Restyling an overgrown Larix bonsai

This larix came to me in late 2020 when someone with a large bonsai collection passed away. It desperately needed a repot, as the soil it was in was very dense and wet. This was causing bad health with several weak and dead branches. It was left alone for the year 2021. Now it is time for a restyling, enhancing lower branch strength and reducing the heavy upper canopy. Enjoy the video!

Old, overgrown and top-heavy Larix bonsai as it came to me. Many of the branches on top had died in 2020.

The tree was repotted, pruned and left alone for all of 2021 in the hope of restoring some health in the tree and getting old hesitant buds to start expanding again. In the original garden, this larch bonsai was positioned under a dense canopy of bigger trees, leading to heavy moss buildup and weak lower branches. In order to strengthen the lower branches, the top was pruned back to main branches each with a few viable buds on them in order to fully rebuild the tree later.

In spring 2021 all except for the lower left branch woke up and started growing.

The video below shows the restyling process and the final image. Once more, a lot of branches were removed, the potting angle adjusted to create a sleek, fresh image for the tree that now will need a few years to mature. Enjoy!

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