Liquidambar, also known as American sweetgum, is native to the eastern US, Mexico and Central America. It has beautiful fall foliage and interesting, spiky seed pods.
This tree was purchased online from Schley’s Bonsai in 2015. See https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=goQtgve5i30 for a video showing the initial wiring of the tree.
The tree today.
The tree as purchased, tentative front side.
Tentative back side of tree.
Initial repotting of tree into a large pot to encourage growth.
First flush of new growth.
Fall colors.
Fall colors, opposite side.
Hard branch-pruning after the first year.
Second summer’s growth.
Tree structure visible after leaf fall.
Tree structure opposite side.
Root-pruned.
Repotted.
End of winter.
Spring sprouts.
Summer growth.
Fall colors starting.
Fall colors opposite side.
Fall colors developing in the garden.
Winter leaf loss, wired to pull major branch downwards on left side.
Tree in winter garden.
Root mass at year’s end.
Root-pruned, repotted in smaller pot, with rocks placed to stabilize shallow roots.
Tree with rocks removed to show aerial roots.
Opposite side. The goal for the upcoming year will be to increase ramification by continuous trimming back of new growth tips.
The tree in fall colors.
The tree in October with a distracting background.
Beginning a transformation from tree to beast.
Removal from pot.
Tentacle roots.
Room for growth in the new pot.
The Kraken!
beginBonsai 
Reblogged this on Wolf's Birding and Bonsai Blog.
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