A Gift Takes Root

Botanical Name: Ulmus parvifolia

Common Name: Chinese Elm

Story of the Tree

This Chinese Elm was a retirement gift from a long-time client twenty-two years ago — a seedling from a tree Mark had cared for over twenty-three years. When it arrived, it was in a five-gallon pot, ten feet tall and four feet wide. The years since have been spent coaxing it toward bonsai: extensive work to reduce and shallow the root system, reshaping a massive canopy into something refined.

On May 9, 2020, a very large limb was removed — the scar is still visible. To fill in the canopy, thread grafts were added, now growing as branches #2, #4, and #5.

A tree rooted in a long professional relationship, still evolving.

Exhibited by Mark