Chopping stick-straight nursery stock

Kahless

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Is it possible to make bonsai by trunk-chopping the kind of "straight as a pole" tree you find in nurseries if you chop low enough? Or is it a waste of time? The tree would be a 5 gallon tree. Thanks
 

eryk2kartman

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It depends on the tree, trunk, existing nebari etc
For deciduous trees it would work i guess but for conifers, if you chop to bare stick they wont bud back.
 

Bonsai Nut

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Is it possible? Yes. But make sure you are being honest with yourself about the work and time required, and whether it is worth it. You are saying you are more or less buying the tree for the species/cultivar and the surface roots and trunk base. So make sure the roots are perfect and the trunk base is interesting. And make sure you aren't buying a grafted tree with the graft above the trunk base, because then you would more or less be chopping away the valuable cultivar and be left with who-knows-what root stock.

Sometimes it is better (if you want the cultivar) to consider buying the tree and air-layering a portion off the top, rather than starting at the bottom.
 

Kahless

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Is it possible? Yes. But make sure you are being honest with yourself about the work and time required, and whether it is worth it. You are saying you are more or less buying the tree for the species/cultivar and the surface roots and trunk base. So make sure the roots are perfect and the trunk base is interesting. And make sure you aren't buying a grafted tree with the graft above the trunk base, because then you would more or less be chopping away the valuable cultivar and be left with who-knows-what root stock.

Sometimes it is better (if you want the cultivar) to consider buying the tree and air-layering a portion off the top, rather than starting at the bottom.
Thanks for the reply. The base was what I was wondering about. I wasn't sure any nursery trees would be interesting or curvy enough at the base to ever make a good bonsai but it is worth checking out in the spring. What I really want is an American Hornbeam after seeing one in a state park this last weekend. I found a nursery that has them but assumed most of the trees there would be too tall and straight.
 

eryk2kartman

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This is one of the ways to grow the bonsai tree, let it grow and chop it when the trunk is desire diameter and from there build all the branch structure.
Some trees are ground grow for fast trunk development and they are growing straight and tall :)
 

HorseloverFat

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Sure, that’s definitely a way to do it, effective and a fun technique.

On top of all the other great info you have received..

I’ll add the idea of taking a longer time planning your “front” than you’d expect to take on “eyeing a hypothetical stump”.. because that front dictates how, I personally, would/should execute that chop, and best conceal the scars whilst healing.

🤓
 

Leo in N E Illinois

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Hornbeam - Carpinus species, American hornbeam is Carpinus caroliniana, the European hornbeam is Carpinus laxiflora. There is also the USA native, hop flowered hornbeam, Ostrya virginiana. These 3 hornbeams make excellent bonsai and are available at landscape nurseries. Usually the nursery stock is from seed, so usually not grafted. Avoid grafted varieties. If it has a cultivar name, then it is grafted. For example C. caroliniana 'Autumn Blaze' would be a grafted tree and should be avoided for bonsai. If the label just says Carpinus caroliniana without further names, this means it was raised from seed, and would be good for bonsai.

From specialty nurseries there are other Carpinus used for bonsai. Carpinus coreana - the Korean hornbeam, is excellent, one of the best for smaller bonsai. It would be fully winter hardy in Minnesota. This species also goes by the name Carpinus turczaninowii, the two names refer to the exact same species, the Korean hornbeam. The Carpinus coreana is available from Evergreen Gardenworks, a great nursery that grows strictly for the bonsai hobby.


For Malus, here almost all crab apples for the landscape industry are grafted. This will always create problems in bonsai. The understock is usually selected for disease resistance, while the scion will have the pretty flowers. Any crab apple (or culinary apple) will need to be air layered above the graft site. This process is usually successful for apples, but is not 100% successful. The evergreen gardenworks website also sells cutting grown, own root selections of crab apples. The 1 gallon size is ready to be moved into 5 gallon pots to finish "bulking up the trunks". I recommend only buying cutting grown crab apples from companies like Evergreen Gardenworks. But if you enjoy the prospect of air layering, buying a grafted crab apple from a landscape nursery is not a bad proposition. Malus, the crap apples and culinary apples are generally pretty easy to air layer as far as air layers go.
 

Kahless

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Hornbeam - Carpinus species, American hornbeam is Carpinus caroliniana, the European hornbeam is Carpinus laxiflora. There is also the USA native, hop flowered hornbeam, Ostrya virginiana. These 3 hornbeams make excellent bonsai and are available at landscape nurseries. Usually the nursery stock is from seed, so usually not grafted. Avoid grafted varieties. If it has a cultivar name, then it is grafted. For example C. caroliniana 'Autumn Blaze' would be a grafted tree and should be avoided for bonsai. If the label just says Carpinus caroliniana without further names, this means it was raised from seed, and would be good for bonsai.

From specialty nurseries there are other Carpinus used for bonsai. Carpinus coreana - the Korean hornbeam, is excellent, one of the best for smaller bonsai. It would be fully winter hardy in Minnesota. This species also goes by the name Carpinus turczaninowii, the two names refer to the exact same species, the Korean hornbeam. The Carpinus coreana is available from Evergreen Gardenworks, a great nursery that grows strictly for the bonsai hobby.


For Malus, here almost all crab apples for the landscape industry are grafted. This will always create problems in bonsai. The understock is usually selected for disease resistance, while the scion will have the pretty flowers. Any crab apple (or culinary apple) will need to be air layered above the graft site. This process is usually successful for apples, but is not 100% successful. The evergreen gardenworks website also sells cutting grown, own root selections of crab apples. The 1 gallon size is ready to be moved into 5 gallon pots to finish "bulking up the trunks". I recommend only buying cutting grown crab apples from companies like Evergreen Gardenworks. But if you enjoy the prospect of air layering, buying a grafted crab apple from a landscape nursery is not a bad proposition. Malus, the crap apples and culinary apples are generally pretty easy to air layer as far as air layers go.
Thanks for the info. I saw that Brent had the other 2 kinds but wasn't sure if they could handle my Minnesota winters. I would prefer not to have to put anything else in my garage. I'm zone 4. If they could handle being sheltered outside, heeled in with the rest of my trees I'll just get a European or Korean hornbeam. I wonder what the differences are between American and European? I'm guessing European is better for bonsai? I know Korean has smaller leaves.
 

PA_Penjing

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European leaves are supposed to reduce a little more BUT more importantly the European hornbeam bulks up a lot faster. I know European hornbeam as C. betulus, C. laxiflora that Leo mentioned is usually called loose flowering hornbeam and does make great bonsai. But i have neevr seen one for sale at a regular nursery in my life
 

Leo in N E Illinois

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European leaves are supposed to reduce a little more BUT more importantly the European hornbeam bulks up a lot faster. I know European hornbeam as C. betulus, C. laxiflora that Leo mentioned is usually called loose flowering hornbeam and does make great bonsai. But i have neevr seen one for sale at a regular nursery in my life

Your right, I should have said C. betulus. My error, or faulty memory.
 

leatherback

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This is one of the ways to grow the bonsai tree, let it grow and chop it when the trunk is desire diameter and from there build all the branch structure.
I assume we all are aware, but just in case someone new reads this.. It rather it a proces of growing, chipping, growing, chpping, growing chopping and then seeing whether there is enough taper & wound closing to start considering branches :)
 
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