AusBonsai

This is the best time of year for bonsai. Summer is quite boring and I lose interest but get re-inspired every winter because I can see all those branches again.

These are both elms. The first is a Purple Leaved Elm. (Actually only the buds and new leaves are purple).
The second is an English elm which a friend ripped out of the ground and gave to me many years ago. Even though it is very slender, I like it because it has that classic English Elm habit. It should start to develop the rough bark in the next decade or so? The pot is crap but all I have at the moment.

Only about 25cm

About 40cm

Love the english elm

Nothing, just my

I really like the second one.

Do you have any photos of them in leaf?

nice trees. I thought English elms suffered from branch dieback.

I agree with you Mike having seen these tree in the flesh,just another reason members should show their bonsai age.
Cheers John Mc

Love both these trees. I would have assumed both were larger than they are if you hadn't posted their heights.

Well done and inspirational.

I like no 2 very much; I think no 1 would benefit from the lowest branch on the right being removed(unless you have an ultimate reason/purpose for leaving it on.)

Grant

You have some great trees, Treeman.

Thanks for the pics!

Number 2 is very nice IMHO, Tall and elegant.

The 1st one has a nice trunk but the branches don't do it for me.
I would lose the lower right one and the the upward pointing bits on the left ones.

Ken

Love em, going EE hunting this winter. This just makes me more eager.

Far out! really stunning examples of deciduous bonsai, these are very well made trees!

Grant Bowie wrote:I like no 2 very much; I think no 1 would benefit from the lowest branch on the right being removed(unless you have an ultimate reason/purpose for leaving it on.)

Grant

I know what you mean. The reason for leaving it is rather hard to explain. If I remove it, the tree will probably conform with the general rules however I've tried to capture the wayward growth of many natural decideous trees where a low branch occasionally sprouts from the trunk and tends to grow downwards and outwards toward whatever light is available. These branches often are thin and feeble but somehow they add to a natural look. I may indeed eventually remove it as the tree ramifies more. At the moment I kind of like the way it fills the negative space beneath the crown.
Ultimately it may not be succsessful. I would prefer if it was coming from a higher position.

Brian wrote:nice trees. I thought English elms suffered from branch dieback.

I have not found that but I have noticed that they don't grow much after the initial spring push no matter how much you feed them. You have to repot every year to keep them moving. (unless someone can tell me a way around this problem?)

Hi Treeman
thanks for that , that would explain why my EE didn't want to do anything for me later in the season, when I cut back and tried to get it to grow some more shoots after the first push. So is it a case of grow it out in spring then cut back for ramification and then wait till next year to get more growth etc
regards
peterb