✳️ AT Workshop - Sep 14, 2025

Coast Redwood

  • No angle needed

  • Front selected

  • Find Shari to the dead cut, peel bark back

  • Most lateral thick trunks may remove or Jin

  • Build smaller pads to the front left, right and back

  • Reduce height

  • Use copper

  • ….

  • Leave it for later, let it grow

Repot in the spring

  • Redwoods do not like or need Pumice, prefer akadama

  • Japanese training pot, deeper

  • If the large root cut does off—Shari, but don’t use foil, let roots grow from it

Ash Shohin

  • Good

  • Mid-section (internode) may not get a bid or branch—if I’m okay with that. Sees buds at rings/internodes

  • Let it grow out and thicker trunk

  • Fill more soil, cover roots.

  • Tie down tighter, too loose

Observation

Cork bark Oak Shohin

  • Watch the callus, if too thick then adjust the rest of the cut/healing.

  • Growth mostly in the inner side of the new apex. The outer may protrude and look like inverse taper or too thick. Gouge out more of the elbow, as needed.

  • Cork bark Oak tends to bud out anywhere.

  • Made first chop when it was thumb thick, and it continues to grow fast and fat

Juniper Shari / Life Line

  • Juniper is appreciated for movement, deadwood, Shari, foliage pads. Taper is less important with junipers.

  • Design Shari by knowing where the lifeline is and Shari opposite of that

  • Start with young whips and add movement, twists and interest first—younger the better.

  • How much curvature and how spaced? Start with 10 whips and experiment. See what works and adjust on the next batch.

  • Avoid lifeline on the inner curve as it will will fast, but cannot always control that.

  • Don’t Shari more than 90-180 of the circumference for the health of the tree. Can be 90 on each side or up to 180 at one side. But a wide Shari leaves less control each successive year. Best a little at a time.

  • The edge you trim back will force the life line to move away from that trim, so you can add flare in certain regions or spiral, if not symmetrically trimmed.

Coast Redwood

  • Next time you chop the bottom of a Redwood, turn it over and plant it in per light. If roots grow, then you have a new stump. My mistake in the past was to plant flat side up. I could score the live edge and flip it over.

  • Redwood from Bob Shyrmon, deadwood is very interesting

Michael Wei✳️, redwood, juniper, shari