$10 Prariefire crabapple, draw me some lines please?

Stickroot

Masterpiece
Messages
2,539
Reaction score
5,158
Location
Mid MO
USDA Zone
5
I bought this at Walmart for ten bucks, I think it is fun and has potential.image.jpgI would love to see what you see in it.
 

aml1014

Masterpiece
Messages
3,667
Reaction score
5,807
Location
Albuquerque new mexico
USDA Zone
7b
First I would lose that trunk on the right with the split in it, that may cause some structural problems down the road.
 

M. Frary

Bonsai Godzilla
Messages
14,307
Reaction score
22,116
Location
Mio Michigan
USDA Zone
4
Too bad the right trunk is split. That would be the one I think I would keep. The other one has the graft union. The one on the right looks to be a shoot out of the rootstock.
I'd keep the right one anyway. Chop it off under the split.
And tend to those wild roots somehow.
 

drew33998

Masterpiece
Messages
2,033
Reaction score
1,286
Location
Jacksonville, Fl
USDA Zone
8-9
Looks like the left side is grafted and the right side grew from the rootstock. Post a pic from all sides.
 

drew33998

Masterpiece
Messages
2,033
Reaction score
1,286
Location
Jacksonville, Fl
USDA Zone
8-9
Oh and keep the elm that is a volunteer in the front of the pot.
 

Eric Group

Masterpiece
Messages
4,554
Reaction score
4,854
Location
Columbia, SC
I do not see great bonsai potential in this tree.

The roots are all odd looking, exposed and too thick... The damage at the front base of the trunk looks like an ugly graft as someone else pointed out and none of the lower trunk or branches have interesting movement. I would draw a line... With an arrow at the end pointing to an open spot in your yard where you can plant this tree and enjoy it's flowers ever year. Take some cuttings and do some layers to get Bonsai stock with better roots, then grow the trunk and branches from scratch.
 

Stickroot

Masterpiece
Messages
2,539
Reaction score
5,158
Location
Mid MO
USDA Zone
5
Here are more picsimage.jpgimage.jpg image.jpgI guess it is the same tree grafted to itself, foliage and fruit look the same?
 

Stickroot

Masterpiece
Messages
2,539
Reaction score
5,158
Location
Mid MO
USDA Zone
5
An idea...
View attachment 80971 View attachment 80972
I think the best part of that tree is pretty low down, and it's better to concentrate on that now, than to build anything on top of the straight, taperless canes.
Yep!
That's all I saw when I bought it, a fat trunk ball.
And thought about lots of layers.
 

JoeR

Masterpiece
Messages
3,948
Reaction score
3,451
Location
Sandhills of North Carolina
USDA Zone
8a
An idea...
View attachment 80971 View attachment 80972
I think the best part of that tree is pretty low down, and it's better to concentrate on that now, than to build anything on top of the straight, taperless canes.
Very nice Idea, but I dont believe such a small tree would be possible (or at least very difficult) with this cultivar. Leaves are too large and they dont really get much of the fine twigging that would be needed for this image.
 

Random Usr

Chumono
Messages
567
Reaction score
394
71170-fa1f81fa2ff158c4f8153b08c8accda1.jpg


71171-4b319dedb4c3ebbc41ae774573c5e6ce.jpg
 

Stickroot

Masterpiece
Messages
2,539
Reaction score
5,158
Location
Mid MO
USDA Zone
5
:D I'm glad you like it! I'm a little worried about the angle of the middle branch, but I didn't know what to do with it.
I will hack on it a bit and see what happens.
I would like to get it pretty short, might put a jack on it.
 

Txhorticulture

Chumono
Messages
554
Reaction score
250
Location
Merica
I think the best part of that tree is pretty low down, and it's better to concentrate on that now, than to build anything on top of the straight, taperless canes.

Just to be clear, if you do this you will have two distinct trees growing on one set of roots. I don't know anything about crabapple but I do know that one was grafted and that virtual uses both the rootstock branches and the cultivated 'prairie fire' branches.

Someone decided that Prarie fire had some desire able characteriestic, flowers, fruit, growth rate, whatever the rootstock won't have the same trait. Your tree would have 2 different types of flowers, fruit, whatever. The different branches could grow at different rates too.
 
Top Bottom