bonsai stock

catfish chapstick

catfish chapstick

Chumono
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I think I'm at the point now where I have been growing trees long enough to spend some money on stock. Can anyone point me towards a source, internet or otherwise, where I could possibly get something really good? I don't mean a "finished" tree. Well, I don't know what I mean exactly. I just browsed Ebay and a few other sites. I have never been to a bonsai nursery so I don't know what stock is really worth.

I don't want a pine or a maple. I'd prefer something branchy with lots of possibilities. Elm maybe? I don't know exactly what I want but I'd like something unusual, like not the typical informal upright that you see so often. I also don't know what kind of price range since I've never done this before...

also nothing tropical.

I was thinking about just getting some nursery stock but it might be time for me to get something more expensive. thanks in advance
 
Gregory beach
Evergreengardenworks
golden arrow
new England Bonsai
Wigerts(mostly tropical though i think)
Wee Tree
Meehans Minatures
 
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I've seen some cork-bark elms from telperion that were very nice! ;)
 
I haven't bought many trees through the mail/internet, but I can give positive reviews of wee tree, bonsai-south, and golden arrow bonsai (Andy Smith). I've got collected and field grown stock from them, all nice trees, and good customer service. I also have ordered smaller stuff (tropicals) from Meehans and they've been good to deal with.

If you can get to a bonsai show or convention to check out some stock in person, I'd strongly suggest it. I don't know if there's anything reasonably close to your location.

I can recommend Julian Adams (Virginia) as well, though he doesn't have much on his website.

Prices are always tricky. I've successfully negotiated to lower the prices on some of my purchases. In the end, the price must be acceptable to both the buyer and the seller...if you think it's too expensive, ask someone else for their opinion, and don't be afraid to walk away. There's lots of stock out there. And you can definitely find decent stock (both quality and price) on ebay...as well as, of course, junk and overpriced trees.

Chris
 
George Muranaka has some cork bark elm trunks, among other things, and his prices are always fair. He's got a 20% sale going to the end of the month, but it's for pick-up only. Maybe you can haggle a bit.
 
I've got American Hornbeam, Chickasaw Plum, Muscadine Grape, Parsoni Juniper, Podocarpus, Lantana, Southern Red Cedar, Swamp Maple and Trident maple stock with serious trunks as prebonsai. Next I'm collecting some Sweet Gum and Parsley Leaf Hawthorn (has the coolest little leaves).

There is also someone from Louisiana who has some nice privet and water elm. I hope he chimes in!
 
Chris and Lisa from Telperion Farms and Julian Adams of Adams Bonsai are both a pleasure to do business with and have a great selection.
 
Second Brent as well. They have awesome large elms.
 
If you're interested in anything in particular from Telperion Farms, I will be up there on Saturday and I'd be happy to grab a few pics for you. I'll be posting what I pick up...
 
NewWorldBonsai said:
I've got American Hornbeam, Chickasaw Plum, Muscadine Grape, Parsoni Juniper, Podocarpus, Lantana, Southern Red Cedar, Swamp Maple and Trident maple stock with serious trunks as prebonsai. Next I'm collecting some Sweet Gum and Parsley Leaf Hawthorn (has the coolest little leaves).

There is also someone from Louisiana who has some nice privet and water elm. I hope he chimes in!
Click to expand...
That would be me. I'm getting a late spring start, but new trees will start showing up on my site very soon.

Thanks for the mention!

Zach
 
Also try Steve Cratty at Plant City Bonsai. Steve has a lot of new stock right now and several trees from Warren Hill's collection. Steve will gladly ship at a reasonable price. You also can't go wrong at Gregory Beach Bonsai and Bonsai South. Both solid up front nurseries.

plantcitybonsai.com

bonsaisouth.com

gregorybeachbonsai.com

Terry
 
Getting the right plant to bonsai

catfish chapstick said:
I think I'm at the point now where I have been growing trees long enough to spend some money on stock. Can anyone point me towards a source, internet or otherwise, where I could possibly get something really good? I don't mean a "finished" tree. Well, I don't know what I mean exactly. I just browsed Ebay and a few other sites. I have never been to a bonsai nursery so I don't know what stock is really worth.

I don't want a pine or a maple. I'd prefer something branchy with lots of possibilities. Elm maybe? I don't know exactly what I want but I'd like something unusual, like not the typical informal upright that you see so often. I also don't know what kind of price range since I've never done this before...

also nothing tropical.

I was thinking about just getting some nursery stock but it might be time for me to get something more expensive. thanks in advance
Click to expand...


Go to a local nursery & find a good sized plant you like. I just bought a Japanese boxwood (japonica) & styled it into a nice tree using a live oak as the style I was after. The internetbonsaiclub.com shows some by typing 'boxwood as live oak' & see what others have done.
 
Zach Smith said:
That would be me. I'm getting a late spring start, but new trees will start showing up on my site very soon.

Thanks for the mention!

Zach
Click to expand...

That's good to know. I checked out every photo on every site I could find and honestly the one tree I love is your twin trunk winged elm. I like it because its tall and different. Actually I liked all your trees. I'll stay tuned for the new stuff. I'm having a hard time deciding what exactly to do.

I'm assuming that it would do fine in my zone, winters and all. Am I right?
 
catfish chapstick said:
That's good to know. I checked out every photo on every site I could find and honestly the one tree I love is your twin trunk winged elm. I like it because its tall and different. Actually I liked all your trees. I'll stay tuned for the new stuff. I'm having a hard time deciding what exactly to do.

I'm assuming that it would do fine in my zone, winters and all. Am I right?
Click to expand...

Winged elm is good for zones 6-9, so you'd be in good shape with this species. I do always recommend that for trees traveling south to north, give a little extra care for the first few winters to allow the tree to acclimatize.

Thank you for the kind words.

Zach
 
Just returned from a visit to D & L Nursery in Ocklawaha, Florida. If you are in the Ocala, Mt Dora area you should stop in. He is way off the beaten path but has a very nice pre-bonsai and bonsai inventory and the prices are very fair. Of course was able to come away with a B Cypress & nice Boxwood. Pictures later. Their website is

www.dlnursery.com
 
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