first attempt at bonsai

[stretch]

hi all this is my first attempt at bonsai. the plant is eastern white cedar (thuja occidentalis teddy) and groundcover is pearlwort (sagina subulata). total cost for the project was $30 and took me about 1.5 hrs to produce. i am reasonably happy with the result and would like some constructive criticism. my next project is a group setting with 3 junipers (juniperus communis) i will post pics when i have completed it.thanx..

[MelaQuin]

You don't say where you are in NSW. Reason for asking is to suss out your climatic zone. You have asked for a critique so here goes. You are doing exactly what we all did at the start... plant a shrub in a bonsai pot and say bonsai. But you have only just started. It is very young stock, you will be waiting years before you start to develop a character bonsai. It is also overpotted, very much so. The guideline is that the depth of the pot should be approximately the width of the widest part of the trunk. This varies according to species [azaleas and pyracanthas prefer being marginally overpotted due to their love of moist soil, some trees are happy in shallow pots is the soil is kept moist]. You could not put this tree in a pot shallow enough for the trunk. It needs a pot not necessarily as large as the one it is in but with plenty of room just to allow full growth and development.

Next, it is not wise to have ground cover over the entire soil surface. It is preferable to keep some areas free of ground cover to allow air to get to the roots. Also, ground covers can root deeply and rob the tree of root space and nutrients - enough reason to keep them under control.

Lastly, you have potted your tree but you have not styled it. One good reason is that there isn't much to style yet and if you start moving the young branchlets you could break them.

Suggestion.... remove some of the soil cover and let this tree grow. When it has doubled its height then start styling. In the meantime, go dirty finger nursery crawling. No, this is not an off colour suggestion but good sense. When you are looking for a suitable bonsai plant you need to dig a bit around the roots to see if there are nice surface roots. You need to find a trunk with a bit of interest and movement and one that has quite a few branches to give you styling options.

You can browse in friend's and family gardens to see if you can appropriate a suitable specimen. You can walk around nurseries looking for stock. It is better if you can find nurseries other than the Flower Power sort, nurseries that would have older stock, rural nurseries or bonsai nurseries. You need to get something you can get your teeth into.

Pyracantha are very good for beginners. They have thorns but you can snip the thorns off before working with them. They shoot everywhere and if you make a styling mistake or break a branch they will readily put out a new shoot close to where you need it. Can you join a local bonsai club, or even one not so local. It is great to get on hand info from more experience members.

Don't throw your hands up in despair.... as I said we all went through this stage. It's a start and you can't go anywhere without a start. But now that you have started look for something that you can get you teeth into. And always look for a plant that shoots back on old wood. Good luck.

[stymie]

Stretch hi.
It is hoped that the foregoing doesn't prove to be discouraging in any way. We know that you have other worthy material and that you will be learning something at frequent intervals on the bonsai road. Keep observing reactions from your trees at every step of the way and don't attempt to do everything at once. Patience is more conducive to success than hurrying. Good luck in your endeavours and keep in touch.

[stretch]

thanx for the feedback guys, much appreciated and will continue to learn and improve i hope..

[Dumper]

Hi Stretch

i wont say what u did is wrong.
u may put it on the pot and let if grow big.... but it will take forever.
usually with a small tree like that. or something that is very young. i'll use a very very tiny pot. u might not get those pots in bunning. go to a bonsai nursery and u can find a small pot.

remove some foliage and do some basic wiring.. another thing that i do sometimes with young tree is to use soil and cover a lot of the trunk and remove the soil after a while. u will realize that trunk that are cover with soil looks a bit more age compare to trunk that are exposed.

that is what i think may make your tree look more like bonsai. one thing about bonsai.... take your time. dont rush. if u wan bigger stock.. buy a bigger tree or take a small tree and grow it on a box or on the grown.

John
p/s be positive and dont let other scare u cause u are new.

[aaron_tas]

hey stretch

someone great once told me that a tree needs spaces in the canopy for the birds to fly through

i think that your 30 bukkus is a 30 well spent, sure there are places that your money could have worked harder, but you now have a tree to call your own. also, you have just made some friends that will give you some great free advice...

the biggest thing to think about with any hobby or art... are YOU having fun

have a blast

[Dumper]

i agree with aaron.

[NathanM]

I actually have a couple of pots that would be perfect size for that if you were interested =)

[kcpoole]

Hey stretch
Welcome to the world of bonsai
the journey begins for you just like it has done for all of us.

Ken