Ulmus parviflora 'Corticosa' - self-improvement project

jersanct

Hello all. I'm posting this in the hopes that you can help a relative amateur begin to develop the thought process involved in developing my endless ranks of young material.

I just picked this tree up cheaply and am considering how to start its development. I'll post a few photos, after which I will provide my own comments for what I have seen so far. If anyone else would like to chime in, I would appreciate suggestions from any of you.

[sorry...I will use thumbnails for the rest of the photos, but I want you to have a good look at this one with a larger size than the forum will shrink for me]

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jersanct

somewhat decent nebari beginning to extend, but only on one side:

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jersanct

sloppy pruning wound near the top:

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jersanct

from another angle:

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jersanct

and one more angle:

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jersanct

Apologies for lack of quality in the photos, but I hope you can see well enough.

My thoughts so far:

1) Decent movement in the lower trunk for a start, with a few useful branches along the lower half;

2) Reverse taper starting approximately half-way up (easy to see in some of the alternate angle photos);

3) Sloppy pruning wound--can this be carved, by the way?--which will need to go;

4) Possibility of air-layering just above that small primary twig/branch approximately half-way up on the right in the original photo. Plan to use at least one of the existing lower branches, and possibly the small one, for what eventually would be a small tree from the lower section; after air-layering the top, elminate the chop wound and stick it in a grow box to begin thickening the trunk for a larger tree.

5) I should mention that whether I decide to air-layer, chop, or just leave it alone, it will be going in grow box in the Spring.

6) Could I begin work on the nebari in the grow box by planting the thicker current roots near the wall of the grow box?

Thanks very much for any comment. I can read all I want, but it's no substitute for actual practical work on a real-live tree.

TreeBay

1. You can make your photos much larger than the very first one you've posted. You need to apply JPEG compression, 20, 30% or so. Currently you're saving them at photo quality.

2. With respect to the tree. It can be difficult when a tree is grown quickly on and then someone decides it's time to start applying a bonsai training to it and tops it abruptly. As it is there's no real taper or movement, and with the scar you have to cut back beyond it, chose a new leader that will hopefully afford some movement and taper and start again.

3. Another possibility is to look at that scarred bit as a feature. To do an air layer at some point beneath it and try to use it as the trunk of a much smaller bonsai.

Regards,

Matt

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jersanct

Thanks, Matt. Now that you mention it, I did wonder at one point if the scar might make for an interesting feature on a trunk near ground level. I suppose I might even be able to do two air-layers (one where I originally suggested, one just below the scar) and start off with three different trees.

I do appreciate this--I have been training some of my developing trees for a few years, but almost all of them are long-, long-term projects. So, I'm learning how to evaluate things at an early stage and to get them off to the right start. Even if someone else executed an awful chop on it already.

Best wishes,

Chris

johnbonsai

Hi Jersanct, is that a seedling from the Elm in the pot? If so you could thread graft this to create another nebari where it's lacking. Is there only top growth? That's how it looks.

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