Blog post link: https://www.succubonsai.com/2023/03/how-scarring-my-portulacaria-afra.html?m=1

The use of the sterilized knife is good (so as to not introduce pathogens into the plant) but I don't think the scarring will 'disappear' the rings, but I admit I've never tried this.

The rings become less noticeable with age and as the trunk thickens. If you want to do some carving or intentional scarring, that's fine as well, but I don't know if scarring to try and remove the rings or make them less noticeable will work the way you want it to. I have a suspicion it may end up being something that the eye is drawn towards over time which seems to be the opposite effect of what you're wanting.

The delicate sprays of pinkish-purplish flowers on mature plants are well worth waiting for, if you've got 10 years (which I did). Not watering older plants in the summer will help with flowering.

The rings are indicators of where nodes are located. As the plant grows the outer layers of living periderm (bark) split, desiccate, and die. As the dead layer of bark thickens, it obscures the nodal rings. It also prevents light and air movement from reaching the living portion of the bark, which tends to reduce back-budding. Often, when you expose large areas of green/succulent tissue surrounded by bark, you get sunken ares that isn't pleasing to the eye.

Not easily seen in this image, there is a large sunken area on the inside of the trunk curve as it's direction changes left to right. The trunk mass above that wound is actually a branch I wired into place 2 years before I chopped the trunk for the sole reason of increasing the taper of the trunk, which gives the illusion of greater age. This image was taken after about 90% of the foliage and branches were removed to establish the trunk line and the first three branches. The more vertical branch at the top is the new trunk leader.

You can see the sunken area (tan color) at the center of the plant from this top view. The wound will eventually be covered by new bark and become inconspicuous insofar as the appearance of the bark, but it will take a long time for the sunken area to become inconspicuous, which is why the trunk chop was planned where it would be hidden when the 'tree' is viewed from its front view.

This is a tree that has branches too many and too heavy at the top of the tree. A major issue for jades and elephant bush.

The rings you mention have started to become less conspicuous on the trunk, but still evident on newer branches. Same tree in the process of being reworked (top thinned and is now regrowing):

Next 2 images are same tree 3 years apart. Growth/development slows markedly in a small pot but the tree can be better refined.

Al

Al