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Gooner,

Welcome to BT and the world of bonsai!!

It would be helpful if you added some more info about yourself such as your location and growing zone.

Anyway, though you may be overwhelmed with all the info on growing bonsai, I think you should get your hands on as much learning material as possible before dealing with your elm in specifics. The important thing is that you get a handle on keeping your tree alive before doing any work on it. Lots of enthusiastic beginners are anxious to apply every technique they discover to their tree all at once, and they end up killing it. Take it slow and get a few cheap trees to practice on that won't be a big deal if you kill them. Also, you should join the nearest club to get some expert opinion and advice, and there are lots of people here that can help you as well. Being in a club also means going to workshops and having good trees to inspire you.

It looks like your tree is doing just fine and is in a well lit location. Most bonsai growers keep elms outside (where they are usually deciduous) but as long as you give it enough light and air flow it should do fine. If you read up on basic pruning, you could go ahead and trim the top to focus more energy on the bottom half and this will help you create a more rounded triangle image. A basic rule you could use to prune your elm is at the top cut each shoot back to about two leaves, then three in the middle and four leaves at the bottom. Sometimes the tree will look worse right after pruning, but it will help in the long run.

It is good that you chose a Chinese elm because they are very tough and forgiving so they can handle almost anything you throw at them. Also, when you cut back elms they will throw out lots of new growth and you can choose just how much of that you want to keep. Therefore, once you are armed with some pruning knowledge and the correct tools, go ahead and trim up the top, but I would leave the bottom pretty much as it is. I also to don’t recommend you use wire until you have some more experience and see how the tree recovers from pruning. You should also inspect for pests and lift the tree out of its pot to see how the roots are doing.

Here are some good links that should help you get rolling:

www.bonsai4me.com

www.bonsaisite.com

www.evergreengardenworks.com

www.artofbonsai.org

www.knowledgeofbonsai.org

http://basics.bonsaisite.com/

www.why-bonsai.com

I hope this helps you, and if you have any more q's please ask.

regards,

bonsaimeister

11-Nov-2007	#3
bonsaimeister bonsaiTALK Master Craftsman Join Date: Jan-2007 Location: Seattle, Washington Country: USA USDA Zone: Zone 8 AHS Heat Zone: 2 Posts: 672	Gooner, Welcome to BT and the world of bonsai!! It would be helpful if you added some more info about yourself such as your location and growing zone. Anyway, though you may be overwhelmed with all the info on growing bonsai, I think you should get your hands on as much learning material as possible before dealing with your elm in specifics. The important thing is that you get a handle on keeping your tree alive before doing any work on it. Lots of enthusiastic beginners are anxious to apply every technique they discover to their tree all at once, and they end up killing it. Take it slow and get a few cheap trees to practice on that won't be a big deal if you kill them. Also, you should join the nearest club to get some expert opinion and advice, and there are lots of people here that can help you as well. Being in a club also means going to workshops and having good trees to inspire you. It looks like your tree is doing just fine and is in a well lit location. Most bonsai growers keep elms outside (where they are usually deciduous) but as long as you give it enough light and air flow it should do fine. If you read up on basic pruning, you could go ahead and trim the top to focus more energy on the bottom half and this will help you create a more rounded triangle image. A basic rule you could use to prune your elm is at the top cut each shoot back to about two leaves, then three in the middle and four leaves at the bottom. Sometimes the tree will look worse right after pruning, but it will help in the long run. It is good that you chose a Chinese elm because they are very tough and forgiving so they can handle almost anything you throw at them. Also, when you cut back elms they will throw out lots of new growth and you can choose just how much of that you want to keep. Therefore, once you are armed with some pruning knowledge and the correct tools, go ahead and trim up the top, but I would leave the bottom pretty much as it is. I also to don’t recommend you use wire until you have some more experience and see how the tree recovers from pruning. You should also inspect for pests and lift the tree out of its pot to see how the roots are doing. Here are some good links that should help you get rolling: www.bonsai4me.com www.bonsaisite.com www.evergreengardenworks.com www.artofbonsai.org www.knowledgeofbonsai.org http://basics.bonsaisite.com/ www.why-bonsai.com I hope this helps you, and if you have any more q's please ask. regards, bonsaimeister __________________ "On its root I firmly commit In its trunk I keep my soul Through its leaves, I reflect my vision..." - Robert Steven