Collected Elm...

Hey all,
Here is an Elm I collected this season. It is surely no Baddeley elm and it has a very long ways to go but I just thought I'd share it and get some info. I think its maybe a variety of Chinese elm, but I'm not sure. Anybody recognize the species? I am hoping to promote budding from the trunk any tips? Unfortunately some little creature chewed off a bit of the nice corking bark at the base over the winter. I also plan to reduce the height back about 1/3 as the upper trunk is too straight, but that will come in time. As always feedback and suggestions welcome.







Todd

Don't know exactly how elms behave in your zone, but down here I'm pretty brutal with my elms and they take whatever I throw at them as far as top growth. I've chopped several down to 3 or 4 inch stumps and gotten profuse back budding. I personally would get rid of the lowest branch (maybe both low branches) and wait and see what pops out. If you don't get growth you want then, defoliate after this flush of growth is nice and mature. That'll promote back budding for sure. How big is your trunk? Pretty nice little tree by the way!

Hi there

Hm! I can't give an experts opinion, but when I collected my first Elm, I had no idea of which direction the tree could go. I was given the advice to just let it grow for a season instead of chopping down the trunk/limiting possibilities - first of all, to avoid die back of the trunk, secondly to mend my enthusiastic impatience, I quess

Now, my elm has shown much more promise, than I could ever have imagined, by sprouting adventitious back budding - all along the trunk from base to top - and that was an eye opener to me: the tree will show if you give it time, as you say yourself. However it does make sense to establish a powerfull rootball before making any large cuts. I would feed on a dayly basis with just a very small amount of organic fertiliser in the water.

For what it is worth to you, I think your elm looks very promising. And to quote myself: I wish something Baddeley Will happen to this elm some day ;-)

BR Loke Emil

Where are you in Illinois? Its hard to say which elm.......But, unfortunately & for the most part siberian elm dominate most of Illinois. It's generally recognized as a tough species to create good bonsai with. I believe there are exceptions out there......but they are few.

I am in Northern Illinois and I have seen a few Chinese elm in the landscape, but they have all suffered die back in the winter, and were the last trees to break buds this spring. Chinese elm will probably never "escape" the yard tree and naturalize from seed very well in Illinois. Farther south in more forgiving climates they throw seed and germinate to the point they create a nuisance.

Neil

Regarding your elm. You should try to let it grow unrestrained this season and feed well.

Next spring chop, as right now the trunk is a bit straight and tall with little taper. The base is nice and so could make a nice shohin if you proceed this way.

This is what I would do with the tree if it were me. Please let me know what you guys think!



I would use that shot towards the right as continuation of the trunkline. I would then leave like that and fertilize it like mad for a season...once it´s thrown growth everywhere, then I´d cut that big branch that shoots off from the base.

Please tell me if this would be the right thing to do in this situation.

Hello AK. Thats the direction I would take with this tree next, once it has established good strong growth.

Hey guys,
Thanks for the feedback. I am northwest of Chicago, and I have seen at least 4 of different elm species around my area. The leaves and bark closely match those on a Chinese elm in a friend's yard so I thought maybe that was it.

I definitely plan to chop it back next year and remove the low branch near the base, but just want it to recover for now. I am think of chopping just above where AK has marked out, just as the trunk begins to go straight in the upper area.



I'm hoping it will recover well and begin to grow strongly during this season. I am slowly upping the fertilizer regime, and am now at a weekly light feeding. In a few weeks I will be fertilizing every watering.

Todd

DreadyKGB wrote:Hey guys,
Thanks for the feedback. I am northwest of Chicago, and I have seen at least 4 of different elm species around my area. The leaves and bark closely match those on a Chinese elm in a friend's yard so I thought maybe that was it.

I definitely plan to chop it back next year and remove the low branch near the base, but just want it to recover for now. I am think of chopping just above where AK has marked out, just as the trunk begins to go straight in the upper area.



I'm hoping it will recover well and begin to grow strongly during this season. I am slowly upping the fertilizer regime, and am now at a weekly light feeding. In a few weeks I will be fertilizing every watering.

Todd

I'm curious, why do you want to chop there? If you chop where AK marked you can train that branch as your new leader.

Todd.????????????
You offered this tree up for advice, got it and have chosen to ignore it?
The reason AJ (and I agree with him) suggested you make the cut lower cut was to increase the taper with the cut and leave you with a decent shoot for wiring and building a trunk and top.

At this point I have not made any decisions and am surely not ignoring any advice. I am not chopping anywhere for at least a season if not two. I recognize the pros to cutting back to that branch as a new leader, I just wanted to present my initial thoughts on where to chop. I just feel that if a branch sprouts on the left side of the trunk there it would provide better potential to create movement and easier to blend the chop scar into usable taper. This is only a picture and in person the line I marked seem reasonable. I am open to all advice and suggestions, but I do want to incorporate those into my vision for the tree. At the moment I want the tree to establish itself and bud from the trunk to open up all possibilities. This is still a newly collected tree, by about two months.

Todd

P.S. the tree is about 22" tall with a 2.5" trunk.

Well, as I said earlier, after this flush of growth and you know the tree is pretty healthy I'd defoliate and see where you get buds (if you haven't already got one where you want and as long as you still have plenty of time before your winter hits). You may end up with one on the left where you want it. I understand your wanting to wait till the tree recovers and agree with you 100 percent, as I'm sure everybody else does. I think the problem with that is the right branch they want you to chop to may become too large to wire up as a new leader eventually. As it stands now, I don't think that right branch would even need to be wired much to create nice movement. I think you've gotten some pretty sound advice. However, it is your tree and the decision is yours. Perhaps some different pics would help us see what it is that you're seeing. Two things I know for certain: You have a nice tree that needs to be chopped


G

Hi Todd, if you cut back to the first branch on the right, as shown, then the first leaf on that branch (on the left) will become the left bud you are waiting for!

Mick

I think I may even have gone a bit lower than where Will indicated. Having not seen the roots, or base very well its tough to say this. BUT, if the base was nice, I'd even consider chopping a couple inches above the shoot at the base, then shortening that shoot to make a 1st branch. You'd have a nice fat little shohin in short order.
Neil

Thanks for the feedback. Here's two pics from the other side.





These ideas are giving me alot to think about with this tree. I hadn't really thought about going lower than that second branch.

Todd