Underwater Tree Ideas

I have been thinking about how to depict the tree like plants of the underwater forest. These first two look too much like normal trees to me, also the one on the left has leaves and it says specifically in the book that there are none.  

These still look too much like trees to me; however I have introduced these spiders leg like brunches which I like.

I like this design because it resembles a tree without being a tree (If that makes any sense). I have introduced colour because I like the idea of the landscape being beautiful and colourful, but if you look at it another way everything seems threatening, and because I didn’t want the tree to be brown like normal trees. I like the fleshy colour of the stump and blood red brunches I think it looks a little creepy.  

I also like this design because it looks like it could be alive. It is true to the book because it says that it’s hard to distinguish plant from animal life. So it makes sense to make all the animals look like they could be plants and the plants look like they could be animals.