Any bonsai people here?

[Paul Mc]

I'm asking because I love them, have tried over and over with baby trees/starter plugs, keep them alive a few years then they die.

I've read that this can be actually normal and beginners typically have better luck starting out with more mature plants. But oh my, pricing on mature ones can be quite steep!

Well, I have a gift certificate for $100 to Bonsai Boy in NY and I'm considering one. I just don't know anything about them, as in what would be the easiest for a beginner given the pricing.

Anyone with knowledge on this to help a poor newbie out?!

[Gage]

Like growing orchids, it depends somewhat on your conditions. Some vigorous plants for bonsai include trident maple, Chinese elm, green mound juniper (Juniperus procumbens nana). I wouldn't go for a pine or Japanese maple until you're more confident. I would highly recommend joining your local bonsai club, if there is one. You will have access to plants and great info.

[RosieC]

I only know one thing about bonsai... but it might relate to your problem...

You can't keep them inside year round, if you do they die after 18months - 2 years!

My father-in-law had one while I was living with them and it died after about 19 months inside. He thought it was due to over-watering but it actually died during a period when I had been away and no-one had watered it for a couple of months

Anyway, a few years later someone gave me a seedling plug kit and I read a lot about them before trying it. The first thing I learnt was they are OUTDOOR plants and should only be kept in the house short term... they need a winter rest!

[Paul Mc]

Thanks Gage!

I had considered the Bonsai Club, but their meeting time hasn't worked out for me. I broke my ribs the morning of their last meeting, so needless to say pain ruled and I didn't go, lol...

I have until the end of the year to use the certificate, so I can't wait for the bonsai meeting to roll back around.

I was thinking something I could leave outside year round in my back yard (if that's even possible). I have a huge pin oak tree that shades most of the backyard though, but during the winter without leaves makes windowsill growing for orchids much brighter.

I do have a sunny area in the far back of the yard that gets direct soon from around 11am until close to sunset.

I live in St. Louis, mo if that helps any at all.

[RosieC]

Another thing I've just thought of from my reading. It said that starter plugs were very difficult to get going (mine never got above about half-an-inch in height).

The suggestion on several web sites was to grow ordinary tree seedlings for a couple of years in the garden. They suggested just collecting seeds from local trees. Once they are a couple of years old in the garden (and thus established) you then spend time to trim and shape the down. I actually let a couple of self-set seedlings grow in an outside pot a few years back with the thought I might do that but never got around to it. Anyway this site said that growing them without restriction and outside for a couple of years gave much better chance of success than trying to start them inside and/or start restricting their growth too early. A friend of mine who does grow them agreed with that advice when I talked to him about it.

Anyway, as I said I have no real experience, just my reading

[Paul Mc]

Rosie, that may have been my issue. I had them in expensive ceramic pots and moved them inside during winter to ensure the pots wouldn't crack. Oops... I did put them next to our old drafty windows, but I'm quite sure it wasn't the same. Orchids seem to love those drafty windows, but I'm sure the bonsai needed more

[Paul Mc]

Thanks for the info and verification of what I had read as well Rosie!

I guess I'm asking for suggestions given my location based upon Bonsai Boy's list of available plants. I'd love to have something that flowers, but I also understand that my lighting may be less than ideal.

[Paul Mc]

Well, he has plenty if the juniper Gage recommended, and one of the maple, but none of the Chinese Elm that I can see yet, lol...

[NatalieS]

Junipers are beautiful as bonsai and quite hardy. As a bonsai enthusiast in my teens it was one of my starting trees and it was very forgiving of my initial attempts. They also teach you how to properly pinch out the growing tips. Trident maples are also easy to work with - Gage has given you good advice.

Rosie is also correct. What most people don't realise is that bonsai are outdoor plants. They are trees after all and the only thing that makes them different from the tree growing in your back garden is their size and the fact that they're grown in small pots. They need fresh air and sun and can be incredibly resilient if you prepare their growing area properly.

A relatively open area outside with a bit of very light shade cloth is good. Full sun does not hurt them or their leaves, but it will cause the soil in their pots to dry out very quickly. The light shade cloth protects them somewhat from very heavy rain and from excessive drying. Unlike orchids, if you want to go away or leave them out for winter, all you need to do is bury the pots in peat and put them somewhere sheltered. It'll also stop the pots from cracking in very cold weather. In Japan they often box their trees up for the coldest part of the winter. Most become dormant and so require neither watering or light.

You can get stock for bonsai from just about anywhere. You don't need to grow from seed. As Rosie suggested, you can take seedlings coming up naturally in the garden. You could get a small tree from your local garden centre and shape it by cutting the trunk and training a new lead. You could also grow from cuttings or by air-layering a particularly attractive branch on your favourite tree.

As a starter though, and since you have a voucher to spend, go for a medium to large bonsai from Bonsai Boy. You will find it easier to train the larger trees and their pots won't dry out as quickly as the smaller ones. Also, don't be fooled by size - a large bonsai tree does not necessarily equal an old tree, so they shouldn't be charging a lot more for a larger tree.

[Call_Me_Bob]

hi Paul!
I did alot of research over the years about bonsai. anf have learned alot! i havent been able to put alot into practice, because the quality stuff is expensive, but i could recommend a few things...


the first thing is that i looking at the website for bonsai boy, and in reality even their specimen trees are pretty lacking as far as shape and training goes.

as mentioned above, you can create bonsai out of garden stock or nursery trees from a local garden center. thats what i would recommend, if you really are interested in this, use the giftcard to buy supplies, wire, tools, etc, and go to a garden center and get a stock tree and work on it in the spring. and im sure folks at the bonsai club would help ya get started on that front!

as far as keeping it outdoors or indoors, if you want to get something you can keep outdoors all round, a temperate species would do well. something like a maple, juniper, firs, hollys, etc. there are many. if you want something you can keep indoors during winter, you can get a tropical bonsai, i would recommend a nice ficus, you could keep it indoors with your orchids during the winter.

also, here is a GREAT website you can read and learn
about bonsai. Bonsai Basics

if you really want to buy a tree there, out of all the trees i could find on that website, this one Flowering Texas Ebony (Pithecolobium Flexicaule) -the rest for the most part are just sticks in pots. this one isnt much better, but it is better than the rest..of course its really up to what you like. it would be temperate if your in zones 9b-11. otherwise it would need to be indoors during winter