Japanese Ligustrum with withered trunk

There are so many people who absolutely despise the Japanese Ligustrum (Ligustrum japonicum) that they actively eradicate it where ever it is found.  Truth is, the family of Ligustrums, or Privets, are a highly invasive plant in this area, and seem to reproduce and pop up everywhere.  Birds eat the berries and drop the seeds everywhere.  What I've never understood though, is a reluctance some have to grow it as a Bonsai.  If there is fear of seeds spreading, simply clip the berries before they ripen (if you're lucky enough to get them to fruit in a pot).  Plus, with all the rampant ripping of these bushes and small trees, there is a wealth of terrific material right at our fingertips! 

This one today is a Wax-Leaf variety, with a very thick glossy leaf bred for the landscape.  It grows slower than the wild ones that get loose, and often have nice bulbous or twisty, hollow trunks.  Wild seeded plants tend to look like poles with no taper or movement, and little reason to collect.  If you find some old variety landscape Ligustrums such as Wax Leaf, Curled Leaf, Variegated, etc., give the trunks a good inspection to see if there is something worth collecting.  There is often a surprise!  Ligustrum varieties are in the Olive family and have a similar growth pattern as well as similar requirements.

My neighbors were expanding their home and wanted an overgrown line of 30+ year old Japanese Ligustrums removed in the Spring of 2008.  Here is the "before" photo that I took with some branches taller than the roof line:

After clearing the weeds and trenching around the roots a bit, each plant is ready to be removed.

 

 

Timber!  And down they come, one by one.  For size comparison, look at the blue reciprocating saw and the shovel laying by the tree: 

 

 

 Finally out of the ground and hauled to my yard, the roots were washed to remove all the heavy clay soil.  Here they can be evaluated much better.  I don't like to try to second-guess too much while I'm collecting.  Just get in, dig and get them home.  Contemplation comes later! 

 

This plant has an interesting right-side trunk that is mostly hollow and withered away.  It doesn't work at all with the other side, so they are separated quickly with a saw.

The better half on its own.  Nearly all the roots collected belonged to the other side.  That must be some sort of Bonsai "murphy's law".

The useless top chopped back, leaving a stub.  You can see in this photo where the original soil line was (the dark mark up to the middle point of the trunk).  Sometimes what you see above ground isn't the whole story!

Potted up into a colander with gravelly, aerated soil.  In these conditions, with proper watering, a Ligustrum should recover quickly.

Spring 2010.  This tree grew out wild, then was cut back - several times.  Here is the photo two years after collection.

 

 

 

One of the best features of Ligustrums is they develop quickly, and I felt it would already tolerate a Bonsai pot.  I found a suitable training pot and in it went.

 

 

 

About a month later, I found that a much better viewing angle would be turned a bit clockwise.  The base looks much wider at this angle.  This front was marked and would be changed at the next repotting time.   

 

 

 

Long internodes between branches can be distracting now, but if they are left alone you're later stuck with bare sections of branch without buds.  Better to cut back hard during the growing phase and keep the internode length short. Plus, wire Ligustrums when the branches are young and pliable.  The older they get, the more likely it'll just crack.

 

October 2010.  I began to worry that some of the wonderful waterfall deadwood would rot away.  This is the focal point and main feature on this tree, so to preserve it, I applied Minwax wood hardener, brushing it onto the dead wood until it stopped accepting the liquid.  Note to those using this product - be very careful not to get it onto your skin, and if so, wash it quickly.  I worked on this tree for over an hour and in that time I didn't notice the brush had some of the chemical dripped on the handle which got onto my fingers.  A mild chemical burn later, and lesson learned! 

After the wood hardener sets, the deadwood now appears shiny.  This is a temporary effect and with sun and water will soon return to its normal look.  The wood hardener actually fills the pores of the rotting wood with a polymer which helps keep out fungus and insects, plus protecting it from the elements. 

 

 

March 2011.  The deadwood looks pretty much as it did before, only now it is rock hard.  Time for a change of shoes..

I had this pot in mind for a couple of years actually.  It is handmade by Horst Heinzelreiter and has this terrific stone/ice natural looking finish.  I absolutely love the way it works with the old swirling deadwood on the trunk.

October 2011

September 2012.  I am cutting the larger leaves in half to perform a partial defoliation on the plant to get smaller leaves.  It seems to be working.

April 2013.

This little tree has filled in enough, that I bring it to its first show, the LSBF Convention exhibit.  Colin Lewis really enjoys this one in the critique, noting the completely natural deadwood that has not been carved by man, only nature.  He says this may be one of his favorite Ficus he has seen.  I tell him that it is actually a Ligustrum.  He says, "It's a bloody privet?!?  I hate privets!  I take it all back then!"  We all laugh and he finally says that he really does like the Bonsai, and it's surprising for this species.

 

 

The coming years on this one will be focused on reducing the size of the leaves and developing branch density.  Japanese Ligustrums typically have leaves that are 2-3 inches long, and this one has leaves at about 1 1/2 inches. 

 

Love this species for Bonsai!