Shibui
Imperial Masterpiece
Don't let sentiment slow you down.
I started with sticks but they were MY sticks and I had invested what seemed like a lot of time in them. After 10 years they had also taught me a lot about growing and developing bonsai and I'd come to realize that most of those trees were never going to become great bonsai. Just could not bring myself to ditch things I had nurtured and invested time and effort into but keeping those trees also meant less time and space for new trees that I could put new skills and knowledge into practice.
Fortunately someone turned the water off while we were away over a hot, summer long weekend. When we got home many of my trees were dead or dying - devastating at the time but I soon realized that the opportunity to start fresh had been offered.
I was able to acquire and propagate new stock that I could develop faster and better using what the previous trees had taught me.
Everyone has different needs and motivations.
I would much rather have a tree that I've developed - even if it has some faults - than a better tree grown and styled by someone else. Sure I still aspire to have perfect trees but deep down I get a sense of achievement that I created that.
I know that others are happy to 'own' a great bonsai even if they have had little to do with its creation and development.
Everyone is different so each person needs to decide how they can achieve their goals - DIY, buy or a combination.
My advice is to take a critical look at your current collection to see if any trees are holding you back. Be realistic but also be firm and objective.
Sometimes starting over is a much faster route to your goal but there is no one size fits all way to achieve those goals.
I started with sticks but they were MY sticks and I had invested what seemed like a lot of time in them. After 10 years they had also taught me a lot about growing and developing bonsai and I'd come to realize that most of those trees were never going to become great bonsai. Just could not bring myself to ditch things I had nurtured and invested time and effort into but keeping those trees also meant less time and space for new trees that I could put new skills and knowledge into practice.
Fortunately someone turned the water off while we were away over a hot, summer long weekend. When we got home many of my trees were dead or dying - devastating at the time but I soon realized that the opportunity to start fresh had been offered.
I was able to acquire and propagate new stock that I could develop faster and better using what the previous trees had taught me.
Everyone has different needs and motivations.
I would much rather have a tree that I've developed - even if it has some faults - than a better tree grown and styled by someone else. Sure I still aspire to have perfect trees but deep down I get a sense of achievement that I created that.
I know that others are happy to 'own' a great bonsai even if they have had little to do with its creation and development.
Everyone is different so each person needs to decide how they can achieve their goals - DIY, buy or a combination.
My advice is to take a critical look at your current collection to see if any trees are holding you back. Be realistic but also be firm and objective.
Sometimes starting over is a much faster route to your goal but there is no one size fits all way to achieve those goals.