And so, armed with some new handmade pots that I wrote about yesterday, my trigger finger has suddenly gotten itchy. To satisfy my need to create bonsai, I went out to my growing area and decided this Hackberry, Celtis laevigata, could be successfully lifted and made into something that can look good immediately this spring.
This one has been in the ground about four years, starting its bonsai journey as a pencil-thick seedling. This past year the tree put on a lot of strong growth, which helped thicken the trunk base to about 1″ diameter. But there’s a really long and straight section of trunk that continues on from the lower trunk area, which by the way has some nice movement. What would you do with something like this?
Here’s the answer I saw. By taking off the main trunk at the point where those two nice sub-trunks emerged, I now have a rudimentary crown for a bonsai that just happened to grow on its own for me. Makes sense, right? So the next move was to cut the tree out of the ground.
Another really nice thing about this Hackberry is that it came up with a good root system. Since the tree did not grow in place from seed, there wasn’t a tap root to have to deal with. So I’ve got a head start on good radial roots and a fibrous root system.
Now everything’s been pruned back where it needs to be for now. I’ve established a nice set of proportions in the crown of the tree that complements the size and height of the trunk. The roots have been cut back to fit a bonsai pot. And isn’t that trunk movement and character nice for a young tree?
And so, taking one of those nice Byron Myrick ovals I wrote about yesterday, I’ve now got a neat little Hackberry bonsai-to-be. Assuming all goes well, this tree will have a pretty complete broom-form design by the end of the 2017 growing season. I’ll post it for sale sometime in the spring.
Let me know what you think. Have you worked with Hackberry before?
I just discovered your site and love it. I have a BC that I have grown from seed. It’s now about 20 with an amazing trunk. I have it in a huge pot. I’m sure that I need to begin repotting and root reduction.
As I learn, I understand that I need to develop the apex. The most perplexing problem is the trunk base. It has roots that are wrapping around the base and one that arches out over the soil. I’m not sure how to begin to correct these issues. Any help and suggestions would be appreciated.
For some of us northerners, with a shorter season of warmth……when is the best time to dig up a Hackberry (Celtis Sinensis), prune roots hard, chop the trunk, and remove branches? Spring at bud swell? Summer in full leaf?
Spring at bud swell, John. I don’t think Hackberries would survive summer lifting.
Well….the buds started to come alive. I dug up six of them. Amazing how many and how thick the roots were. Definitely reciprocating saw work. I drastically pruned roots. Drastically. Trunks were 4.5” to 5.5”. I hope they survive and grow now. Time will tell as we head further to spring and then summer.
Keep me posted, John. Email me some photos when you can.
Zach, I notice with all your lifted specimens that the roots appear to be thoroughly washed. I have read (not necessarily in bonsai context) that tree roots have symbiotic fungi and other microbes in their root environment. Why don’t you leave some of the native soil so the symbiotic fungi re-establish more quickly?
Luke, most of the essential mycorrhizal relationships are found with conifers. I don’t collect many pines, but for those I do I don’t wash the native soil off. All of my deciduous collected trees get a thorough washing. They don’t seem to mind. I typically get fantastic root regrowth in the first year, except for certain species that don’t root vigorously to begin with.
I’ve always kept a few potensai hackberries around but always have an issue with getting them refined. What is your routine for developing fine ramification without constant twig dieback?
Jim, there’s nothing to be done about fine twig dieback in winter. Are you seeing dieback during the growing season? With hackberries, you won’t ever get the best winter silhouette you can, but during the growing season they make lots of tiny, beautiful leaves.
Hi Zach, From the images it looks like your chop is convex. If so, how and when will you smooth out the chop so it can heal? Please show us what you will do with this in the future. Thanks, Ken S.
Good observation, Ken. In the spring I’ll carefully carve the edges of the chop to smooth them, but won’t touch the interior of the chop. As the wound begins to heal it’ll slow as it rolls inward. I’ll do some smoothing of the interior so that the callus rolls over and ultimately produces a seamless chop point. This will take a number of years, of course.