My Buddy and Me

[Dunfiato]

What's up everyone!

My name is Sean and I'm from Fremont, California (bay area).

I was introduced to this forum because of this Juniper (nana) I adopted from a local nursery which I picked up and planted on the 20th.

This is my first tree and I'm juiced!

Just had my 29th birthday on the 17th and I finally decided to enrich my soul through the channel of Bonsai.

I want to give this little guy some time to mature a bit before I Bonsai him and I need knowledge like he needs water so I figure this will benefit the both of us before potting him into such a limited living environment.

Glad to be here with you all!

*The day before I purchased this tree I walked into the nearby nursery and told them I wanted to buy Bonsai seeds, lol, so please don't be shy to advise and criticize.

 

[Eric Group]

It is a tiny little Procumbens Nana Juniper, it needs to grow.

Leave it in the ground for a couple years then see what you got.

Not much more you need to do right now except find some other trees to fill up that big ole grow box!

 

[Dunfiato]

How much soil depth do you think would be good? That box is only about a foot deep.

 

[Alain]

The depth isn't that a problem, on the contrary as for bonsai you want roots to grow horizontally in order to develop a nice nebari.
1 foot is actually quite deep.

Btw there are some bonsai seeds, it's called seeds
Some very patient B-nut grow their trees from seeds (I'm definitively not one of them, the most patience I could show is to collect 1 year old baby trees).

Also you should put you location in your profile, some old farts like me don't have the memory to remember that you are from Ca

 

[M. Frary]

Welcome to the forum. Nice little grow area. The depth will be fine. Only thing is your juniper needs some company.

 

[Dunfiato]

Interesting, I was just mentioning to a friend who gardens but doesn't Bonsai about how I'd eventually like this tree to have exposed roots at the base of my tree.

Thanks Alain, I just looked up "Nebari."

Great news and info about the depth of my soil bed.

And as for these "Bonsai Seeds" I asked for at the nursery, I guess like many ill informed rookies to this art, I literally thought there was a tree species called "Bonsai." I had a good laugh walking back home after the lady informed me that Bonsai was more of an art method than a type of seed. Good times!

 

[Dunfiato]

Thanks for the warm welcome Frary.

Yes indeed, the party is being planned

 

[Cmanz]

If you want to go the see route, look into Trident maple and japanese maple. They are fast growing and fun to work with. The seeds are available from many sources online. The only problem with seeds is that they take a few years before you get to do much with them. Good luck. Welcome to the forum.

 

[Dunfiato]

Awesome! Thanks for the tidbit on faster growing seeds. I do look forward to popping a couple of seeds into the ground. To know you started your friend from germination as we get old, in my eyes is priceless.

Wish I had started my bonsai venture earlier in life. Although, I'd assume that the majority of us here have said the same thing, lol.

Take care bud, thanks again.

 

[Zerojoke]

Hi Sean, my name's Joe. I'd advise you against the seed route. You wind up spending a lot of just waiting for them to grow. Buying a few trees from the local nursery is a great idea! I'd continue to pick up a few of them. Depending on how far you want to take this, I'd try and find a local bonsai club and connect with a teacher of some sort. You'd be surprised how long it takes for something in a book to 'click' and how quickly someone can show you the technique in person. I regularly have "Aha, that's what my book was talking about" moments.

 

[sorce]

Welcome to Crazy Sean!

Isn't it wild to know ANY seed is a Bonsai seed!

Sorce

 

[dallas404]

very cool bonsai bro, actually i want again one, by the way im studying animation and working on timeshare attorney business, feel free to ask something : )