to weave and thread your way out.
Unwinding wire (at least in the case of aluminum) does have the benefit of being able to reuse the wire, but don’t become so obsessed with this that you make a decision that damages your tree.
If you decide to reuse, I recommend straightening it first, but that’s a topic for a different post.
Bonsai Iterate 