Terrific Chikugo-En Juniper

[goosetown]

First of all, every bit of praise that's been heaped upon Gary's nursery was absolutely spot on. Though not the HUGEST bonsai nursery I've ever been to, Gary makes incredible use of his space and has some really, really stellar trees. If you go there, fear not - you WILL find something that you love, and as you're about to find out, the $$ are incredibly reasonable.

I spent about 20 minutes poking around until I came to this particular Juniper, and when I kept walking back to it and inspecting it, I knew it was the one I was looking for - established and in need of the typical clean-up and typical juniper maintenance. The price said $140, and I knew there was no way that could be correct, so I readied my wallet.

I asked Gary over and we discussed it for a while - his guesstimate is that it's 18-20 years old, and we both figured it was probably a San Jose graft. He gave me some tips on wiring/trimming, we talked about the repot next Spring, and then I asked him how much the tree REALLY was. He looked at the pot. "Oh yeah, this is $140," he told me. I about fell over. For a tree of this size and structure, I feel like that's highway robbery. But he insisted that was indeed the price.

Brought it home, looked it over for about 20 minutes, found the front, and started clipping very carefully. Ended up with what you see below. Think the has the potential to be a really fantastic tree one of these days. Looking forward to doing some minor wiring here and there within the next couple weekends.

 

[october]

Looks good... That is a pretty good price.. Actually, the price at another nursery, might be a little higher.. maybe $175, but not much more than that. Rough material is much cheaper than finished stock.. Don't forget, you will need to probably buy a training pot. I don't think that this tree can make it in a bonsai pot on the next repot. However, it might be able to go into an oversized bonsai pot for its first pot. Then 2-3 years later, you'll need to buy another pot. Also, wire and soil...

Tree = $140
Training pot = $9
bonsai soil = $10
Final bonsai pot = $25
Wire = $10
3-5 years to get this tree to where you want = priceless

Rob

 

[goosetown]

Yeah, I'm really looking forward to the possibilities. Gary suggested several training pots, but since I won't need one until next April or so, there was no point in buying one today. Plus, it gives me an excuse to go back then in case I didn't have one already

Looks good... That is a pretty good price.. Actually, the price at another nursery, might be a little higher.. maybe $175, but not much more than that. Rough material is much cheaper than finished stock.. Don't forget, you will need to probably buy a training pot. I don't think that this tree can make it in a bonsai pot on the next repot. However, it might be able to go into an oversized bonsai pot for its first pot. Then 2-3 years later, you'll need to buy another pot. Also, wire and soil...

Tree = $140
Training pot = $9
bonsai soil = $10
Final bonsai pot = $25
Wire = $10
3-5 years to get this tree to where you want = priceless

Rob

 

[Brian Van Fleet]

Good score! The Ishiis are particularly well-known for their kishu-on-San Jose grafts, this appears to be a great example.
FWIW, there's a good article in Bonsai Today #75 on Mas, Gary, and the nursery.
Congratulations.

 

[goosetown]

Muchas. Will check that out.

A note on my surprise with the price, as it's tough to tell some stuff in the pictures:

1. I figured it'd be somewhere between $200-225.

2. It's a terrific size, especially for the space I have left.

3. It's tough to tell, but it's not just untouched stock - this tree has definitely been worked on to some extent based on the styling and (potential) pad work. The distinction there is important, because it's clear Gary worked with this tree instead of just letting it go. For that reason alone I figured the price would be higher.

4. The last part was pure excitement in finding a tree that was the exact size and type I'd been looking for. So many styling possibilities (however subtle), some terrific potential jin material, and a shape that I found incredibly pleasing. So giddiness: big factor.

Going to have some fun with this guy in the coming years.

Good score! The Ishiis are particularly well-known for their kishu-on-San Jose grafts, this appears to be a great example.
FWIW, there's a good article in Bonsai Today #75 on Mas, Gary, and the nursery.
Congratulations.

 

[edprocoat]

Goose, the most important part is that is pleases you. Thats a nice looking tree and I bet it will be a great looking Bonsai in time. Good luck with it.

ed

 

[mat]

Looks pretty good to me. I've found a couple pre-bonsai hidden on benches at nurseries that have obviously had more work than others. They're among my favorite trees. Photos from some different angles might help us to better picture this one. I'll be visiting Gary's nursery in a few weeks. I hope something like this doesn't catch my eye, or I may need to buy it another plane ticket for the ride home.

The soil your little ones are in in photo 4 looks pretty "dirty" though. Given any thought to putting them in something with better drainage?

 

[goosetown]

This picture was taken just after a watering, so that's why it looks so dark. It's an all-organic sand/pumice/soil mix and it actually drains really well, especially in the dry SoCal heat.

A lot of people have recommended an inorganic mix, and I'm sure it would work. But aside from my aesthetic preference for organic (admittedly the least of my concern), my trees are doing really well and I've figured out the right watering schedule for the soil. In working with some bonsai people here in the LA area, I've found the organic mix I'm using works great with the climate. Might well try the synthetic stuff at some point, but right now I'm in a "ain't broke, don't fix" pattern

Looks pretty good to me. I've found a few pre-bonsai hidden on benches at nurseries that have obviously had more work than others. They're among my favorite trees. Photos from a few different angles might help us to better picture this one. I'll be visiting Gary's nursery in a few weeks. I hope something like this doesn't catch my eye, or I may need to buy it another plane ticket for the ride home.

The soil your little ones are in in photo 4 looks pretty "dirty" though. Given any thought to putting them in something with better drainage?

 

[goosetown]

I have good/bad news for you - you're GOING to find something that catches your eye, especially if you're into junipers and pines. He has a pretty amazing selection considering the amount of space he has to work with. And a really cool Akita.

I'll be visiting Gary's nursery in a few weeks. I hope something like this doesn't catch my eye, or I may need to buy it another plane ticket for the ride home.

 

[mat]

I have good/bad news for you - you're GOING to find something that catches your eye, especially if you're into junipers and pines. He has a pretty amazing selection considering the amount of space he has to work with. And a really cool Akita.

I'll take that as good news (as far as my travel plans). I'm not particularly into pines or junipers. May sound like sacrilege to some here, but I don't have any pine trees other than the big slash pines in my backyard, which I hate. I have a few ex-Home Depot junipers, but nothing good.

I don't consider sand & pumice to be organic? At any rate, as long as it's draining well you should be fine. I have a few things that are mostly organic soil (since they came that way & I haven't repotted). They drain right away so I'm in no hurry.

 

[Projekt Robi]

if you dont find anything there you could try house of bonsai they have huge lot of juni materials and its only about 20mins away from Chekugo-eh

 

[goosetown]

Not sacrilege at all. As someone said earlier in this thread, one of the most important things about bonsai is that you like what you're caring for. Far be it for me or anyone else to ever tell you what you should like.

Are sand/pumice not considered organic in bonsai? I meant it as in "produced naturally by the earth", but maybe the terminology is different. But yeah - it holds just enough moisture for my Zone and still drains very well. It sounds like you're growing mostly deciduous stuff in Florida, and I won't claim to know anything about how soils work for that vast array of species.

I'll take that as good news (as far as my travel plans). I'm not particularly into pines or junipers. May sound like sacrilege to some here, but I don't have any pine trees other than the big slash pines in my backyard, which I hate. I have a few ex-Home Depot junipers, but nothing good.

I don't consider sand & pumice to be organic? At any rate, as long as it's draining well you should be fine. I have a few things that are mostly organic soil (since they came that way & I haven't repotted). They drain right away so I'm in no hurry.

 

[mat]

if you dont find anything there you could try house of bonsai they have huge lot of juni materials and its only about 20mins away from Chekugo-eh

thanks. I plan to stop by there too. Mostly just to look. Al & Goose made some suggestions in the thread linked below. I want to stop by a nursery a day while we're there, unless I leave everyone at home for a day and take the rental out by myself to brave the LA traffic (unlikely).

http://bonsainut.com/forums/showthread.php?8443-Heading-to-the-Left-Coast&highlight=left+coast