derkap10
Cool Member
Posts: 88
Joined: Mon Mar 22, 2010 2:15 am
Location: Mississippi

My Chinese Elm

Hi everybody,

Really just posting here since nobody else has for a week or so. And I finally got around to taking some pics of my trees and learning how to post them. And I'm avoiding studying for a class I'm taking to learn MS Excel :lol: . I picked this up at a nursery two months ago.

[img]https://i920.photobucket.com/albums/ad43/derkap10_photo/Bonsai/PlantsandTrees001.jpg[/img]

Was in way too small a pot (badly root-bound) and was so leggy that some of the newer growth was hanging down past the rim of the pot. It was also buried much too low in the pot (if you can see where the trunk has the grey area that was where the bottom of the tree was). Put it in a much larger pot and raised it well up to start working on some nebari. Pruned back the larger limbs but letting the younger ones grow out to get somewhat woodier. Getting plenty of back-budding and constantly pinching off new growth from the trunk. Only thing I'm wondering about now is that I've got four branches all going off the same way.....

[img]https://i920.photobucket.com/albums/ad43/derkap10_photo/Bonsai/PlantsandTrees008.jpg[/img]

The largest one is actually more trending to the back. Should I cut back one or two of the others to keep from getting an unbalanced feel? Or does it seem to be balanced okay? Just seeing what y'all think. Thanks much,

Allen

User avatar
Gnome
Super Green Thumb
Posts: 5122
Joined: Wed Jul 05, 2006 12:17 am
Location: Western PA USDA Zone 6A

derkap10,

Good job re-potting it, that should really benefit the tree. You have a lot of options on styling it. You mention removing buds from the trunk. You might want to leave some on if they are in a good location. I'm not a big fan of that exaggerated bend in the trunk. Luckily these trees can be altered radically with good results. Sleep on it for a year and keep looking around for other examples.

Norm

derkap10
Cool Member
Posts: 88
Joined: Mon Mar 22, 2010 2:15 am
Location: Mississippi

Thanks for advice Norm. I will certainly be sleeping on it for the rest of this year. Not a big fan of the exaggerated trunk bend myself but got a good deal on it so I figured I'd work with it. Most of those new buds that I've been pinching off have been, wouldn't you know it, on the underside of the big bend. Not exactly a good location. Although chances are that I'll probably just leave it as-is and have me a decent little Chinese Elm I was considering something pretty radical for next spring. Since it seems so predisposed to put out new growth from the underside of that bend I was think about maybe pulling the bark from that part of the tree and air- layering that whole underside. Then, assuming I get good root growth there, in spring of 2012, cutting that whole section off. That would leave a straight trunk and the part taken off could be used to do some kind of, maybe, 'raft' type thing. I dunno. Plenty of time to think about it. Thanks,

Allen

JTred
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Posts: 380
Joined: Wed Dec 24, 2008 2:05 am
Location: Elizabeth, PA

derkap10 wrote:Since it seems so predisposed to put out new growth from the underside of that bend I was think about maybe pulling the bark from that part of the tree and air- layering that whole underside. Then, assuming I get good root growth there, in spring of 2012, cutting that whole section off. That would leave a straight trunk and the part taken off could be used to do some kind of, maybe, 'raft' type thing.
I think this is an excellent idea. Two trees for the price of one, and different styles too!



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