Major breakthrough in grafting

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Title:

Rapid Arborsculpture: A Technique for Grafting Detached Sions of Woody Plants Into Living Useful or Artistic Shapes

Abstract:

This paper introduces a pioneering method for swiftly creating living arborsculptures by grafting detached tree scions. By employing woodworking techniques and precise grafting, this approach expedites the formation of ornamental or functional shapes in living trees, enhancing control, and versatility compared to traditional methods. The paper outlines the methodology, results, and implications of this innovative technique, showcasing its potential in horticulture, landscaping, and artistic endeavors.

Introduction:

Arborsculpture, the art of shaping living trees, offers unique possibilities for creating functional or aesthetic structures. However, conventional methods often require extensive time and effort. This patent application presents a novel approach that accelerates the arborsculpture process by grafting detached tree scions. By leveraging woodworking techniques and precise grafting, this method aims to revolutionize the creation of living tree art, offering enhanced control, versatility, and durability. The following sections detail the methodology, results, and implications of this innovative technique.

Methods:

1. Scion Selection: Dormant tree wood pieces are gathered as raw material for grafting, ensuring consistency in diameter, health, and disease-free status. These scions are stored under cold conditions, maintaining dormancy until ready for use.

2. Preparation of tree branches and trunks: Suitable living tree branches are identified and trimmed to desired lengths, removing excess foliage. Dormant parts are kept under cold conditions, ensuring moisture retention with plastic wrap, or parafilm or similar materials.

3. Grafting Technique: Woodworking tools, chop saw and nail gun and techniques, such as notching, mortise and tenon, and splining, are employed to assemble scions into precise shapes. Cambium layers are matched to promote cohesive growth, and scions are secured using various methods such as screws, tape, or glue to maintain the design.

4. Rootstock Preparation: The assembled scions are attached to rooted healthy tree rootstocks, ensuring compatibility in species and size. External support frames may be added to promote stability during the grafting process.

5. Shaping and Forming: As the grafted wood pieces grow, pruning is performed to direct growth towards the desired shape. Inspections and manipulation may need to be performed every three days minimum during the growing season.  6. Maintenance and Care: Regular monitoring and care, including watering, fertilization, and protection from pests, are provided to preserve the shape and health of the grafted tree.

Results:

- The rapid arborsculpture technique demonstrated significant advantages over traditional methods in terms of speed, control, and durability.

- Swift shaping: Larger dormant scions facilitated quicker formation of desired shapes in living woody plants compared to natural growth-based methods.

- Enhanced control: Precise shaping and manipulation were achieved, allowing for complex designs within a controlled environment.

- Versatility: The method accommodated a wide array of shapes and designs, limited only by practitioner imagination and skill.

- Durability: Integrated dormant wood pieces created enduring, robust structures within living trees, promoting ongoing growth and stability.

Discussion:

The results highlight the transformative potential of rapid arborsculpture in the fields of horticulture, landscaping, and artistic expression. By expediting the creation process and offering enhanced control and durability, this innovative technique opens new avenues for creating functional and ornamental structures in living trees. The method's versatility and compatibility with various tree species further underscore its applicability in diverse settings, from public parks to private gardens. Additionally, the avoidance of reaction wood formation represents a significant advantage, ensuring the preservation of desired shapes and forms over time.

Conclusion:

In conclusion, the rapid arborsculpture technique presents a groundbreaking approach to shaping living trees for practical and artistic purposes. By grafting detached tree scions and employing precise woodworking techniques, this method accelerates the creation of arborsculptures while offering enhanced control, versatility, and durability. The results demonstrate a viable artistic and functional medium of living trees and inspire new avenues of creative expression in horticulture and landscape design.

May the bird of happiness nest in your arborsculptures

Richard Reames

http://www.arborsmith.com/buythisbook

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My YouTube about Arborsculpture in China  

The whole story in a YouTube 

Crape Myrtle Arborsculpture in China is a Major Industry!

 I discovered a social media site in china and have started collecting videos of all crape myrtle arborsculpture. Wow just wow. Everything from chairs to gazebos from vase shapes (a vase of flowers) to a flowering human shape. The oldest is about 14 years old. Most are in the 4 year range. 

In my books I describe how to bare root saplings and shape them into things. I have not worked with crape myrtle but it looks like the perfect kind of tree. It can be grown into very long whips and transplants very well (hardy) it's really hard to kill. Best of all it flowers in red, white, purple and pink.

I'm growing a bunch of them and hope to propagate them also. Seeds and cuttings. I suppose I'll need to figure out how to get a single whip to grow from each root. I have puners and a few clues. 😁

Arrow points to one ready to bend into shape.

         

Intro to Arborsculpture

Old video made new

Old living fence found in Germany

The fence was planted in Germany around 1940.

Konstantin Kirsch writes:

Hi Richard, There are new pictures from the living fence. A reader of my blog was visiting this great arborsclupture. He also made some pictures of the leaves. So I can tell you that the species is Sorbus intermedia. But the half of the fence is made out of forsythia!

Find the pictures here:
http://www.d-marc.de/natur/ohrdruf/index.htm You may click on the pictures to enlarge them

Trees by Dan Ladd

Faux Arborsculpture

In Jyokoji-cho, Seto Japan. There is a park with cement logs. The fascinating part is that the depiction is of structural grafting and the heavy chainsaw pruning. Apparently there are other examples of this kind of cement art. Anyone know if there is a name for it ?

Really big leaves

From Anthony Crain.

Colocasia gigantea Thailand Giant Strain

Some correct planting procedures for trees, by Dr. Alex Shigo

Fall is the best time of year to plant a tree in the Northern hemisphere !

1. Select healthy trees. Do not buy or plant trees that have roots crushed or crowded in a bag or container.
2. Plant properly. Do not plant too deep.
3. Plant the right tree in the right place. Do not plant large-maturing trees near buildings or power lines.

1. Select healthy trees
Money is wasted when you buy or plant trees that have roots crowded or crushed in bags or containers. Check roots before you buy or plant. If only a few roots are crushed, remove them with a sharp cut.

2. Plant properly
DO:
Plant at the depth where roots spread from the trunk. Prepare a planting site, not just a hole in the ground. Loosen the soil far beyond the drip line of the tree. Brace the tree only if it will not remain upright in a moderate wind. If necessary, brace only with broad, belt-like materials that won't injure the bark. Mulch away from the trunk with composted material (mulch should not touch trunk). Keep soil moist, not water-logged, to the depth of the roots. Remove dead and dying branches. Wait until the second growing season to begin training cuts for shaping and to begin fertilizing.

DO NOT:
Do not plant to deep. Do not bury roots in small deep holes. Do not wrap trees. Do not amend the soil, unless the soil is very poor. Do not brace the tree so tightly that the tree cannot sway. Do not brace with wire in a hose. Do not fertilize at planting time. Do not plant grass or flowers near the tree. Do not remove branches to balance crown with roots.

3. Plant the right tree in the right place
DO NOT plant large-maturing trees near buildings or power lines. Money is wasted when trees are topped or mutilated later. If a tree must be planted near power lines, plant only dwarf or low, compact species or varieties. Talk to knowledgeable people about the many choices you have for trees that have mature shapes and sizes that will fit your planting site.

---

About the Author

Dr. Alex L. Shigo is considered by many to be one of the foremost authorities on trees in the world. Shigo Died in 2006. obit http://www.shigoandtrees.com/index.php?_a=viewDoc&docId=5

He learned that many commonly-held concepts about heart rot and decomposition and other theories were wrong. "I could either go with the book (theories) or go with what I saw in the tree. Either the books were wrong or the trees were wrong. I chose to go with the trees," Shigo says.

Mark Primack's new web site

Mark Primack, Architect Santa Cruze

California, has recently put up a new web site.

Primack was instrumental in saving Erlandson's trees in the 1980's.

Mark shares a range of historical photos of

Axel and his trees.

This site is well worth a look. http://markprimack.com/pages/tree_circus/tree_circus.html

Take a class, have fun for a whole week !

November 1st to 7th The World Famous John C. Campbell School of Folk Art will host

Arborsculpture- The shaping of living tree trunks.

Please join me for a week of creative designing, planting and pruning, study previous works growing on campus, meet artisans from around the world. Hope to see you there.

Sign up now call J. C. Campbell 1-800-365-5724

Richard

Wistera bridges and more

Arbo-architects - Tower Made Of Living Trees

Research Group Baubotanik at the Institute of Theory of Modern Architecture and Design (University of Stuttgart)

"Basically, the tower consists of a framework-like structure made of several hundred young, only two meters high plants (White Willow/salix alba). Only the plants at the ground are planted in the soil, all others are rooted in plant containers, plugged in a temporary steel scaffolding"

Science Daily

Vegetalcity

Awesome Visionary Illustrations

and concepts by Luc Schuiten

http://vegetalcity.net/index.html

Elephant hides in tree !

Ever see a Elephant in a tree ?

This is not your fathers topiary !

Located in Myanmar (Burma)

Photo by Ray VarnBuhler

In the depths of northeastern India, in one of the wettest places on earth, bridges aren't built - they're grown.

The living bridges of Cherrapunji, India are made from the roots of the Ficus elastica tree. This tree produces a series of secondary roots from higher up its trunk and can comfortably perch atop huge boulders along the riverbanks, or even in the middle of the rivers themselves.

More bridge photos and info here

Herman Block donates 2 living chairs

Herman Block donates 2 living arborsculpture chairs to the garden of Konstantin Kirsch

see Konstantin's blog (bablefish translation from german to english)

http://babelfish.yahoo.com/translate_url?doit=done&tt=url&intl=1&fr=bf-home&trurl=http://www.konstantin-kirsch.de/&lp=de_en&btnTrUrl=Translate

Tree Shapers

Tree Shapers

Becky Northy of Pooktre offers this new web site Tree Shapers from around the world.

This site brings togther and reveales the larger picture of what going on in the world of Tree Shaping today.

Three young German architects are designing structures made completely out of living trees, including a pavilion for concerts in downtown Stuttgart. But designing the ultimate treehouse turns out to be trickier than one might expect. see the photo gallery! more...

Ficus house- Okinawa

In Bio park on the island of Okinawa, Japan, this Ficus shelter is the worlds best (a far as I know) example of a intentionally grown living house. A real living tree house.

I wounder who the artist is and have they grown any other works ?  

Native Americans

It has been thought that Native Americans bent trees into shapes that pointed to something important to them at the time – water, cave, stream crossing, boundary, etc., and that the early settlers for at least some time, continued the practice.  Here are a few photos of that type of tree manipulation. 

Others say that the Native Americans never did this, and that these trees are only an oddity of Nature.

 Anyone have a take on the subject ?

Steve Chyrchel, Interpretive Naturalist
Hobbs State Park - Conservation Area

Creations by Nature

Rooney Floyd, a friend and regular student at the J.C. Campbell School of Folk Art in North Carolina, found a wonderful example of inosculation.

He writes....

"Last November at your slide presentation, I got your book which I thoroughly enjoyed. I am amazed by the art of arborsculpture. We discussed the man in South Carolina, where I live, named Pearl and you knew of his foliage sculpture work. I remember how among all the beautiful sculpture you had photographed worldwide, you showed some examples from nature and said they were your favorites. Well...I found one! See the attached photos. Three of us retirees were on a field trip in the deep forest along the Savannah River, on a dirt road, and I glimpsed the tree with a hole in the middle.

It is what we call a black gum or toothbrush tree (Black Tupelo, Nyssa Slyvatica in the book). It is on the higher terrace of the Savannah River Swamp in Aiken County, South Carolina, near Silver Bluff, a site visited by Hernando De Soto about 1580. It appears to be two 10-12 inch forks from a single trunk of about 20 inches in diameter. The fork is about 2 feet above ground and the two branches reconnect perfectly about 8 feet above the fork to form a single trunk again of about 18 inches. The tree looks normal and healthy above the reconnection. This photo was recently taken in winter and no leaves were on the tree.

Wizard with pipe

I met a magician in the forest the other day. His name was Lucien, and he had a white beard, smoked a pipe, and invited us to see his magical arborsculptures,  he's been grafting for over 60 years! 

Fact or fiction only the wizard knows !

Trees eating things- photo collection

Trees eating things, largest collection of photos I have ever come across.  Germany Language. 

Cambium Growth explained Visually

Cambium Growth Explained Visually

just a small blue dot

If your troubles seam to be overwhelming you,  just remember how small and insignificant your life really is.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p86BPM1GV8M&eurl=http://www.facebook.com/home.php

New on the web- From the Book

I have put the first two sections of the Pioneers. Chapter 6 of My book
Arborsculpture- Solutions for a Small Planet on my web site.
See Axel Erlandson's Tree Circus and John Krubsack's Chair that Lived.

Like Erlandson, now John Krubsack has his own Wikipedia Page.

Arborsculpture on e-bay

Here is something you don't see everyday !

A harvested arborsculpture for sale. This Guava chair was grown by Nirandr Boonnetr

in Thailand. It required 5 years of loving attention and is now offered for sale by his daughter.

You can find other listings on e-bay by searching the word "arborsculpture"

This is a unique opportunity for the right person to jump start the collectors market in a very very rare art form, that has just begun to offer items for the art market.

Konstantin Kirsch living house

Checkout
Konstantin Kirsch living house
Video with English subtitles.

J.C. Campbell

This years class at J.C. Campbell in North Carolina was the best yet ! For the first time our class had 3 year old arborsculptures to study and improve. Benches made in 2005 were looking great and inspired the students with examples of what they could achieve. The School provides an environment of folksy fun, good food and nice lodging. My Class designed and planted the Worlds First Ash love seat. Sign up now for this week long class and learn, hands on, how to shape and graft trees to take the shapes of your ideas. Arborsculpture at J.C. Campbell You can see Ron Hubbard photos from the week I was there... here.

http://nat1rlh.smugmug.com/

The Gossamer Engine

TREES: TWO-DIMENSIONAL ENGINES THAT FINESSE THE RIGORS OF THREE-DIMENSIONALITY

The Gossamer Engine THE LITTLE ENGINE THAT WOOD
Bob Wulkowicz has started a tree talk forum "The Gossamer Engine" He presents new ways of thinking about trees.
Bob' Bio http://users.rcn.com/bobw.enteract/bobswebbio.html

Growing Jewlery

Growing Jewelry

Living plant constructions- Germany

" The buildings are both aesthetic and innovative. They are not built on traditional foundations, they are planted. In living plant constructions, a still recent field of research at the interface between botany and architecture, trees are the architects’ building material. A beautiful example is the Willow Pavilion, which has just been inaugurated at the Botanical Gardens at the University of Freiburg. "

http://www.bio-pro.de/en/region/freiburg/magazin/03899/index.html

Caption This

Caption contest at

http://drunkcyclist.com/wordpress/2008/08/12/caption-this-22/

My Fav...

Anyone can catch air, but how’s your hangtime?

Trees for medicine and urban renewal... New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/12/science/12prof.html?th&emc=th

Attack of the Sap Sucker

Attack of the Sap Sucker

Birds and trees get along just fine except for a notable exception, the Sap Sucker. This aberration of nature pecks holes in trees and then returns to drink the sap and eat the insects that are attracted to the sap.

With a tongue like a humming bird and the beak of wood pecker the sap sucker set it's table with a series of holes around a Birch and an Alder in my garden. Two of them are dining now, I tried painting some of the holes with Cayenne pepper. I haven't seen them drinking from the pepper painted holes, I just see more holes higher up on the tree now. Notice the hole in the bark at the birds foot.

A native Red Alder arborsculpture left, pours fluid from the Sap Sucker holes.

Thigmomorphogenesis

Thigmomorphogenesis
I did not make up that word thank god ! Whoever did should be punished.

It means responding by growth pattern to a physical stimulus. It is a key element in arborsculpture. I'm sharing it with you today because one of my trees is showing off its efficiency in trunk building. While researching the phenomena, I came across a great web based tree science course, this is session 4 .

Two poplars were grafted together about 10 ten years ago. After the trees stopped moving in the east west direction, the need for an equal amount of wood in that area was decreased. Over time a concave shape appeared on the inside area of the joined trees. Trees are natures most efficient builders only adding material to the locations that serve it's structural needs.

The rainbow colored glass was added about 4 years ago.

A different explanation is offered by Bob Wulkowicz. "Transport Shadow effect"

The parts of the tree beneath the graft is shadowed and therefor grows less.

Nipple extension

Nipple extension.
In the life of every facet (encased inside a living tree) there come a time, every few years when an extension needs to be added.
The first photo is from 1996. The second is from 1999 just after the first nipple extension.
The last two were taken this week showing before and after the extension.

David Nash

David Nash began work in the early 1970s on an “Ash Dome”
Nearly 30 years later, the work is now taking on the domed form that he had planned for and intended when he first began: David Nash's Ash Dome.
Photo from 2004
From Cornell University a web page on Tree Sculpture.

Cathedral Grove

http://www.cathedralgrove.se/text/03-Europeans-Care-2.htm

This Web site Rocks !

From the page...

Many writers, such as Herman Hesse, have described the primordial force of statuesque old trees in the German landscape: "Trees are sanctuaries. Someone, who knows to talk to them, who knows to listen to them, will learn the truth. They don't preach doctrines or formulas, they preach - not concerned about details - the fundamental law of life."

Time lapse project

Time lapse project.

Peace and love in Apple, just starting to bud out now. Watch this space for a announcement that this years growth is coming to a You Tube near you !

I'm making a time lapse film that will compress spring, summer and fall into a few minutes. I'm hoping to learn some things about tree growth that are not apparent from day to day observations. The bucket in the foreground was modified with a clear bottom and holds the camera and hopefully keeps it dry and operating for the duration.