Columnar Hornbeam

[mholt]

Has anyone tried the Columnar variety of European Hornbeam as bonsai? I picked up a few from my local garden nursery last year and stuck them in the ground uncertain of what I wanted to do with them. Today I picked up 5 more and will use these and the other 3 as a hedge. They have a 4/4.5" base and 2/2.5" trunk and at $45, I think they're mighty cheap. I was just wondering if their upright growth habit is more of a battle than what it's worth to bonsai?

 

[plant_dr]

I got a columnar one last year too, but not as big as yours. I'm going to let it grow out for a couple more years before I think about any styling options.

 

[mholt]

As I was studying the base of these yesterday, they all appear to be grafted. I might just make a project tree out of one of these and layer off the grafted on portion....grow out the base and stick the columnar back in the hedge. I assume the root stock is regular European Hornbeam. I couldn't find much of anything online regarding these being grafted.

 

[mholt]

Oh...and one more thing, as I would take walks around the neighborhood studying trees, I noticed someone with two large columnars grown as street trees. Anyway, they look like they've been there awhile and the lumpy graft union is still quite evident so I'm not sure if these ever transition out.

 

[Klytus]

There are some of these down the road aways,presumably used as street trees because someone thought they looked the part,not very lovely but immune from climbing and thus safe from litigative incidents..

 

[mholt]

I think these are some great looking trees, however, I'm using them as a large hedgerow and picture them as a nice clean look. I'm assuming your dislike of the tree is because of the particular application in which you've seen people growing it as a street tree? I'm not certain if they open up more as they age. If not, then the use of them at the edge of one's street is probably akin to growing arbovitae in the same location. Rather odd in my opinion unless you want to block the view of your house from the road.

 

[Klytus]

The street isn't that nice,i guess they could look better elsewhere.

 

[Klytus]

And indeed they do,clothed with branches to within a foot of soil level and in leaf in parkland.

These red flowered buckeye/conkers also look quite good with the entire trunk hidden by green and red.

Sort of like an Azalea for your painting in landscapes.