Newbie with pre bonsai stock

[Jawshyyyyy]

Hello all,

This is my first post on the forum and marks the beginning of my journey into the world of bonsai. I am looking for some tips, opinions, direction, and just overall help getting started with two pre bonsai trees I recently picked up at a local nursery.

I purchased two trees earlier this week, a Japanese maple as well as a Japanese larch. They came pre-potted in bonsai pots and I spoke to the resident bonsai experts at the store and was told the trees looked healthy and were good starter bonsai.



I'm really just wondering where I go from here. I feel like they are still too young and small to begin training, and I would like them to thicken up and grow a bit in the future. Any feedback is welcome and much appreciated!

Thank you so much, I look forward to being a part of the bonsai community!

 

[eferguson1974]

Welcome. Bring thick skin and you'll be ok. I think your right, just let'em grow to get thicker for now and learn to take care of them. I imgine those trees want to be outside and that inside is not a healthy place for the.. I dont know about those species. Get some ficus for inside if you want inside bonsai. Enjoy the journey, I sure do...

 

[Stan Kengai]

I am usually of the camp "if you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all." OK this isn't the worst nursery soil I've ever seen. But WOW, you paid money for these.

 

[Jawshyyyyy]

Welcome. Bring thick skin and you'll be ok. I think your right, just let'em grow to get thicker for now and learn to take care of them. I imgine those trees want to be outside and that inside is not a healthy place for the.. I dont know about those species. Get some ficus for inside if you want inside bonsai. Enjoy the journey, I sure do...

I'm not planning on keeping anything inside, it was dark when I got them home, and I wanted to get a decently lighted picture. Should I get them some bigger pots and replant them? I'm very new to this whole thing other than reading articles and books for the past year or so. I know these well take time to mature. I'm patient. Thanks for your kindness!

 

[Jawshyyyyy]

I am usually of the camp "if you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all." OK this isn't the worst nursery soil I've ever seen. But WOW, you paid money for these.

Hey there! Sorry to have upset you. Do you have any alternative suggestions on where I could start? They were 5 dollars a piece. I live in the PNW and have heard from multiple sites, forums and people that planning bonsai in pure pumice is the way to go due to the heavy rainfall we get. I understand that given your experience, this seems stupid. I'm trying to be humble, if you could do the same.

Thanks for any help you may have for me!

 

[aml1014]

I'm not planning on keeping anything inside, it was dark when I got them home, and I wanted to get a decently lighted picture. Should I get them some bigger pots and replant them? I'm very new to this whole thing other than reading articles and books for the past year or so. I know these well take time to mature. I'm patient. Thanks for your kindness!

You can repot into a bigger pot to thicken the trunk , the fastest way is the good old ground so it depends on how you want to do it.
Oh and by the way pumice is a great substrate.
Aaron

 

[Jawshyyyyy]

You can repot into a bigger pot to thicken the trunk , the fastest way is the good old ground so it depends on how you want to do it.

Aaron

Great! Thanks so much. Do you have any suggestions on finding a tree that I could begin working on in the meantime? Maybe finding an older juniper or pine at a nursery would be the way to go? I guess what I'm wondering is how did everyone get started in bonsai?

 

[Stan Kengai]

Hey there! Sorry to have upset you. Do you have any alternative suggestions on where I could start? They were 5 dollars a piece. I live in the PNW and have heard from multiple sites, forums and people that planning bonsai in pure pumice is the way to go due to the heavy rainfall we get. I understand that given your experience, this seems stupid. I'm trying to be humble, if you could do the same.

Thanks for any help you may have for me!

Ok, good. $5 a piece probably covers the pot and the soil. Now plant these out in the ground or growing bed in the spring and let grow for 20 years. And in the mean time, visit some of the many bonsai nurseries you have near you and get a better start on the hobby. Below are a couple of good ones, that I know of.

http://www.weetree.com/
http://www.telfarms.com/

 

[Jawshyyyyy]

I

Ok, good. $5 a piece probably covers the pot and the soil. Now plant these out in the ground or growing bed in the spring and let grow for 20 years. And in the mean time, visit some of the many bonsai nurseries you have near you and get a better start on the hobby. Below are a couple of good ones, that I know of.

http://www.weetree.com/
http://www.telfarms.com/

Awesome. I spoke to the gentleman at the nursery about weetree. I'll have a look out there. It seems like the bare minimum I'm looking to spend at these places is about $150. Is that fairly typical of a starter plant? I see they have some pre bonsai that are relatively the same size as my current, but like you said, unless I'm planning on waiting for 20 years, those aren't what I'm looking for.

 

[aml1014]

I


Awesome. I spoke to the gentleman at the nursery about weetree. I'll have a look out there. It seems like the bare minimum I'm looking to spend at these places is about $150. Is that fairly typical of a starter plant? I see they have some pre bonsai that are relatively the same size as my current, but like you said, unless I'm planning on waiting for 20 years, those aren't what I'm looking for.

I personally started with nursery stock until I was comfortable not killing things then I started paying a bit more money on larger pre bonsai material that doesn't need as much work as the nursery stock, I also grow from seed which many say take to long I think that all depends on species and climate.

Aaron

 

[Jawshyyyyy]

I personally started with nursery stock until I was comfortable not killing things then I started paying a bit more money on larger pre bonsai material that doesn't need as much work as the nursery stock, I also grow from seed which many say take to long I think that all depends on species and climate.

Aaron

Fantastic. I'll head out soon and try to find something suitable for my area. Maybe a juniper or elm. When I purchase, what types of things am I looking for in a tree? Evenly spread roots in 8 directions is something I hear a lot, trunk thickness, .etc?

Thanks so much for the help

 

[Jawshyyyyy]

Fantastic. I'll head out soon and try to find something suitable for my area. Maybe a juniper or elm. When I purchase, what types of things am I looking for in a tree? Evenly spread roots in 8 directions is something I hear a lot, trunk thickness, .etc?

Thanks so much for the help

I am also interested in growing from seed. Which species grows the fastest in your experience?

 

[Redwood Ryan]

I am also interested in growing from seed. Which species grows the fastest in your experience?

Just understand that growing from seed will take years and years and years before training can begin. In that sense, wondering which species grows fastest doesn't matter so much. Your best bet would probably be Chinese Elm or Trident Maple.

 

[Jawshyyyyy]

Just understand that growing from seed will take years and years and years before training can begin. In that sense, wondering which species grows fastest doesn't matter so much. Your best bet would probably be Chinese Elm or Trident Maple.

That sounds great. I plan on devoting plenty of time to learning the art over my lifetime, so I'm not worried about time spent growing. That's all part of the experience and journey. I just didn't know if there was a huge difference in growth times of certain species.

 

[aml1014]

That sounds great. I plan on devoting plenty of time to learning the art over my lifetime, so I'm not worried about time spent growing. That's all part of the experience and journey. I just didn't know if there was a huge difference in growth times of certain species.

I grow mostly siberian elm,silver maple, japanese maple, mimosas, and mulberrys, all grow quickly in my climate except the japanese maple.

Aaron

 

[sorce]

Seems you got a great deal on pumice!
You practically robbed them!

It's been a while since we seen an ACTUAL "stick in a pot".

Remaining humble.....
They're better than the 2 foot tall S curve Fukien tea I almost spent $300 on when I was green...well, I never had the $300, but if I did, it would have been the worst $ I ever spent In my life!

No worries feller!

You'll shit when you get to those other nurseries.....be sure to take a leak before you start looking!

Welcome to Crazy!

Sorce

 

[parhamr]

I’ll verify that pumice works great in the rainy PNW.

 

[milehigh_7]

I am also interested in growing from seed. Which species grows the fastest in your experience?

How old are ya???

 

[milehigh_7]

First thing a new person should do is get a $100 bill and promptly light it on fire... If you can do that without flinching you are ready to take the next step in your training...

 

[coppice]

As long as you understand that the first few stumps you collect will get trained into trainwrecks.

Your first job will be to keep them alive and transplanted into soil good for bonsai.

Those first two twigs will let you get used to close handling on a daily basis for a tree. If you don't handle them daily outdoors, they will die and you'll loose interest.

Craigs-list, free-cycle, and trash day are where your going to hunt up your first projects. Stump them and work them into proper soil.