Southern Hackberry (Celtis laevigata) - Possible airlayer?

[zeejet]

Recently picked up a decently sized Southern Hackberry (Celtis laevigata) with a trunk that measures ~2 feet tall and 2 inches diameter thickness.

This is a rather tall tree for the current girth and I’m considering air layering the top half which would result in two decently thick trunks for development (top airlayer as a smaller tree). Will this species airlayer relatively easily? What happens if you girdle a section that has major cut wounds?

If the air layer fails, I’ll still have the bottom half to work with as a standard trunk chop but if this species doesn't air layer well, I may just perform a chop.

For now, I suppose I'm leaving it to regain vigor for the rest of the year and starting the airlayer next sring/summer?



Last photo is my proposed airlayer and subsequent chop for the lower section after the airlayer is harvested.

 

[rockm]

Don't know when you're planning the work, but this tree is pretty weak. Southern hackberries are typically very vigorous trees. This one needs some TLC before being worked on.

 

[zeejet]

I don't plan on working this until it's re-established. It came from Florida where it's also Zone 10b but much more humid plus it's in a very small training pot. I slip-potted to a larger container with more substrate and letting it go for the rest of the year.

Would you recommend an actual repot with root work next spring? Or should I airlayer next year instead? I imagine doing both is a lot of stress for the tree.

 

[Tieball]

I would not do any root work for quite awhile. The tree looks like it needs to survive and flourish first. It looks very weak for Celtis. I’d pack up the tools and wait for healthy growth all over the tree.

 

[rockm]

I don't plan on working this until it's re-established. It came from Florida where it's also Zone 10b but much more humid plus it's in a very small training pot. I slip-potted to a larger container with more substrate and letting it go for the rest of the year.

Would you recommend an actual repot with root work next spring? Or should I airlayer next year instead? I imagine doing both is a lot of stress for the tree.

Neither. Especially the air layer. I would, however, try to get a better idea of what's going on under the soil with the existing roots. Can't tell how deep that container is, but if it's less than two inches, I'd think about getting another at least two inches deeper. I would NOT prune it at all for a couple of years. Allow it to grow and gain strength in that time. Let it get full

 

[zeejet]

Neither. Especially the air layer. I would, however, try to get a better idea of what's going on under the soil with the existing roots. Can't tell how deep that container is, but if it's less than two inches, I'd think about getting another at least two inches deeper. I would NOT prune it at all for a couple of years. Allow it to grow and gain strength in that time. Let it get full

Thanks for the warning - it was shipped in that pot - I slip potted soon after those photos into a much larger pond basket - it's not super rootbound but there are several thicker roots encircling right now. I suppose I'll leave it alone and only intervene if there are issues with disease or pests.

 

[Tieball]

And, keep all the roots buried, especially those surface roots exposed, to give the tree the best opportunity to grow healthy.

 

[zeejet]

Ok, update on this tree after recovering from shipping and slip pot into much larger container.

It's pushed long and coarse extension growth, which is a good sign for health. Still unsure if I should perform proper repot and root reduction next spring or if I should leave it alone for another season. Longer term goal is to airlayer the top but I'm not sure if it's worth the additional 1-2 years of delayed development vs. a trunk chop.