Hokkaido Elm

[NateDav]

I recently acquired this really nice and very old hokkaido elm. I won it during an auction at my local bonsai society club meeting. I cleaned it out a bit to gain some semblance of shape and to remove some structural issues. I understand how brittle these can be so I anticipate it will predominantly be evolved through clip and grow, I did manage to move two branches without breakage. Feed back for styling/pruning/ is welcomed. It will remain in its nursery container till next spring. Before and after photos.

 

[Forsoothe!]

You don't need to grow it any bigger, so I'd choose the architecture now and do a lot of tip pruning to keep it inbounds of my final canopy (design).

 

[Gsquared]

Nice find!

 

[NateDav]

You don't need to grow it any bigger, so I'd choose the architecture now and do a lot of tip pruning to keep it inbounds of my final canopy (design).

So do you think I should reduce the canopy further or just trim to keep within its current silhouette?

 

[Shibui]

This does not look like the Hokkaido we grow over here. Hokkaido, as I know it, has extremely small and crowded leaves. It also has very corky deeply fissured dark bark.
This one looks far more like Seiju elm which is another variety of Chinese elm.
That may explain why you were able to move a couple of branches.

 

[NateDav]

It has cork bark as well, I only was able to move 2 branches and not by much. Used a guy wire to do so. The leaves are less than 1/4 inch each and very, very close together. How would one tell difference from Seiju elm? I will provide more pictures when I get home later this evening or in the morning. I have several other chinese elms. They have a lot of flexibility compared to this, this one is BRITTLE!

 

[NateDav]

Nebari ~7" wide and the foilage. The members said it belonged to one of the founders who help start the bonsai club. They believe it to be between 70-80+ years old. They also believe it to be hokkaido elm. Maybe this will help with its identification. In the meantime I'll be searching for a container for it to reside in. Cheers!

 

[John P.]

I really don’t think it’s Hokkaido, and not so sure it’s Seiju, either.

 

[Shibui]

Here are a couple of photos that may or may not help.

Hokkaido bonsai. This one is young and has not started to show the really dark, corky bark an lumps on the trunk. Note the really tiny leaves crowded on the stems.


Seiju bonsai. This one has started to form the dark,corky bark but that takes a few years to show up.


Side by side leaf comparison

Left to right: Standard Chinese elm young, nursery pot; Standard Chinese elm bonsai; Corky bark Chinese elm bonsai; Seiju young nursery pot; Seiju bonsai; Hokkaido nursery pot; Hokkaido bonsai; Catlin lem.
You can see that the Hokkaido elm leaves are tiny and really crowded on the stem.
Metric conversion for scale: 25mm = 1"

 

[Forsoothe!]

So do you think I should reduce the canopy further or just trim to keep within its current silhouette?

It all depends upon what the finished size is in your mind's eye. Is it the size you want?

 

[NateDav]

@Shibui thanks for photos and information. The foliage to me after viewing the comparisons is very tight like those of the hokkaido and not that of the seiju. I guess I'll continue to wait for the remainder to bud out and post a close up with a ruler so you may more easily be able to verify or refute its variety.

@Forsoothe! Understood, I guess I'm struggling with whether or not I should just pursue my vision for the tree or try to improve it's appearance while respecting the vision of the original owner/grower. He's was a well respected local legend who helped found the nearby bonsai society.

 

[leatherback]

whether or not I should just pursue my vision for the tree or try to improve it's appearance while respecting the vision of the original owner/grower. He's was a well respected local legend who helped found the nearby bonsai society.

Depends. Were you given the tree by the owner to care for? Or did you obtain it as a new tree to your collection.
In the latter case it is your tree and you should create your own vision.

It is quite normal for trees to be re-styled once they change owners.

If yuo plan on serious pruning, consider taking a few layers. I see nice bark developing on the trunk

 

[NateDav]

I won the tree at auction so it's now my tree to do as I wish, I suppose. None of my trees have ever been previously cared for. They all are grown from seed, layer, nursery stock or collected. This is new ground for me so I wanted to be sure I was being respectful of it's history and perhaps local significance. I will be sure to take some layers if I remove heavy branches.

 

[leatherback]

This is new ground for me so I wanted to be sure I was being respectful of it's history and perhaps local significance.

Maybe you can sit down with a few of the club elders and discuss a future path for the tree. That way you avoid offending people in the club.
I find however in my club everyone gets excited if a mature treethat has outgrown its prime is trimmed back by a few members and brought back to become glorious once more. In the end it is part of the cycleas I see it. Grow, develop, refine, prime, outgrown, trim back, grow, develop, refine etc. How long a cycle takes depends on the skill of the person working the tree.