Originally Posted by bonsaial1

The picture above of the hills is the coast range I drive thru to get to the Pacific. This area known as the Carizo Plain is where the San Andreas Fault is found. My wife and I found peace for a weekend day at the beach. The water was azure blue and not usually this color.

I began by taking off the large leader that made up the upper part of the tree. Turning the trunk about 20 degrees to the left shows a better angle on the flare of the trunk as well as highlighting the movement in the trunk.

Additional pruning left me with a single leader to pull energy to the upper part of the trunk. This should bud back prefusely and I can start to pick leaders and branches at that time. These plants grow much harder than a Chinese Elm. They are pretty much a scourage in the south invadeing clear lots where oil is taken. They develop fruit each year and birds scatter the seeds easily. If one is nearby in your neighborhood you will have seedlings in any small patch of bare dirt, like most elms.

The dimensions of this small elm are 5 inches tall by 1 3/4 inches across at the soil line. This should make an interesting tree for my shohin collection. I have found that my interest has turned from junipers to more deciduous fare. I find them much faster to develop and actually more challenging