Chinese elm design help

[Alex_B]

So after a relatively mild winter here in Melbourne it looks like spring has started a bit early as my Chinese Elm has started to sprout some new leaves. I bought this elm in February and just let it grow making a few minor trims here and there. Now I want to start get some good growth and start thinking about what design I should go for with this tree.

At the moment this tree looks more like a stick than a tree haha so I want to try and thicken the trunk up a bit this growing season which I should be able to do as I have a fair few new buds coming up along the trunk. I also want to develop the roots as I think I could get some nice nebari from this tree.

I was thinking of going for an informal upright style but I am not sure whether I should cut back hard now and let the bubs further to the bottom of the tree grow out more and thicken up before letting it get some more height.

Hopefully the quality of the images is alright but any design help would be greatly appreciated

[jehsiboi]

I would trunk chop it just above the first two branches and put it in a bigger pot and let it grow. this tree has a few more years growth in it before it will start to develop movement and then you can make a decent small bonsai.

Jesse

[shibui]

There is probably no point worrying about what it might end up like. As these grow they change so much that any plan has completely changed each year. Elms are so good at sprouting after a chop that you can just let the whole thing grow for a couple of years then cut back fearlessly and see what comes.
How big a bonsai are you planning? Height of lowest branches and trunk bends will depend very much on the overall size of the finished tree.

Cutting now might give some trunk movement but will definitely slow down the thickening. I cannot see any point cutting above the branches as they are way too far up to be of any use in all except the largest bonsai. If you want to cut to get some lower movement and branching i would go for those low buds and grow from there.

[Alex_B]

At the moment it is probably about 30cm high and I would like it to grow maybe about 10 or 15cm so overal maybe about half a metre give or take. I was thinking about prunning the lower branches, especially where there are multiple branches coming out of the same point as those points are starting to bulge and they don't look nice.

Do you think I should just prune a few low branches and then just let it grow for another few years? I think I need to let some low buds sprout and develop so the base of the tree can thicken up a bit.

[shibui]

The problem with using an existing trunk is lack of taper. I find it much better to grow and cut then grow again so I would rarely retain the whole existing trunk. That's why I would not worry about what's up the top now.
You may be able to selectively thicken the lower trunk with some sacrifice branches. You already have some buds sprouting which is really good but due to apical dominance I find that low branches don't usually grow strong while there are healthy branches up top. maybe you will be luckier.

If you think there's a chance of keeping any of the top you should definitely start to remove problem branches so thin out any clusters before they become a problem.
It is an elm so it does not really matter what you cut or when. They can survive almost any pruning and are usually better for it.

[Alex_B]

The problem with using an existing trunk is lack of taper. I find it much better to grow and cut then grow again so I would rarely retain the whole existing trunk. That's why I would not worry about what's up the top now.
You may be able to selectively thicken the lower trunk with some sacrifice branches. You already have some buds sprouting which is really good but due to apical dominance I find that low branches don't usually grow strong while there are healthy branches up top. maybe you will be luckier.

If you think there's a chance of keeping any of the top you should definitely start to remove problem branches so thin out any clusters before they become a problem.
It is an elm so it does not really matter what you cut or when. They can survive almost any pruning and are usually better for it.

Sounds like the way to go is to let it grow out again this growing season then cut back hard next spring. I don't think there is a chance of keeping the top of the tree and to be honest I would be happy not to because it is definitely not growing how I want it to right now.

Thanks for all the help.

[bunce]

To be honest you have the making of a great Mame broom here, personally id feed this tree well and chop the trunk at 5 cm. allow the new buds to extend and choose 3 or 5 and wire them out in a dome shape. allow them to grow out and chop them back to 1 or 2 cm, Vince and repeat. you'll have a fancy baby broom.

[shibui]

Sounds like the way to go is to let it grow out again this growing season then cut back hard next spring. I don't think there is a chance of keeping the top of the tree and to be honest I would be happy not to because it is definitely not growing how I want it to right now.

One old Japanese master told us "if you have problem cut him off. No more problem!"
Cutting off is often used in bonsai. The result is often unpredictable but usually better than the problem before.
Use all that current canopy to fuel growth for a year or 2. When you have the trunk thickness you are happy with cut. The broom style that Bunce has posted is good for Chinese elm and relatively easy to produce.
A larger pot will allow more room for roots, water and nutrients. Trunk growth seems to be pretty much related to pot size so putting your tree into a larger container will pay off with faster growth.

[Alex_B]

Thanks for all the great ideas! I looked up some broom designs on Chinese elms and they are quite nice so that has definitely changed my mind with what I might do design wise. Still seems the way to go is to just keep feeding and letting it grow for a few more years so I can get the trunk to thicken to a nice size then cut back and go from there.