Jun 15 2010
A Care Guide For Your Chinese Elm Bonsai - Part I
The Chinese elm (Ulmus parvifolia) is among the most well-known trees readily available for creating bonsai. Year after year the Chinese elm is among the top trees for making bonsai. Seasoned bonsai artists regularly suggest this particular plant to newbies in the hobby. This tree is quite forgiving in case you make newbie mistakes, like a poor trimming job. Newbies usually fare best with a slow growing tree to allow them to become familiar with it, and the Chinese elm fits that description.
The Chines elm is indigenous to Taiwan, Korea, Japan, and China, where it can grow as tall as 60 feet. The leaves of the Chinese elm are darker green in color, and have a rather leathery appearance with dull serrated edges. The leaves are small and so are ideal for bonsai. This plant’s popularity can also be partially because of the fact that it could be grown both outside and inside. If grown outside it’s going to follow the familiar life-cycle of a deciduous tree, but indoors it’ll be an evergreen.
One of the benefits to growing a Chinese Elm bonsai tree is that it is not at risk of Dutch elm disease. So for people just starting out in bonsai the Chinese elm makes a fantastic choice.
Watering Your Chinese Elm
Bonsai plants have a tendency to dry up a lot quicker than other potted plants because they are mainly potted in shallow pots with coarse dirt. In some cases, you might need to water the tree daily.The best way to tell if your Chinese elm bonsai needs water would be to feel the soil. Dig down about a half inch into the soil; if the top half ” feels dry then it is time to water your bonsai. The easiest way to thoroughly water your Chinese elm bonsai is to put it in a container containing water (just enough water that the pot is not entirely immersed) and allow it to sit for a few minutes while it absorbes water in through the drain holes in the bottom of the pot. After 5-10 minutes take out from the sink/container and allow to drain thoroughly.
The guideline with many bonsai plants would be to never let the soil dry out completely, yet don’t keep it soaking wet constantly. By examining the soil moisture level in your bonsai pot you’ll constantly know when your plant needs watering. You must check the moisture level each day. If you can feel moisture, then you may not need to water. However, in case your bonsai is in a very small pot and/or it’s a hot or windy day, or if the bonsai is pot-bound, you may then need to water. Many times you just need to water one area of your bonsai pot if just one area of the soil has become dry.
Getting the Best Levels of Sunlight
The Chinese elm tree can adapt to many diverse environments. The Chinese Elm can be grown successfully indoors if it is adapted correctly. If hardened off to the cold little by little, they will drop their leaves in the fall and be considered deciduous trees, so you have a few options. If you’ve grown your Chinese elm inside, and now would like to grow it outdoors, you should little by little acclimate it to full sun. Once acclimated it will thrive in full sun. It is crucial to be sure that the leaves are accustomed to sun before you put the tree in strong sun. If your Chinese elm has been an indoor plant it’s leaves may be sunburned if left in the direct sun for too much time. Expose the plant slowly and gradually to full sunlight. Excellent air circulation is also important for the health of your Chinese elm bonsai . A well ventilated area is essential if you are growing your Chinese elm bonsai indoors.
If your Chinese elm came from a warm climate it might not be used to cold environments. It could be harmful to keep these Elms too cold the first year or two. Even if grown indoors your Chinese elm may drop leaves through the winter season and this is because of the decrease in natural sunlight as the days are shorter. This isn’t abnormal. Even though your Chinese elm bonsai is a hardy plant it could nevertheless be damaged by severe winter conditions of intense cold and wind so take measures to guard it from injury.
