Air layer hasn't gone well

Wolfus

I have an Ulmus Parvifolia/Chinese Elm that I attempted my first air layer on. The tree is almost 9 foot tall and I made the layer at approx 2 foot leaving 6’ plus above that. My initial goal was to get 3 tree’s out of this over 2 years. I made the layer on June 5th. The end of July I removed the plastic wrap to see what had developed inside. To my dismay and surprise there was only 1 small root pushing from the large callous which formed at the upper cut. The picture shows the tiny root to the left. The trunk is approx ¾ inch diameter.

The same day, June 5th, I also did a Hackberry. Over the weekend I checked it and there were more roots and some of those had started turning brown so I thought I’d try removing it. This layer had approx 2 feet above the cut. It did not fair well at all. Almost all of the leaves turned crisp and brittle. The advice I got was to remove some of the top of the tree and cut the width back to reduce the foliage. I’ve done this and tented the remaining foot of trunk with plastic to retain moisture.

My main concern now is the Ulmus. I REALLY do not want to lose all of this upper footage. First frost could come in as little as 4-5 weeks though it us usually a bit later for my particular area. I have not recently removed the plastic wrap to see what lies beneath it but I’m guessing not much more, if any, than the Hackberry.

If I decided to abort the air layer could I now and not jeopardize the tree? Would this callous heal over and allow me to take shorter cuttings next year?

If this can be done what should I do about the cut now.

I’m really concerned and need advice on this….



Thanks,

David

Attached Images

Ulmus layer close.JPG (40.7 KB, 140 views)

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Carl_Bergstrom

Hi David,

Your best bet with the elm is probably to repeat the layer next year, cutting again near the top of the callous. Wrap the moss or other rooting medium well above the cut site; be sure that the cut area never dries out even for part of a day.

I've had several successes on "second tries" of this sort.

Best regards,
Carl

choss_monkey

i had the same thing happen on a non bonsai dogwood a few years back. i didn't know what to do so i left it but made lots of cuts in burl like growth, and tried again. IT DIED! my advice is to remove that funk and try again.

Wolfus

Carl,
Are you saying abort this for this year? I'm only guessing here that the upper part of this tree is no longer providing anything to the base root system. Will this have any effect on the tree going dormant now? (Storing in the roots for next Spring).
Would you put some sort of cut paste on this Callous mass now well before frost date?

Still panicked and in need of advice.
Thanks,
David

__________________
~Nothing is so strong as gentleness, nothing so gentle as real strength~

Carl_Bergstrom

Hi David,

Yes, that's what I'm suggesting. My procedure has always been to simply leave the tree packed in moss over the winter (protecting for the winter in a cold frame) and then re-cut in the Spring.

As for the health of the tree, I'd think that as long as you have foliage below the layer, worse case scenario would be that you'd lose the upper portion only.

Best regards,
Carl

Wolfus

At 8 foot+ a cold frame isn't a viable option. I've considered trying to winter the whole thing in an unheated room of the house but that only gets in the mid to upper 50's. The ceilings in the house are 9'6" so I know it would fit in there. Bright light would be the only thing it would get in there though. It's on hte North side of the house.
This is a picture of the entire tree. You can see the foil covering the layer now and the top of the tree goes to the top of the porch posts so I'm figuring there is about 7 foot above the cut I'd lose if I lose it.

David

Attached Images

Whole Ulmus -1.JPG (48.5 KB, 89 views)

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~Nothing is so strong as gentleness, nothing so gentle as real strength~

DwightFloyd

Isn't it possible that the roots just havn't formed and might form next season. I did some air layering in college and some took two full seasons to develop enough root to remove and plant. I also remember it wasn't successful all the time , more like 75%

Wolfus

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~Nothing is so strong as gentleness, nothing so gentle as real strength~

Ralph

If I may, I wish to be critical of this process, because I think it can be Beneficial to consider the outcome. The goal was to attempt a trunk airlayer, simply to achieve an additional tree if I am understanding correctly. This layer was not performed because of a desirable section that provided some defintite artistic merit worth spending an entire season and year's time in investment.

It now appears not to have gone as planned. Yet, the consideration now is how to spend yet another year to perform the same thing?

I have often seen it written in internet forums, and know that among lesser experienced bonsai practioners, that airlayering is seen as a way of increasing one's stock. While this is certainly true, I would suggest it should never be the primary or the only consideration to perform this kind of operation. It simply requires to much of an investment in time. The principle reason to perform this kind of an operation is to produce a desirable outcome that will lead to a dramatic reduction in time to produce a bonsai from the material.

To apply this thought process to the material at hand, the trunk layer should be considered if the material to be layered off has potential to be bonsai. For example dramatic taper or movement. In which case one would cut off the upper portion of the trunk above where the desired height would be, and focus on layering that portion of material which is to be the bonsai. In this case one does not need to worry how to store the excess height of the trunk that is not to be utilized in this project.

I offer this for public consideration with respect to the author of this thread, because I feel it is important to consider the aspects of what is to be achieved.
This response is in no way intended to be derogatory of the author or his intentions.

__________________
Emerging from winter slumber
Bonsai trees burst buds anew
Spring is upon us!


-Paul S.