Cork bark Chinese Elm and moss

[RoadManDenDron]

Has anyone ever heard of using moss to encourage corking on cork bark chinese elm?

there are also cuts along the bark but it does look corkier where there is moss but this is not something I am familiar with?


Also seems to have large callous on wounds, don't know whether to worry about this or not as maybe cork bark will hide it when it sets in.

 

[Gert]

That moss will eventually colonize the entire base of the tree and the corked bark will fall away. I'd remove it.

 

[RoadManDenDron]

I agree and I plan to remove the moss with vinegar in the next couple days, as this is what I was advised by the seller also.

However he also suggested I wrap some sphagnum higher up to encourage further corking higher up, so I was just curious if this was actually a done thing?

Usually I just see advice to remove moss from bark especially cork, but I am wondering if it does actually speed up the corking process?

 

[BobbyLane]

No its not a thing, unrestricted growth speeds up the corking bark. S moss tied to the trunk equals soggy, wet bark that easily flakes off. It takes years to get really good cork bark, this tree is still very early in the process. You can buy these with more mature cork bark for fairly cheap

 

[Bonsai Nut]

That's a cool-looking cork-bark elm. I've never seen one like it! Make sure you bring one along with you next time you visit

 

[Shibui]

Cork is just layers of older bark that never sheds so moss and moisture won't speed up development. As already posted, growth is what does it. Moss and moisture may cause accumulated corky bark to disappear
Excess callus is a thing with Chinese elms of any sort. Pruning closer to the trunk reduces it. Leaving more shoots makes it worse as shown at the upper fork of your tree.