AusBonsai

Hi I'm a newbie in sydney and wanted to get some hands on pre bonsai stock but I've had difficulty finding things that are affordable. Can someone tell me different ways to get stock. Thanks

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Hi Chipmonk and welcome
Heaps of good bonsai nurseries in Sydney just google which one is close to you.
You'll get better plants and advice from any bonsai nursery than a commercial one.
There's Ray Nesci [Dural] or Bonsai south [Caringbah] both excellent, depending which is closer to you.
Bonsai Environment [Wynyard]. I see are having a closing down sale, GOOD place to start .
As for cheaper/free stock a few options are garden renovations, keep eyes on local area for those.
Any demolition site redevelopment etc. Generally they bulldoze everything in sight so they are good.
Only down side is you get a little dirty digging trees out but they are free. I look at it as saving trees
Personally I always keep a few digging tools in the back of the car for those unexpected opportunities
hope that help a little
cheers.

Thanks for the useful info

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Hi There

There is also Padre Poi Bonsai @ Annongrove around the corner form Ray Nesci.
http://www.padrepiobonsai.com.au/index.html

There are lots of ways to get stock for bonsai:
Grow your own: - seeds, cuttings or layers. seed and cuttings take time. Be prepared to spend a few years developing your bonsai. Layering can yield a thicker trunk in shorter time.
Commercial nurseries: Plants will be a couple of years old so saves some time but will be a bit more expensive. Commercial propagators do not spend time preparing roots or trunk so you'll need to choose wisely.
Specialist bonsai nurseries: Most spend extra time to prepare plants with good bonsai attributes - trunks with bends, good lateral roots, etc. Many will, also stock older, better developed plants. Be prepared to pay a bit more for the extra time and effort involved in preparing better specimens.
Club meetings and bonsai shows: A good source of stock that has been grown by bonsai growers. many bargains because the growers do not have the overheads of commercial nurseries or may be desperate to get rid of excess stock.
Collected trees: Rob has already said he keeps tools in the car just in case. Suitable plants can be found in gardens and as weeds in vacant blocks, along roads and on farms. Try to get permission before digging and rehabilitate the site afterwards so we don't get a bad name as bonsai collectors.
Purchase established bonsai: this is usually the most expensive as you will be paying for years of patient work by someone else. Learn what is a good bonsai before investing big money because there are occasionally unscrupulous vendors selling poor quality at high prices - see some threads on Ausbonsai for examples.

As in most things you will usually need to pay for what you get. Quality does cost extra.

Hi Neil
Great advise.

All good advice.

As a relative newbie myself, I'll add that while it's good to buy cheap stock and learn (because your mistakes - when you kill a plant, which you will - won't be so costly). That said, if I had my time again, I'd buy quality stock earlier. All the money I have 'frittered away' on cheaper stock - could have been saved to buy better stock from clubs and quality bonsai nurseries.

As I've noted in a few threads too ... don't discount collected stuff.. suckers, seedlings that sprout from your own garden etc... and the odd rescue as fun stock to learn with too.

I reckon it's smart to be a spend thrift and smart not to buy expensive plants that you may not know how to care for over time ....but once you've got the basics, think about quality over quantity and 'invest' accordingly. That's my learning any way.

.... and yes, I still buy cheap stuff and rescue stock - but it is now more balanced with better specimens too.

In the end - whatever floats your boat, budget and creative outlook.