leatherback
The Treedeemer
So.. Getting started.. This post will probably cost me my head & credibility at the nut (Not that I had any to start with 
)
One thing that is good to know: Bonsai are typically created by cutting down a much larger plant. That being said.. The best bonsai are either from collected trees at very high altitudes / dry regions where growth is so slow that they grow inches per decade only OR from seed/cutting.
So.. you have fast bonsai (Cut down from big trees) and you have slow bonsai (Yamadori, Seed, Cutting). Either is fine.
Starting from seed is a slow process. You have only a few things to do (Plant the seeds; Wait for germination, water the first season, Cut the taproot & initial wiring. Grow, water, work the roots, replant. Wait. Cut. Wait. Work the roots, wait). First 5 years are done, and you may be lucky enough to have a 1-2inch trunk by now. And if you have done your work right, a nice rootspread.
You skipped the seedling stage, and have a cutting-grown Japanese maple, and 2 year old Larix seedling. These are ready to be planted out in a growing bed or anderson flat. Make sure you work the roots, and make sure you do this at the right time of year. (Find a bonsai club, ask for advice).
I found that growing things in shallow containers in coarsu substrate instead of soil takes getting used to. And plants may die (will die?). So I would also get some nice plants at a nursery, which you should spend anywhere from 10 buck in the sale, to perhaps 50 buck for. Get a juniper, taxus, trident maple, field maple, pine (Not sure which species does well in your region) or hornbeam. Best would be to get one evergreen as well as one deciduous to get a feel for both. These species are typically used for bonsai, respond well, and a lot of info can be found on working with them.
The longest to develop is a nice rootspread or Nebari. Roots should be evenly distributed around the trunk, should vary a lot in thickness and gradually disappear in the soil. This is VERY rare for nursery stock. However, they do exist. THat being sad.. This plant is your training plant, so do not worry too much.
Next longest is the trunk. It should have a nice smooth taper in the trunk, and the trunk should have no straight sections (Or you should be able to find a smooth undulating line into the canopy). That gives you a base to search for.
Hope this helps.
)One thing that is good to know: Bonsai are typically created by cutting down a much larger plant. That being said.. The best bonsai are either from collected trees at very high altitudes / dry regions where growth is so slow that they grow inches per decade only OR from seed/cutting.
So.. you have fast bonsai (Cut down from big trees) and you have slow bonsai (Yamadori, Seed, Cutting). Either is fine.
Starting from seed is a slow process. You have only a few things to do (Plant the seeds; Wait for germination, water the first season, Cut the taproot & initial wiring. Grow, water, work the roots, replant. Wait. Cut. Wait. Work the roots, wait). First 5 years are done, and you may be lucky enough to have a 1-2inch trunk by now. And if you have done your work right, a nice rootspread.
You skipped the seedling stage, and have a cutting-grown Japanese maple, and 2 year old Larix seedling. These are ready to be planted out in a growing bed or anderson flat. Make sure you work the roots, and make sure you do this at the right time of year. (Find a bonsai club, ask for advice).
I found that growing things in shallow containers in coarsu substrate instead of soil takes getting used to. And plants may die (will die?). So I would also get some nice plants at a nursery, which you should spend anywhere from 10 buck in the sale, to perhaps 50 buck for. Get a juniper, taxus, trident maple, field maple, pine (Not sure which species does well in your region) or hornbeam. Best would be to get one evergreen as well as one deciduous to get a feel for both. These species are typically used for bonsai, respond well, and a lot of info can be found on working with them.
The longest to develop is a nice rootspread or Nebari. Roots should be evenly distributed around the trunk, should vary a lot in thickness and gradually disappear in the soil. This is VERY rare for nursery stock. However, they do exist. THat being sad.. This plant is your training plant, so do not worry too much.
Next longest is the trunk. It should have a nice smooth taper in the trunk, and the trunk should have no straight sections (Or you should be able to find a smooth undulating line into the canopy). That gives you a base to search for.
Hope this helps.
