Commercial Elm progression

leatherback

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In summer 2018 I was taking a styling class and I did not have material to work on. So I went out to a garden centre and bought a young bonsai off the shelves, which seemed to be perfect for an advanced bonsai styling class.
I am not sure why, but people were looking at me skeptically when I brought my tree in at the start of the day.

20180622_up01_1.jpg
 

leatherback

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The topic of the class that day was rafts. As I did not have any trees that I wanted to flip over, I thought this chinese elm was perfect:

- Good species for bonsai
- Sinuous movement in the trunk
- Hardly any branches in the back

So that day I lifted it from the pot, re-organized the roots, trimmed back and wired some small branches in place. So on June 22nd 2018 this is how I finished the class for the day:

20180623_UP01_Ulmus-1.jpg
 

leatherback

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Leaving us this spring.. The tree spent a bit of time at -10c - -15c (5-15F) this winter, causing a few cracked spots on the bark. Nothing too serious as far as I can judge now
logo_20210403_165.jpglogo_20210403_166.jpg

I know that frequent cutting back slows down thickening. But for this one, I would like to see how far to get without major chops.
 

PA_Penjing

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Impressed with your patience AND lack of ego. I would never have the confidence to show up to a serious class with that elm. And I don't know if I could look at something that ugly for two/three years and still keep hope that it would begin taking shape. Nice work, I might have to bite this idea someday down the road.
 
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I did a similar exercise with a commercial Chinese Elm a couple of years ago but I decided to make two of mine. I layered the top of the s bend and then put that in as a raft keeping the base as a small cascade. Still a long way off but it’s quite a challenge.
 

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Clorgan

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Leaving us this spring.. The tree spent a bit of time at -10c - -15c (5-15F) this winter, causing a few cracked spots on the bark. Nothing too serious as far as I can judge now
View attachment 367056View attachment 367057

I know that frequent cutting back slows down thickening. But for this one, I would like to see how far to get without major chops.
Inspiration for mine perhaps! Very cool, great idea
 

cornfed

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These progression posts are super informative. It's like being able to hit fast forward on a tree.
 

leatherback

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Impressed with your patience AND lack of ego. I would never have the confidence to show up to a serious class with that elm. And I don't know if I could look at something that ugly for two/three years
I had the comment from my teacher that I seem to have a soft spot for projects. So when I went there a few weeks back, I did not bring any trees needing work. When he asked me why I broughts them I told him: To show you I also have trees that are not projects!

Indeed, I do not mind long-term projects. On the one hand because I am cheap; I do not want to pay 1000 USD for a tree. Yet I want to have great trees. But also, I am taking classes to eventually start teaching. Therefor I feel I need to go through the whole process with many species and styles. That would help me to assist other people better long-term.
 
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