Any Bonsai growers here?

[Nilsen]

Ive always wanted to grow one but never had the time before. Gonna go buy one today and im also going to get a pot, bonsai soil and seeds so that i can grow one from scratch too.

Anyone else have any experience with them?

[Nefarious]

I'm trying my hand at it right now, unfortunately it's not going so well.

I took sprouts from my Apple, Peach and Plum trees from the backyard and just keep cutting them back. Once they start to thicken up I will start forcing them with wire and such. I was thinking of tying them all together.

[Nilsen]

Cool.

Was looking around town today to find some but i didnt find any i liked the price or look of. I bought a pot, a pair of bonsai sissors and some wire and will order some seeds as soon as i figure out what kind i want. I can use some local tree types, but they are all seasonal and needs to be kept in cold places during winter so their internal clock doesnt go bananas.

[F6Fraven]

I've been growing bonsai's for a few years now. As for buying seeds from a store or online, just don't do it, it won't work. My advice is to buy just about any bonsai book you can get your hands on and learn from them( Colin Lewis and Dave Joyce have a few good books).
  I really wouldn't buy anything at a store labeled or sold as a bonsai either, you'll buy them and they will look good to you then, but in a few years you'll wonder why you ever bought them.
  Usually i just go into the woods and find a few seedlings or older plants that look good (the ideal tree has a thick, sturdy trunk, flexible branches, and medium to small leaves). After I find what i want I dig around the roots and pull it up. I then remove about 1/2- 2/3 of the roots including the taproot. It's usually better to plant it in a growing bed or large pot for a few years to let it thicken up before you put it into a bonsai pot.                                                                                                                                                If you want to grow bonsai's inside I would suggest a small leaved Ficus, Chinese Elm, or Saggiteria. Outdoors I would suggest Japenese or Trident Maple, Hornbeam, Beech and Hawthorne. Going back to the idea of having small leaves, something in the line of a Sugar Maple or Tulip tree wouldn't work.
  Since you're just starting out I would just expiriment around. Don't buy anything expensive that you wouldn't want to kill. I would just buy a bush or something from a garden center, trim it up, try shaping with wire, root pruning, grafting, air layering, leaf size reduction etc.

[Nilsen]

Thx!

I do plan on getting some books and there is a club around here that holds courses. Think its something me and my wife could enjoy doing together. Havent decided on what to get yet, but i have been thinking about a Ficus as its going to stay indoors all year and one of the forums listed them as fairly easy to start with for beginners.

[Jenks]

I've been growing bonsai's for a few years now. As for buying seeds from a store or online, just don't do it, it won't work. My advice is to buy just about any bonsai book you can get your hands on and learn from them( Colin Lewis and Dave Joyce have a few good books).
  I really wouldn't buy anything at a store labeled or sold as a bonsai either, you'll buy them and they will look good to you then, but in a few years you'll wonder why you ever bought them.
  Usually i just go into the woods and find a few seedlings or older plants that look good (the ideal tree has a thick, sturdy trunk, flexible branches, and medium to small leaves). After I find what i want I dig around the roots and pull it up. I then remove about 1/2- 2/3 of the roots including the taproot. It's usually better to plant it in a growing bed or large pot for a few years to let it thicken up before you put it into a bonsai pot.                                                                                                                                                If you want to grow bonsai's inside I would suggest a small leaved Ficus, Chinese Elm, or Saggiteria. Outdoors I would suggest Japenese or Trident Maple, Hornbeam, Beech and Hawthorne. Going back to the idea of having small leaves, something in the line of a Sugar Maple or Tulip tree wouldn't work.
  Since you're just starting out I would just expiriment around. Don't buy anything expensive that you wouldn't want to kill. I would just buy a bush or something from a garden center, trim it up, try shaping with wire, root pruning, grafting, air layering, leaf size reduction etc.

I've been killing Bonsai trees for about 13 yrs now. The above is excellent advice I would emphasize choosing your wee tree wisely. Most Bonsai's are OUTDOOR trees and as such, cannot and will not survive indoors. They will do just fine outside in winter in most areas of the US, with just a little care.  I personally find trying to keep a tropical bonsai looking good indoors too time consuming and costly with the lighting. However, I know people who have fine examples, just not for me.

Look around your area for a Bonsai Society, you can usually attend meetings for no charge. This is an excellent resource for knowledge and advice as well as material to work on.

I find Japanese Juniper to be the an excellent tree for quicker results, ease of training and forgiveness of mistakes.

edit: lol, I just noticed Nilsen you are in Norway?  Well I think you will have to be more diligent in your winter care, but still doable.

[ROX]

I am working on a bonzai lemon tree.

Once the seeds sprout--into a 10 gallon bucket it goes.



ROX

[crazyivan]

I just planted tomato plants last week. Already somethings took abite out of one. Guess I need to go buy some mesh. KILL THE WABBIT!
nd

You can make bonsai , out of maple trees? And to have an outside bonzai.Wouldn't it have to have a mild climit? All questions, never have grown a bonsai tree before. I'll go check some websites out.

[maddafinga]

The girlfriend and I grow several, maybe twenty in all.  We add a few each year and it seems like one or two always dies every year for no apparent reason.  Any tree can be a bonsai, bonsai just means "tree in a pot" but some are much more suited to it.  Maples can really be made into some very beatuiful bonsai, especially the Japanese Maples with the red foliage.  It's neat watching the leaves get smaller every time they grow back.  Basically all bonsai are outside trees, you only want to bring them in for a week or two at most, and only for display.  I prefer to do my maintenance outside.  You need to protect them from extended freezes but really most trees need a good cold period to help them in their growth cycles and to stay healthy.  Any tree that can survive your climate can survive just fine as a bonsai. 

I just found a small spruce at the local Lowes, it's got a nice thick trunk and good branch structure.  I plan to prune it back soon into a good formal upright style.  I'll probably wire it next year in the fall. I just use basic pruning sheers you can get anywhere to do the majority of my pruning.  I did order a circle cutter and a root pick and a set of the good Japanese style wire clippers.  Those clippers are the best for taking wire off, tons of leverage on a very small cutting surface.  With a little bit of reading online and out of books you can find, you can educate yourself pretty well really.  At least you'll have the basics down well enough to get a start.  As for the styling though, you'll want to check into  a local bonsai club, you'll find people who can help you quite a bit in learning to wire and what and how to prune back.  Bonsai are neat!