Mayank
Chumono
If you are in GR then the all-state show is next weekend (May 8, 9). Go check it out. I'll be there and probably some other bnuts. @Brad in GR may be there...
How to be a successful bonsai beginner
- Thread starter Bonsai Nut
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GreatLakesBrad
Chumono
Can confirm, will be there Sunday!
I guess you guys will be there to pick up a nice Mother's Day gift?
Leo in N E Illinois
The Professor
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@nboisvert
I agree, as an "old fogey" myself, I have occasionally been guilty of just parroting the adage that trees MUST be outdoors. I've grown orchids indoors for over 40 years, and settled in on the technology of 25 years ago as "all I needed" for the groups of orchids I grow. My knowledge base is stuck in the HPS, Metal Halide and T-12 phase of the hobby. In 2008 I toured several LED growing set ups, in Anchorage, that were woefully inadequate, and dismissed LED as technology having poor potential.
In 2015 got called to consult for a disease issue for a licensed medical marijuana growing operation and was shocked at the revolutionary improvement in the quality and intensity of modern LED lighting. I know now, it IS POSSIBLE to grow just about anything under lights, as light intensity is no longer the limiting factor.
Ficus and many tropical & subtropical trees can be grown successfully under lights, as can the more subtropical junipers like J. procumbens. Trees from zone 7 b and warmer climates can be kept growing under lights in winter without much trouble.
However for some trees, other factors become limiting. For example many trees depend on large diurnal temperature changes to slow their resting metabolism at night so they can accumulate and store energy for growth. Indoors our temperatures are fairly constant, which my guess is one of the reasons pine trees are difficult indoors.
So yes, explore the wide array of trees that can be grown under lights. Recognize that new technology is coming out weekly. And be willing to experiment.
Also, you are in Canada. There's a good number of excellent species for bonsai native to Canada. Check out the Amelanchier species, jack pines, and Thuja. All the juniper species, including shimpaku are hardy into zone 4. Your local native Junipers horizontalis is quite good, look for Nick Lenz examples of J. horizontalis styled as upright trees for "proof of concept".
I agree, as an "old fogey" myself, I have occasionally been guilty of just parroting the adage that trees MUST be outdoors. I've grown orchids indoors for over 40 years, and settled in on the technology of 25 years ago as "all I needed" for the groups of orchids I grow. My knowledge base is stuck in the HPS, Metal Halide and T-12 phase of the hobby. In 2008 I toured several LED growing set ups, in Anchorage, that were woefully inadequate, and dismissed LED as technology having poor potential.
In 2015 got called to consult for a disease issue for a licensed medical marijuana growing operation and was shocked at the revolutionary improvement in the quality and intensity of modern LED lighting. I know now, it IS POSSIBLE to grow just about anything under lights, as light intensity is no longer the limiting factor.
Ficus and many tropical & subtropical trees can be grown successfully under lights, as can the more subtropical junipers like J. procumbens. Trees from zone 7 b and warmer climates can be kept growing under lights in winter without much trouble.
However for some trees, other factors become limiting. For example many trees depend on large diurnal temperature changes to slow their resting metabolism at night so they can accumulate and store energy for growth. Indoors our temperatures are fairly constant, which my guess is one of the reasons pine trees are difficult indoors.
So yes, explore the wide array of trees that can be grown under lights. Recognize that new technology is coming out weekly. And be willing to experiment.
Also, you are in Canada. There's a good number of excellent species for bonsai native to Canada. Check out the Amelanchier species, jack pines, and Thuja. All the juniper species, including shimpaku are hardy into zone 4. Your local native Junipers horizontalis is quite good, look for Nick Lenz examples of J. horizontalis styled as upright trees for "proof of concept".
yoru sanpo
Seedling
I'm so glad I found this thread, because I could have been tempted to lean too much toward the do-it-yourself approach. I'll be sure to keep a bonsai club and intensive classes at the core of bonsai learning.
That's good to hear. I'll plan now for those kinds of classes.
I had exactly that in mind when I went to work on my first juniper. Come to find out I probably removed too much foliage to support root growth.
Well put, and I'll certainly heed that insight.
Thank you, all!
That's good to hear. I'll plan now for those kinds of classes.
I had exactly that in mind when I went to work on my first juniper. Come to find out I probably removed too much foliage to support root growth.
Well put, and I'll certainly heed that insight.
Thank you, all!
LindaPat
Mame
I have been working on this little elm for a couple of years, just trimming and wiring.
It was a root cutting, I was told, when I got it on a silent auction at a bonsai club meeting.
I have the impression that the root part above ground won't thicken much, and I see that the first limb is possibly where the original ground level might have been, and it seems to be getting thicker there. So this summer I put a copper wire around a wider spot lower down, and buried it deeper to hope for new roots. Any advice?
It was a root cutting, I was told, when I got it on a silent auction at a bonsai club meeting.
I have the impression that the root part above ground won't thicken much, and I see that the first limb is possibly where the original ground level might have been, and it seems to be getting thicker there. So this summer I put a copper wire around a wider spot lower down, and buried it deeper to hope for new roots. Any advice?
LindaPat
Mame
I'm letting the top grow free to thicken the new leader.
Joe Dupre'
Omono
There are no magic soils, fertilizers, tools or techniques. Good, solid middle of the road "stuff" will work just fine.
_space_bard_
Mame
This will be my 3rd attempt at bonsai trees. First attempt was when I lived in the PNW as a kid and managed to save up enough for a small juniper. It died within months and I became disheartened. About 5 years ago I bought a small Ficus bonsai off of etsy, a grow light, and kept it on my work desk with no natural light for about 6 months before it died. I'm not exactly sure what I did wrong. This time I'm going the weed tree and cheap nursery stock method.
I live in zone 8b Northern AZ with single digit humidity levels and 110 outside temps in the summer. The Phoenix Bonsai Club has some useful info, but Phoenix is quite a bit different than my climate. My area is more like Southern Utah and Northern NM. I'd love to find a Bonsai club to join, but the closest one I can find is 4 hours away. So I'm kind winging it on my own without any local mentors. Most of the YT videos I can find online are from people living in the PNW and NE US/Canada. Which is like using cheat codes when it comes to growing anything compared to my conditions. I remember as a kid living in the PNW, throwing a bag of half rotten raw potatoes in a hole, covering them with dirt, and then coming back to dig out like 50lbs of potatoes a few months later despite not ever watering or caring for the plants. So I figure I'll try collecting some invasive weed species that are growing in washes around here. I figure if they can survive and thrive on a couple rain drops a year in blistering heat and 5% humidity, they can survive my ham fisted attempts at potting them.
I live in zone 8b Northern AZ with single digit humidity levels and 110 outside temps in the summer. The Phoenix Bonsai Club has some useful info, but Phoenix is quite a bit different than my climate. My area is more like Southern Utah and Northern NM. I'd love to find a Bonsai club to join, but the closest one I can find is 4 hours away. So I'm kind winging it on my own without any local mentors. Most of the YT videos I can find online are from people living in the PNW and NE US/Canada. Which is like using cheat codes when it comes to growing anything compared to my conditions. I remember as a kid living in the PNW, throwing a bag of half rotten raw potatoes in a hole, covering them with dirt, and then coming back to dig out like 50lbs of potatoes a few months later despite not ever watering or caring for the plants. So I figure I'll try collecting some invasive weed species that are growing in washes around here. I figure if they can survive and thrive on a couple rain drops a year in blistering heat and 5% humidity, they can survive my ham fisted attempts at potting them.
Mara of dragon clan
Mame
The best advice i found on here was a random quote or signature of a member
"To do something to a tree based on a whim is the pinnacle of hubris"
This alone humbled me as i read it after my first kill.
Since then ive come to recognize that bonsai is actually a reflective activity of balance, cause, and effect. There is almost no guess work required, because the only work that should happen is what is needed for the right time.
-Drainage+water retention+water use balance
-root mass and foliage mass balance
-right timing for right action
-respect the life of a tree, not as a specimen but as something that has the same right to live as us and tries its darndest to do so
"To do something to a tree based on a whim is the pinnacle of hubris"
This alone humbled me as i read it after my first kill.
Since then ive come to recognize that bonsai is actually a reflective activity of balance, cause, and effect. There is almost no guess work required, because the only work that should happen is what is needed for the right time.
-Drainage+water retention+water use balance
-root mass and foliage mass balance
-right timing for right action
-respect the life of a tree, not as a specimen but as something that has the same right to live as us and tries its darndest to do so
Joe Dupre'
Omono
I've told a few people this and it seemed to sink in........ "You don't HAVE a bonsai. You RAISE a bonsai. Think of it as raising a small, frail puppy. It needs food, water and light.........EVERY day. "
_space_bard_
Mame
Also I figure I can gain experience going the "Urbandori" route before I attempt a Yamadori hike. Might as well kill some invasive species and old shrubs while figuring out how to keep things alive than just go out and kill some beautiful native juniper or pinon.
HorseloverFat
Squarepants with Conkers
There are lots of AZ members here, they can probably open your eyes to unique native/naturalized species..
I grow Parkinsonia!
...but I shouldn’t
_space_bard_
Mame
I installed "Picturethis" and went on a short half mile hike by the trail near my house. There is a drainage wash coming down from the mesa where I found a bunch of Groundseltrees, Tamarisks, Siberian Elms, and even a Japanese Honeysuckle (which upon googling looks like some people have made beautiful bonsai out of). I'm just wondering if Fall would be a good time to try and collect some of these invasives. For the honeysuckle I'll just take some cuttings as I don't want to remove a good hummingbird food source. I know right before spring is the optimal time to collect, but I've read a lot of people collecting around fall and even on the Phoenix Bonsai Society website they have pictures of a club Yamadori trip that happened around fall.There are lots of AZ members here, they can probably open your eyes to unique native/naturalized species..
I grow Parkinsonia!
...but I shouldn’t
HorseloverFat
Squarepants with Conkers
Neat!!! Picture this, is normally hit or miss for me. (But i still use it on hikes)
My area is so cold that many known species have “localized adaptations” that make DIRECT identification, especially if they are “needled”, more difficult.
Also, from what I’ve gathered, is if your ground is THAWED... spring collection is best..
I, now, do MOST of my collecting in the fall.. because during late-winter/early-spring, my trees are “awake” before the ground is fully thawed.
I’m an icicle person, as @leatherback would say.
HorseloverFat
Squarepants with Conkers
That’s CRAZY, to me, that you get Siberian Elms in Arizona!!!
_space_bard_
Mame
Apparently they're everywhere in the SW. Albuquerque has a love/hate history with them. During the dust bowl, the mayor at the time planted a bunch of them in the city since a lot of native trees were dying from drought. Now they're everywhere. I just yanked up a couple saplings that were growing on the side of my foundation. I wasn't gentle about it as they were growing between a small gap between my foundation and my concrete patio, so there wasn't a lot of roots left, but just for fun I put them in an old plastic nursery pot and I'm keeping the soil moist. If they somehow manage to survive I'll name them Wolverine and Sabertooth because I'm a nerd
HorseloverFat
Squarepants with Conkers
I’m a Remy kind-of-guy, myself.Apparently they're everywhere in the SW. Albuquerque has a love/hate history with them. During the dust bowl, the mayor at the time planted a bunch of them in the city since a lot of native trees were dying from drought. Now they're everywhere. I just yanked up a couple saplings that were growing on the side of my foundation. I wasn't gentle about it as they were growing between a small gap between my foundation and my concrete patio, so there wasn't a lot of roots left, but just for fun I put them in an old plastic nursery pot and I'm keeping the soil moist. If they somehow manage to survive I'll name them Wolverine and Sabertooth because I'm a nerd
That’s cool about the Elms!
Mara of dragon clan
Mame
Leo thank you for explaining yamadori and the various levels of bonsai
Forsoothe!
Imperial Masterpiece
I suppose you know what you're talking about, but I would have bet those were Cedar Elms, common down there. There's two kinds of Sage (actually more than two), Pinion Pine, Mesquite, Huisache (Acacia farnesiana), Desert Cassia, and Featherbush. And that's just what I know about and I ain't never been there.
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