What to look for, in a nursery plant ?

[JohnW63]

As I was at my local Home Depot, getting some pool supplies, I took the time to wonder through the nursery section. Due to my new interest in bonsai, I no longer look at plants and trees and wonder were I might plant it, I now look at the base of the trunk and wonder if it could be a good bonsai starter project. I know traditional bonsai has a set of rules or guidelines about branch structure and ratio for trunk to tree height, but ... in the end, I suppose it's all up to the grower to decide what they want. Still, I suspect there are basics to look for in a good specimen. So, if you are looking for starter plants, what do you look for that will help make it a successful bonsai, down the road ?

The two plants I saw that interested me were Crape Myrtles and a selection "dwarf" Crape Myrtles and Bougainvillea. In the case of the second one, which is normally a vine, how do you get it to be a nice solid single trunked tree ?

 

[Ris]

So your in the right track, I would say look for material that you can have a jump start on.
1: Nebari, good radial spread even if half is good the rest can be approach grafted.
2: trunk movement, different styles for different trees and personal preferences.
3: trunk taper. No reverse tapering. Example trunk starts 2" but higher up the trunk thicken.
4: branching, thicker branches lower smaller upper. No branch thicker than trunk...
Those are key points I look for in every tree. Now a cedar which I like I won't push for a nebari but for branches so each tree has its up's and downs...

Rishi.

 

[GrimLore]

So your in the right track, I would say look for material that you can have a jump start on.
1: Nebari, good radial spread even if half is good the rest can be approach grafted.
2: trunk movement, different styles for different trees and personal preferences.
3: trunk taper. No reverse tapering. Example trunk starts 2" but higher up the trunk thicken.
4: branching, thicker branches lower smaller upper. No branch thicker than trunk...
Those are key points I look for in every tree. Now a cedar which I like I won't push for a nebari but for branches so each tree has its up's and downs...

Rishi.

Everything he said and the correct species and a plan for it. After some time you will look at a plant and being familiar with it you will feel it needs a home with you.

 

[JohnW63]

How do you check for a nice radial nebari ? Bring a little rack or trowel with you and try not to make a mess ?

 

[Wee]

I just use my fingers....I always leave a nursery with dirty fingernails and even dirtier pants. I have gotten my share of funny looks as well.

Brian

 

[Larix]

HD and the other BB's usually buy locally from a regional grower that can support the stores in that region. Check the label on the pot for the grower's location. Check the trees as suggested in the prior posts(I use my same 25 yr old Leatherman multi tool to poke around in the roots and anywhere else I damn well please on a tree/shrub). Also, be sure the trees you're looking at will agree with your available home micro-climate. C.Myrtles s/b exploding right now, especially in Z5+ and above, after the last 2 weeks. Boogies can be staked and or wired, and like to fill their pot with roots before flowering sometimes depending on variety. You are on the right track, ask questions. What zone are you in?

 

[JohnW63]

I;d guess I am in Zone 9. It can snow here, on occasion, and hit gets well past 100f too. Normally that means that Bougainvillea will not survive. Why my local stores keep stocking it is beyond me. I saw an Avacado tree at Home Depot that night too. Neither can handle the cold weather ! Which is actually one reason I thought about getting into bonsai. I can grow a Bougainvillea outside and bring it in doors, when it gets too cold ! I saw a nice one at the Huntington Library ....

To be honest it looked much fuller when I saw it. For those who haven't been there, the Huntington has a nice collection. Here is a good search string to put in the URL bar:

https://www.google.com/search?q=hun...HFigLqhoHoAw&ved=0CAcQ_AUoAQ&biw=1402&bih=735

 

[Paradox]

Most, if not all of us that live where it can snow provide winter protection for our trees.

Some of us bury them in mulch against the house, some use an unheated shed or garage, and some have a winter greenhouse.

Update your profile with your location (city and/or state) so we can give you better advice.

Also, finding all those things in a nursery tree will be difficult. You can get lucky though. I try to look for a trunk first, nebari second.
Nebari and branching can be developed later.

 

[dick benbow]

having worked at a nursery in my youth, I can explain why it's important to dig down in the nursery pots to find nebari.

many items come in bare root and are potted up in one gallon nursery pots. Initial care for depth is given moreattention. The following season with those that did not sell, they are upsized to the next pot . It's done by jerking the tree out of it's present pot, throwing in a coupla handfulls of soil mix into the new pot and then throwing the tree in the pot and covering with no regards to existing root level with new soil. There is no skill done here, just done as fast as one can to move on to the next chore,

So now you know why you have to get a little dirt under your nails to see if you can uncover what the roots look like.

surprisingly even pre bonsai in some bonsai nurseries have branches worked on a little to help sell them but most are initially purchased from just a nursery and no attention is given to the roots has been my experience.

 

[GrimLore]

If the Nursery all provides landscape services you may want to talk to the owner and arrange for some dumpster diving for plants they remove from sites... In a sense they profit because you are reducing the amount they need hauled.

 

[JohnW63]

Paradox,

According to the interactive map, I'm in Zone 8b.