Congrats on your ribbons Fred, and thanks for sharing those photos. There's actually 2 of Brent's elms there, yes?
Ron and I go way back to about 1995. We used to work in his garage every Sunday afternoon, so I know may of those trees very well. Now that I live in AL, we try to get out west collecting every other year, or at least a visit here or there.
Ron reads here, but never posts. I guess since he retired he doesn't think he has to type. I try to goad him into posting but usually to no avail. Here's a little more Intel on those trees.
JWP, he wanted it in a better pot, but wasn't about to slip-pot it just for this show. It needs a few more years to round out. It came from Gary Wood and he's had it for about 10 years now. They grow so slowly!
This one is an American Elm, named the "Beaver Elm". He's had it longer than I've known him, collected it around '92, and it's been in various inclinations, upright, to full cascade, to a semi. Nice leaf reduction, really aged bark out to secondaries. Nice in the winter. This tree is old. Like its owner. (See, I try)...
He's had this mulberry about as long. I have paper photos of this tree going back 20 years now. A big carving project, and his second of 2 mulberries. The first had better trunk movement, this one has a better base. And better berries! This is about the best looking crown I've seen it display. He went through a phase of very craggy downward-jagged branches, to which the mulberry complied, but this is a much more relaxed version.
This is a green island ficus, I actually bought it from Don 5-6 years ago, and decided it was too big to winter in the house. Ron's buddy bought it from me, and somehow, Ron ended up with it. Probably for free, knowing him...so I call it the one I basically gave him. On the tree thread, Don posted the
tree from which this was layered.
And finally, this yew, came from in front of an old farm house where the yew appears in photographs taken over 100 years ago. He took this to the same Ben Oki workshop where I did my azalea. As an art teacher, he already had it all sketched out how he wanted it to look, and Mr. Oki agreed completely and let him have at it.
One more, which I thought would be best of show, a ficus retusa. I have known this tree for 20 years too. I have a paper photo of that first left branch as a little sucker coming off the trunk! It's among my favorite trees he owns.
Ron did I miss anything?
Definitely...definitely...definitely...
