I was given a ficus tree a few years a ago because the original owner could no longer care for it. After years in my collection I finally was inspired to change the style of the tree and hopefully turn it into a great bonsai. It all started with a large rock in my yard and a very horizontal ficus.
Here is the before picture. As you can see the tree is just a shapeless mound and really needed to be restyled.
The rock had a rounded bottom so I chiseled it flat so it would sit securely in the pot.
Here is a video that shows how I went about creating the root over rock. Please keep in mind this is a strangler fig and is known for growing on top of other trees and the slowly enveloping them by lowering aerial roots to encase the tree. In this case the tree will slowly attach to the rock. Therefore I didn’t have to bury the rock to produce roots to cover the rock or wrap it in sphagnum moss to keep it moist.
Finally the finished (but not styled) Root-Over-Rock. It still needs to be wired out and some branches removed but I see great potential in this tree.
I finally realized that I never showed the finished daiza carving for the Suiseki that I did a few months back. It has been sitting next to my television for a long time and I just recently took the time to complete the sanding and apply a nice fish to it. I still have a lot to learn but I think this is my best one so far.
So for the holiday season I celebrated by buying a nice rock to create a Daiza. My good friend Jason of Schley’s Bonsai and Supplies in Holly Hill Florida had a great selection to choose from. I wanted a larger one than the ones I had done previously because I need something to display in my living room.
Precut rock
This one could have presented some challanges. However I had an idea.
Wetsaw cut rock
Using a wetsaw I removed the rounded unlevel bottom so that the rock would sit flat. This worked very well.
I placed the rock on the piece of Rosewood that I planned to use and traced around it.
Rough Cut
After I routered the base o fthe Daiza the rock fit in pretty easily. This still needed some work but was pretty easy up until this point
Daiza after initial final design
Well it still needs a lot of sanding and a finish, but it looks pretty good. I want to remove more from the underside to give it a lighter feel. There is still too much mass in my opinion. When it’s finished I’ll post an update.
