Are you new to Bonsai..Please read this.

[krittas]

Everybody has to start from somewhere and im glad that threads and people (99% of them) like those that frequent this site are willing to help a novice such as myself and others gain the knowledge...
If you recieve a comment that your trees are too small or got no chance because they look like twigs why not use this as a reason to prove ppl wrong by sucking the" know how" out of them and using some ideas given for free to prove them wrong...remember people such as pup and bhodi werent always at the level they are now we are lucky because alot of the hard work has been sorted out by these guys and those before them...
I just laugh when given a negative comment and think "well had to start somewhere" as everyone else wouldve...

Bhodi i think your idea is great and will be a asset to those who are willing to use the resource to there advantage

[Tyson78]

I think these are wise words for those of us just begining our journey, no offence taken

[dragon]

hi all
(i think a seperate section in the forum for newbies ) should be made and that way all newbies can post there tree's
wether they are sticks in pots, and then the older more professional guy's on here can give a decent word on how
to deal with the tree instead of being told the tree is crap throw it out, and give advice on how to cut, wire and defoliate .
when to do it and how often it is required to do it.
also they can give better info on what tree's are good for bonsai instead of us having to go out buy a tree and then
be told it wont make a good bonsai. i have done that many times and now i got a yard full of tree's
and it will also give the newbiesa chance at achieving there hobbie without anyone putting them down and then
because they been put down they give up that is my worth and hope it can be done
cheers dean

[Olivecrazy]

Hi have only recently joined this site an have just found this. When i was about 18yrs i worked in a bonsai nursery in Adelaide will not name the place but spent over 4-5yrs there working. At first i sort wowee this is so cool i was working on 100s of trees a week after about 1-2yrs i was feeling like i was being held back tried to get the owner to see the light but it was useless some trees had so much potential but had to make them mostly the same because that what people liked ??.

We would buy trees from a nursery wire them up one week sell them the next dig out olives an sell them 12mnths later witch where basically shoots trimmed to shape. Trees would come back all the time dead thankfully i didn't have to answer to the customers. In the end i had enough an was truly disgusted with what i sore an felt guilty for being apart of it so i quit the job.

At the time i started to think of have my own bonsai nursery to correct some of the crap that i have seen but found a lovely wife had some kids built a house the idea kinda got forgotten about but you never no whats around the corner.

[The-Calli-Kid]

the great Lennon did say it best! an the moon and the stars and the son..

[The-Calli-Kid]

i read from the start and much respect! understood it all. cheers. .

[MoGanic]

Well Bodhi, in your title you asked me to read and read I did!

When i first picked up a bonsai from an actual nursery, it was a good looking Juniper that happened to be very healthy... I had no idea how healthy it was by the way hehe... So anyway the next week I root pruned to fit it in a beautiful Japanese pot but then decided the foliage looked too bushy... So i pruned a lot of that too!! Backfilled and topped with pebbles i stuck him on a makeshift bench in full sun... It was only after this, when i went back to the nursery and explained proudly what I'd done, that I realised there were a bunch of things I needed to know beforehand. A. Dont root prune heavily and top prune at the same time...

However! The tree became very slow to grow and I became slowly more frustrated at how little was happening to it... Then one day the tips started to change color to a lighter green and there was a whole bunch of prickly things on it!!!!!!

I thought it was diseased and did some research but as it trns out it was only the juvinile foliage that Shimpakus put out when theyre stressed... The tree has since survived me for almost two years and has come very far

My point being, if that tree was unhealthy I would have killed it. If I knew then what I know now, I would have made the same choice in purchasing the tree but different choices afterwards..

It is 100% true that all newbies need to learn the difference between a sick and not so sick tree. Allowing them to make informed choices about what trees they want to purchase - regardless of whether they like bargain bin trees or thriving stunners worth hundreds. If you dont know a healthy tree from an unhealthy tree you dont know what youre buying or how you should/are able to treat it afterwards.

-Mo

[MoGanic]

Ps sorry for the lecture

[bodhidharma]

Thanks for the lecture Moganic all good information.

[kcpoole]

Ps sorry for the lecture

No problem and all and Great information from a personal story
How about a pic of the tree too

Ken

[MoGanic]

Thanks for the lecture Moganic all good information.

No worries mate, glad you didnt fall asleep haha

[MoGanic]

Ps sorry for the lecture

No problem and all and Great information from a personal story
How about a pic of the tree too

Ken

Thanks mate

I have a progression on it which I believe you have been following

But I should do a progression shot when it has done some growing

[kcpoole]

Ah I remeber that one now
Much improved
Ken

[bonsaiLov]

Great advise from all, good to have post like like this

[hamish]

Thanks for this post,I've just signed on after discovering this site and its the first post I've read, also I'm a total beginner and seeking as much info as possible particularly in regards to the tools I will need so if anyone has any advice I'd be all ears in the meantime I'll keep researching....Thanks...hamish