Ground growing - what not to do

[Matt S]

I've had a Chinese Elm growing in the ground in my backyard for about the last 6 years. It started in a hole that I had previously dug an elm out of, so a piece of root left over must have sprouted and grown into this 2 meter tree. I thought I had two trees growing in the same hole, and I would occasionally cut them back to ground level before letting them go again for another season. I kept thinking I should dig them up and have a look at the roots, but I never got around to it, and I didn't put much thought into them other then getting them thicker. I wasn't even sure if they would become bonsai.

Yesterday when I was rearranging the backyard I really needed the room so I decided it was a good time to dig them up and get them into pots. It didn't take long to realise that what I thought was two trees was actually only one, and that there were three thick roots going straight down and not much else. Once it was out it was even worse, with long straight sections and bad inverse taper.

Chinese elm - bad dig 1.jpg

Chinese elm - bad dig 2.jpg

Rather than throw it away I treated it like an olive and cut through the thickest section, then chucked it in a pot and hoped for the best. I don't expect much but we'll see what happens.

Chinese elm - bad dig after cut.jpg

Chinese elm - bad dig in pot.jpg

The lessons?
- I'm kidding myself if I'm growing a tree in the ground and thinking it's not a potential bonsai
- Once I acknowledge the previous point, regularly dig it up, check the roots, make adjustments and put it back.
- Realise that when guys like Shibui say it's important to regularly check on field grown trees, they're not kidding.
- Swallow your pride and get on with it.

For a lot of you this is obvious, but it doesn't hurt to be reminded and to learn from someone else's mistake.

Matt.

[melbrackstone]

Good luck with it Matt. I suppose you know you'll get more shoots from any roots left in the ground?

[shibui]

I've found similar with Chinese elm root suckers. Because they started growing from a root deep in the ground and Chinese elm does not grow new roots voluntarily any tree that grows as a root sucker is likely to have very poor rootage. Could be worth ground layering these or tying a wire tourniquet around the trunk just below soil level to try for new roots a few years before harvest.

Ground growing for bonsai is not a set and forget process. Active intervention (pruning above ground and root pruning below ground) will definitely give a much better success rate.