New to growing new bonsai with Chinese Elm

[pandacular]

I think what was written was correct.

I see the recommendation to not work on newly purchased trees for at least a year after purchase float around on facebook and on another forum.The thinking is that if you do not know how to grow trees in pots, you then can be sure that it is your care, and not any actions you took that caused the demise. And that it somehow is needed as commercial trees are too weak to work on and you need to get them healthy first.

Ah I see. It's a shorthand advice to not have people killing trees! There's some truth to it that you have to learn to watch a tree, but there doesn't need to be a fixed time frame, and you can certainly carry forward past learnings.