The beat goes on. As I mentioned yesterday, spring is the time when you need to do all sorts of things all at once. One of those things is potting. Another, related, is repotting. Here are today’s subjects.
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Here’s my Chinese elm, Ulmus parvifolia, that you can learn more about on its Progression page. Last fall, I decided that this view of the tree didn’t really show it off to best advantage. I liked the one below better.

Better trunk movement, better tapering transition, all in all just better. Today it was time to turn it in the pot.

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I took off only enough root to fit the tree in the pot, including a small amount at the bottom of the root mass to allow for a little drainage layer (till the roots grow down into that area, of course). The tree won’t mind this at all.

Tied down and filled in with fresh soil. As you may be able to see, the tree is leafing out. I prefer to do my work on Chinese elms when the buds are swelling, not in the dead of winter. I also lift them from the growing beds at this time.

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Here’s a two-tree Bald cypress planting I got from a fellow grower last fall. I figured it would make a nice composition more or less as-is. Today it was time to make this happen.

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I happened to have this antique Tokoname tray on the shelf, and I thought it would complement these two trees very well.

A good bit of root had to go, in order to fit these two trees into the tray properly. I also took off a lot of the upper parts of the trees. That should help balance things.

Here they are, placed in the tray.

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And the tray filled in with soil. These trees are already budding, and I don’t anticipate potting them will delay their growth too much. In a couple of weeks, they should be filled out pretty well.

Note:

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