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Today was a good time to trim and treat Dragon the Water-elm.

Today I posted a progression on this Willow oak, Quercus phellos, to my website. It's quite a specimen. Regrowing/redeveloping the lowest right branch, ramification and leaf reduction should really kick in next year. Five years in training.

I've been working on this tree for a few years now. I first potted it two years ago, and last year it had to go back in a grow tub due to a bout with chlorosis. It recovered, and this past weekend I defoliated it and put it back in its Chuck Iker home. A couple of days later a funny thing...

Collected last August. I have no idea what ran over this or when to make it grow the way it did, but I'm sure grateful. Pushing shoots now. Should make for an interesting project. The base is 5.5" and it's 25" tall from the soil surface, 42" along the snaking trunk. I think I need to call...

Here's a riverflat hawthorn, Crataegus opaca, collected in 2010 and worked on ever since. I should finish the crown this year, which will leave root refinement and some branch work. Trunk base 3", height 29". Paul Katich pot.

I've just about got the structure of this green hawthorn completed. I collected it in January 2011. The pot is by Paul Katich, and complements the tree beautifully. Comments welcome. Zach

I collected this green hawthorn in January of 2011. It's grown vigorously, and today I gave it its first pot, a superb piece by Paul Katich. The apex needs to be completed, and then it's just a matter of pinching for ramification. Enjoy. Zach

I cleaned and wired the major branches of this water-elm today, and slipped it into its final pot, a custom piece by Byron Myrick. I have another couple hours of fine wiring to do before budburst. The tree was collected in the summer of 2010 as a bare trunk, so the development is all since...

Here's a water-elm I've been working on for a few years. This year I felt it was time to do a summer defoliation, in order to get a new fresh set of leaves, encourage back-budding and prepare the tree for showing in the fall. The first shot is from July 7th, the second was taken today...

Testing a new photo backdrop I made. The tree's been in training a few years now, shaping up pretty well. It'll need an oval pot next year. Zach

This unique, natural raft-style water-elm got its first "pot" yesterday during my demo at the Louisiana Bonsai Society's spring show. I'd planned on using a slab for planting this specimen when it was first collected, but as I studied it I decided it might be easier to maintain if I altered the...

This tree was collected early in 2010. The trunk base measures 6" above the root crown and the surface root spread is almost 12". The original chop was at 18", and I let a new leader grow for the past two seasons. It reached 1" at the transition last year, so I cut it back and will repeat the...

Here's a willow oak I collected on January 1st of this year. Beavers worked on it for probably 40 years or more. It was late budding out but is now throwing major shoots, so I think I was successful. The trunk base measures 4" at the soil surface, and the tree is about 12" tall. It's the...

This water-elm was a messy clump when collected last year. It's grown quickly, giving me the opportunity to do much of the basic styling this year. Next year we should get a lot of ramification and begin the refining process.

Here's a nice triple-trunk water-elm I collected last year. It's grown like a weed, so I decided it was time to pot it this past Saturday. The base is 4", and it's 24" to the tip of the tallest trunk. The pot is by Chuck Iker. Enjoy. Zach

I have these growing wild around my yard/property. They produce lovely lavender flowers in spring and early summer that unfortunately only last a day. I haven't been able to identify the species, and was wondering if anyone knows what it is. Any help much appreciated. Zach

Here's a nice winged elm I collected in winter 2010. The first year I set the branches, and this year I'm beginning to refine them. I'll need to work on the nebari over the next three to five years. Today I moved the tree into a larger growing container and did a little wiring. The trunk...

Here's one of this year's "crop" of collected specimens. Nice natural shari, and I thought it had a penjing sort-of look to it, so I'm going in that direction. The pot is a vintage Richard Robertson hobnail I bought almost 20 years ago. Comments are welcome, of course. Zach

Just collected this one on Wednesday, out of a ditch near my home. The road crew chopped and generally abused it for decades. The trunk is all there, so I only need to build the branch structure and carve where it needs it. I'll repot in 2011 into its final container. The trunk base is 6...