how about a pic .. ken

I have felco bypass pruners and a pruning saw. I'm about half way through now. Unfortunately, I can't get a picture because the SD card on my camera is full. After it dries outside I may attempt to take a pic with my webcam.

Logan - how is your card still full? What is the problem?Just delete or upload. Or buy a new card. Bit a waste of a camera only using it for one cardful of pix.

http://www.amleo.com/sheep-shear-with-japanese-steel-blades/p/60P/

http://www.amleo.com/ars-topiary-shrub-hedge-shears/p/KR1000/

practice. or in modern terms, youtube.

Yes, floral. It hasn't been full for long. I take so many photos of my garden that lots of them get lost in between server and laptop lol. I *think* that I am finished for now, but we will see. More may need to be removed, but I had a pile of branches at least 3ft tall when I was finished. The last picture I took was of my forsythia standard blooming, which I will be posting in a different thread over in the shrubs forum. Waynedanielson, thanks for the links.

I like the layered look over round balls on the end of limbs, even flat bottomed clouds over round ones.

If this one works I may do another layered one, because I like that look as well. I'm going to go attempt to take a picture with my webcam now. Hold on a second.

I read that you want the tiers to appear as if a bird could fly thru..

Here are the best pictures I could get with my laptop's webcam:

Almost all niwaki uses Pinus thunbergii. I'm not sure that Juniperus lends itself to this treatment. Have a ball, but you're in unchartered territory.

It was butchered years ago and had dual leaders. 3 years ago I removed both leaders, and decided I would keep it as a topiary. It was one giant green potato on top of the trunk, so I thought I would try it. If it doesn't work, I can always allow it to regrow back to it's previous state.

It takes a sculptor's eye to tastefully create a niwaki. Niwaki involves pruning and shaping a plant to somehow define, or exaggerate, the inherent character of it. Study images, techniques, and examples online. Work with the tree's natural growth habit. Don't try to do it all at once. You may have to pull down some branches with wires or weights to create a balance or pleasing asymmetry --- it's very much like creating a large-scale bonsai.

Otherwise, you are just creating 'topiary'. I think there is a difference (even though the line can be a bit blurred in some cases). However, topiary completely ignores the tree's natural inclinations.

In the true Japanese Niwaki, the species are usually reduced to only a few. But Niwaki can be created using a broad variety of shrub and tree species, usually evergreen... plants such as juniper, holly, azalea, cryptomeria, pine, cedrus, podocarpus, phillyrea, boxwood, camellia, etc. have all been used. Some take more time to train than others. Some are inherently easier to train than others.

Niwaki doesn't necessarily mean it has to be cloud pruned. Here's a Gold Fern Hinoki I worked on.

Those do look really nice. Would such pruning work with leyland cypress? The neighbor's screen is hanging onto my property and I'm trying to find something interesting to do with it besides whack it back to the line.

I'm not familiar with pruning of Leylands other than cutting them down. As you probably know, they are usually one of the rudest hedges known.

Yeah, they're ugly. I have thought of planting a 'Gold Rider' leyland cypress, but not for screening. On a good note, the branches are good for wreaths and other Christmas floral arrangements.

I don't think you can successfully do a 'half-Niwaki' on one side of a plant and leave the other as-is! LOL!

I could cut the other side too. I did cut all of the branches off of one up 5ft and then sheared the rest.

The only time I ever saw a J.v. pruned was when some small deer lived out behind the shed during one cold, snowy winter. There was shelter from some rows of mature spruce along side the shed and one J.v. about 2-1/2" dia. & 10ft tall, between the shelter belt and the shed, that had a similar habit to an arborvitae. Anyways, the deer ate the greenery off the bottom of the tree to about as high as they could reach. Probably 5ft. or so high. Leaving a narrow top for 4-5 ft. or so. Funny looking to see and a wonder if it would survive. That was over 10 years ago.

Happened I was over to the old place last week and was checking out the area and to my surprise that tree is still growing! Probably 5" dia. and over 20ft. tall. Still no green at the bottom 5 ft.

So anything is possible, I just don't know if a J.v. is going to give you the look you're after. These J.v.'s in the picture have a very nice look with minor branches growing in opposite directions off the main branches (Both trees shown appear shorter than they are as their trunks extend down into a gully for 6 to 8 feet. The largest tree (left) is almost 12" d.b.h growing in full sun).