[2015-] Cork Bark Chinese Elm II

I just got this Cork Bark Chinese Elm today, & it is a total mess


This is how it looked in spring





and here how it looked tonight when I got it



I know it has sever reverse taper but I can't help liking the tree

I am thinking of giving it a good haircut as a start this weekend & remove all the dead branches etc... to let the light enter inside.

Is it a wise first move ? I have no idea how to pick the branches which to keep and which to remove lol

thanks

just a thought, but why not worry about the taper first...

just plant it upside down and turn your roots into branches and your branches into roots ?

seriously though i wonder if a ground layer would even be effective on that...
might be worth a try though and keeping lots of branches would mean lots of energy feeding that effort...

Thank you Kevin for the reply

I don't think reverse taper can really be solved here unless I am ready to chop the trunk totally and start again, which I am not at this moment.

If I can put some cleanness in the branches and structure I think I could enjoy the tree with the taper issue.

I'm planning to take cuttings from it and hopefully build some better trees but I have no idea on how to address this mess as a start

Hi Akhater

I would not remove anything now, as deadlooking branches can shoot again....leave it for now.

Kind regards Yvonne

Hi Yvonne

Always happy when you chime in on one of my threads

I can leave it no problem for me but what should I be waiting for ?



a side question, upon closer inspection I think it might be a zelkova serrata and not a chinese elm, is there an easy way to tell the difference ?

Its a cork bark elm, the bark and reverse taper are a dead give away. if your not happy as it is, you could stick it in the ground, the base on Corkys fatten up very quickly and the reverse taper should be corrected in no time. the pot is tiny and it looks like the tree was allowed to dry out, i would possibly consider slip potting in something slightly larger. i think it would look great in a forest of little Corkys, can you see the huge Oak in my avatar...it has inverse taper, dont fight it, embrace it

akhater wrote:Thank you Kevin for the reply
...I think I could enjoy the tree with the taper issue.

and that is all that matters !

and then there is bobby's take:

BobbyLane wrote:Its a cork bark elm, the bark and reverse taper are a dead give away. if your not happy as it is, you could stick it in the ground, the base on Corkys fatten up very quickly and the reverse taper should be corrected in no time.

sounds like solid advice

BobbyLane wrote:can you see the huge Oak in my avatar...it has inverse taper, dont fight it, embrace it

right on man !!!

If you cut it back hard,not totally chop it but thin out unwanted branches and cut back the remaining it ought to push a bud out near the base that can be used as a sacrifice branch to fatten it up. Old broom trees in nature have a flared base and reverse taper. It gives them a waist. Very attractive.
Also, this is a nice little elm. But as mentioned before I would let it stretch it's legs and put it in a collander.

Umm, do you actually have a suitable spot in the ground at your location? Use a large container to plant it a little deeper. The tree will be happier, you've "concealed" reverse taper, and mayhaps the tree will "ground-layer" it self. Give your tree a big movie star bed to live in and get really zaftig. Or a collander.

Oh ya, awesome counter-top as well. Roll out some dough on that!!

akhater wrote:Hi Yvonne

Always happy when you chime in on one of my threads

I can leave it no problem for me but what should I be waiting for ?



a side question, upon closer inspection I think it might be a zelkova serrata and not a chinese elm, is there an easy way to tell the difference ?

You would be waiting to see the tree grow back to health, before you began to start up on some of the advices you have ben given...never work on a tree that is not at its best health.

Kind regards Yvonne

This little tree had an accident yesterday, my son dropped it and the pot broke





so I had to repot it urgently, I didn't disturb the roots just put it in a slightly bigger pot. I don't think it is life-threatening though

I think it was just a sign, the tree telling you it wanted a bigger pot

My biggish Hawthorn, fell from my first floor balcony a few days ago, it was in a big plastic grow tub....and funnily enough the only damage was that the fall had literally cut back some heavy branches that i was planning to reduce and surprisingly all the lower branches that i'd been trying carefully to grow out, were all unscathed, i was astonished

Looks a lot healthier than in the first picture.
I'd love to get my meat hooks on that tree for sure.

the difference in just 2 months

It looks happy

leave it to grow this year or should I cut back ?

cut like this now, and thin out the apex a little...then you show us the the tree, and we talk again


I asume it is a design like this you want


Kind regards Yvonne

I would only dream of something like that

Here is it after the haircut

See if it is possible to get this close...check the plant before you do it...use a big scissor, and cut to shape...then show it Again.

Kind regards Yvonne

I think you wanted me to cut even further back but that would mean cutting the thick tall branch in the pic below to a "no leaves" point, I didn't dare do this





other views







thanks for the help

Hi Akhater

It was a good decision not to cut now...do it in spring when the buds starts to swell...When the tree have dropped the leafes during Winter, can you see better, and then decide witch branches to keep and at the same time pull some of the branches in a more wanted directen.

Kind regards Yvonne

Akhater, that tree needs to spread it's roots. Next time you repot, be agressive. Elms are strong trees and don't mind rootwork. I'd aim to put it into a pot more like that low tray which it is sitting in now. This will allow the roots space for lateral growth and thus help beat that taper bug.

Andrew is right...the tree need to have a good rootspread...but then you have to wait with cutting back the apex, as the two thing at the same time, will be much to much for the tiny tree....wait with the apex untill you see it is up and growing, the best time is probably midsummer ( at least in Denmark).
I do have to say I am not impressed with the streingth of the roots on the japanese cultivars like mine, all of them...they have the most sensitive roots in my garden, and probably yours too.
Other elms of mine are strong.

Kind regards Yvonne

"on Thu Jun 11, 2015 3:01 pm" when the pot was vandalised, you should have chosen a pot twice as wide and the same depth. Funny idea to plant it in a geranium pot.

Sorry to put it so bluntly, but it seems you don't have any idea of what your tree will look like in the future. Either you want to make a small topiary tree, or else if you want to build a bonsai, in which case, select 3 to 5 branches.

AlainK wrote:"on Thu Jun 11, 2015 3:01 pm" when the pot was vandalised, you should have chosen a pot twice as wide and the same depth. Funny idea to plant it in a geranium pot.

Sorry to put it so bluntly, but it seems you don't have any idea of what your tree will look like in the future. Either you want to make a small topiary tree, or else if you want to build a bonsai, in which case, select 3 to 5 branches.

Perhaps that's why he is here seeking advice and help Alain. Perhaps he does not want a cookie cutter bonsai. Left right back, left right back ...... Gets boring after a while. Chill.

I understand what you mean Andrew. I should have expressed myself in a more diplomatic, friendly way, but what I really didn't understand was the choice of such a deep pot. The roots will go down the pot instead of spreading around the base.

Apparently, the top looks like it will develop in a broom-like style whereas deep pots are more suited to cascading trees of exposed roots.

When I saw the photo, it made me think instantly to this kind of buxus that you can see in garden centres: