AusBonsai

All I want to do is go from this elm stick to this beautiful bonsai below. How hard can it be? Hopefully someone here knows how to make it easy. Thanks in advance

It starts with a cut and now is the perfect time to cut Elms.

Yep thats a given.
I have just root pruned this tree.
I was going to wait for some spring growth
or even wait a year.
Where would you cut it to plan for the future tree?

All bonsai start with a Nebari.. If you want a bonsai of the quality in the lower photo, the Nebari will determine where you go next. Without it, you'll be building and designing your bonsai blind.

And you will need to cut pretty low to achieve the amount of movement you want in the trunk.

Ray Nesci has a few Elms at the moment that you'd be able to play with until this one is ready for more work.

I am assuming you want to keep both trunks?

Cut at the top of the bottle on both, then after you get new shoots a little lower, wire one on each trun as you new leader when tey ae 10mm or so to give the next trunk section.
Cut back the trunk above that branch in a sloping cut to give taper and a nice blend into the uppper section.
let the trunk grow freely till it gets about 1/2 the diameter of the lower section then chop again and repeat until the trunk is the size and shape you require.

Then grow your branches.
in the mean time lift from the groups every 2 - 3 years to train the roots as needed.


Ken

The main thing you need is...............TIME.

Thanks guys
That is solid advice.
I agree that the narbari is the starting point of a decent bonsai.
I lifted this one again tio have a another look.
I basically flat bottomed it after 3 years in the ground and replaced it on a tile.
Now I am thinking that the first branch is too high for a twin trunk which seem to start at the base.
Should the first branch go? Maybe but there is no rush!

If you don't like the first branch, why don't you make it the new leader?

Also, the rules are more like guidelines mate.

I woud chop both and see what you get happening over the next growing season. Either use that as the leader or remove.
Neither decision needs to made today.

Ken

The bonsai you have given as your model has the secondary trunks a little higher so you may still be able to use both trunks on this one - time will tell.
I would do what Ken suggested - cut both trunks quite low now. You will develop the new structure from the shoots that sprout and they will only sprout if you cut. You may even be lucky enough to get shoots low enough to grow a secondary trunk low on the main stem.
Reece has already reminded you that the biggest factor in making your tree will be lots of time.