Hi there, just my 2c as a beginner (5 years since I started collecting), and by no means do I want to offend anyone here, but I think some people on here have been in the art for many years, or fortunate enough to have parents or figures that have instilled in them the value of good arboristic practices, or have had access to the space required to grow out in the ground. Personally, I've not had any of these. From a beginners perspective, I think it's more to do with beginners getting the 3Ds when starting by seed: disillusioned, dissatisfied and disappointed. I personally hate starter kits, as many newbies anticipate to have a fully formed bonsai within a year or two from them. It's a rip off whereby well intentioned, but gullible people are basically conned into purchasing a few items which could be got at a fraction of the price if they purchased it separately. When things obviously don't progress as fast as desired, interest wanes, and the WHOLE set ends up in cupboard somewhere (sans soil). By starting with a nice pre bonsai, or even a few simple nursery trees, interest can then build by seeing near immediate results. I attended a workshop at a popular retail nursery on behalf of my club, and so many people don't know how long it actually takes for anything resembling a tree to get formed.
I wasted shed loads on just a few of these "kits", and the few seeds that did actually pop up all dampened off eventually, obviously due to my ignorance (caring for a tree differs greatly to caring for a seedling). I almost quit many times. It's been an expensive journey to date for me, but joining a club, I grew to see that, tools notwithstanding, it didn't have to be.
Yes, starting by seed is fantastic (I personally have 30 JRP and 20 JBP that are now 2 years old), but only once you have a few nice trees going already.
In a nutshell, if you have a small interest in the art, don't get a starter kit, rather buy seeds and some coir and a couple of seedling trays to get them started, but also get one or two pre bonsai so that you don't feel to bad when they eventually die, you'll still have your big tree to keep you going.
