Little florida elm

[Jay Wilson]

Chris,
First, I want to thank you for your efforts to get and keep the forum on track. Thanks!

I would recommend a couple of defoliations including light pruning next summer. It will drive the budding back toward the trunk and give you a good deal more ramification in a season.

This is good advice and it is just what I plan to do next year. This tree has been defoliated and trimmed twice this year with good results.

Why are you waiting until November to defoliate? The greatest strength of growth is during the summer season.

Well, I'm waiting until november because I did a summer repot just three weeks ago. I didn't do a lot of root work, but I don't want to stress it too much with an additional defoliating at this time.

Also, The november defoliating is not for ramification and leaf reduction but to get the leaves out of the way. With our mild winters, I don't expect the leaves to drop by themselves, so I will remove them myself so I can see the structure of the tree better and be able to do the trimming and wireing.

I expect that by this time next year, after a year of living in a pot with two or even three defoliations this elm will be looking pretty good.

Thanks for the input, it's much appreciated.