Advice on a Chinese elm

[bodhidharma]

I also love the drawing and think the idea is good. You now need to factor in TIME as, what you are planning is a good 20-30 years away. Not a downer just, as i think you are new at this, a heads up as to what your time frame is.

[Charliegreen]

The best advice you'll ever get in regard to a stick thin trunk like that is:

1. Learn how to grow that Chinese Elm hard. Big Pot, Great potting media. Fertilizer. Sacrificial branches. Wound Healing.
2. In 20 years u might get a tree like in your beautiful drawing.
3. In less than 1 year you will realize its best to collect mature material from wild or people in clubs to get to your goals.

Growing Whips in shohin bonsai pots is a total waste of your time. No serious enthusiast will be that blunt but its 100% true.

Lets advance this Art form in Australia not let it stagnate.

[Andrew Legg]

I agree with Bhodi and Charlie, but disagree on the timeframe.if you plant it out into a decent size pot, I reckon you can achieve that goal in 7 to 10 years. This was done in 4 years from a trunk that ended at the third branch up on the left, and that had no branches at all when I started.

image.jpeg

[ben17487]

Thanks everyone for your honest advice and compliments.
I have well and truly taken on board the commitments and timeframe involved in the hobby. I'm still young and in no rush with any of my trees, I love to watch them change day by day.
In the last 6 months my understanding of what's required to grow great trees has changed dramatically and like any art form or craft the learning is endless!
I don't really have anywhere at home to plant in the ground, though I do have two trees I've planted at my family's holiday house in central Vic. I'm just trialing them to see how they go without the nurture that potted trees receive... But that's the only option I have of ground growing.
Beautiful tree Andrew! I hope to have elms like that in the same timeframe!

[ben17487]

Thought I would share this interesting picture of buds emerging from a root cutting..