<rant> Trees are too perfect these days </rant>
Well, I think so, and I think that nature screws up spectacularly - creating trees that have nice branches for climbing, etc. I reckon that nature supposedly mucks up too infrequently for my liking. (I like warped trees, by the way. Great for climbing and shade all day round.)
Bring in warp molds. Say you have a small tree that you have recently planted, and you want it to grow a bit warped. Apply one of these by wrapping it around the part of the tree you want to grow twisted, and it'll start having a slight lean to one side. You change these over the years, gradually increasing the lean, then you remove it once its grown that way. After a few years of the tree growing, you'll be able to put on many at a time.
This would take yonks, but it would be relatively low-maintenance and fun to see the results.-- froglet, Jul 23 2005 Good stuff. http://www.arborsmith.com/ [2 fries shy of a happy meal, Jul 23 2005] Tortured Willow http://www.nrm.qld....ortured_willow.htmlTwisted tree. [wagster, Jul 23 2005] Nice idea, but fairly widely baked. You'd probably like the tortured willow.-- wagster, Jul 23 2005 I was thinking more along the lines of trees that are meant to be straight and tall, but my molds making them all warped and twisted - but the tortured willow sounds cool...-- froglet, Jul 23 2005 Baked on a small scale as bonzai. But a [+] for the use of the word 'yonks'.-- Basepair, Jul 24 2005 Bonsai?-- bristolz, Jul 24 2005 Ah, so.-- Basepair, Jul 24 2005 random, halfbakery