Bonsai Tree

RaymondLin

Anyone here have a Bonsai Tree?  What do you have?

Having previously killed 2 in my past life....I am determine not to kill these this time, now with the power of the internet there is now plenty of information available. 

Acer palmatum (Deshojo Maple) is the red one and a Podocarpus (Buddist Pine)

RandallFlagg

I had one in my work office for a few months a couple of years ago, I quickly realised that I didn't have the skills to care for it and keep it shaped nicely so it grew out and looked like a 1970s privet hedge in the end.

Also, I had a week off work so took it home so it would get watered, failing to recognise that we were going away for a long weekend and despite giving it a good soaking before we went it was as crisp as Ghandi's flip flop when we got back so went in the green waste bin.

RaymondLin

RandallFlagg said:

I had one in my work office for a few months a couple of years ago, I quickly realised that I didn't have the skills to care for it and keep it shaped nicely so it grew out and looked like a 1970s privet hedge in the end.

Also, I had a week off work so took it home so it would get watered, failing to recognise that we were going away for a long weekend and despite giving it a good soaking before we went it was as crisp as Ghandi's flip flop when we got back so went in the green waste bin.

I’m a little concerned going away over 4 days in August actually...November I’m off 9 days, hopefully it’ll rain!

axisus

Love them! Yours are really cool. Always wanted one but I'm no good with plants.

Sesh

We had a bonsai tree that lived on the kitchen window sill. I thought we were doing well as it didn't grow big or anything. Then realised it was quite dead. It had a short life I suppose.

ThePrettyDamned

I'm going to start some from seed - not sure what trees to do yet, was thinking of cherry or apple for some blossom but not sure how it'll work.

They take a lot of work, and years invested. Some great YouTube channels are around though including some that discuss some insanely detailed pruning and shaping advice, wiring techniques etc. 

RaymondLin

ThePrettyDamned said:

I'm going to start some from seed - not sure what trees to do yet, was thinking of cherry or apple for some blossom but not sure how it'll work.

They take a lot of work, and years invested. Some great YouTube channels are around though including some that discuss some insanely detailed pruning and shaping advice, wiring techniques etc. 

I did think about that for a second but you can save yourself about 3 years by getting a young one then wire it up the way you want it.

ThePrettyDamned

RaymondLin said:

ThePrettyDamned said:

I'm going to start some from seed - not sure what trees to do yet, was thinking of cherry or apple for some blossom but not sure how it'll work.

They take a lot of work, and years invested. Some great YouTube channels are around though including some that discuss some insanely detailed pruning and shaping advice, wiring techniques etc. 

I did think about that for a second but you can save yourself about 3 years by getting a young one then wire it up the way you want it.

Definitely - I just don't think I have the time to do that much work right now. I'll go from seed and about 2-5 years from now I may (or may not) have a semi-succeasful bonsai. 

Some are stunning - and expensive. Considered an art form, rightfully so. 

WiresDreamDisasters

My wife makes me shave her bonsai tree every other month.

tony99

WTF I come on here to kick back and look at guitars

Now I want a fountain pen and a fucking bonsai tree

BONSAIIIIII!!!!

Heartfeltdawn

tony99 said:

WTF I come on here to kick back and look at guitars

Now I want a fountain pen and a fucking bonsai tree

BONSAIIIIII!!!!

Just wait until you start hankering after a relic'd bonsai tree. 

57Deluxe

Bonsai pricing used to be £1 per year of age

thermionic

BONSAI ENTHUSIASTS: Save time and money by simply looking at a normal tree from far away.

ThePrettyDamned

@RaymondLin where did you get yours? I'm loving the maple, what a lovely colour. Does it need a lot of light? My bright windowsills are going to be taken all spring/summer/autumn by chillies and sweet peppers...

RaymondLin

ThePrettyDamned said:

@RaymondLin where did you get yours? I'm loving the maple, what a lovely colour. Does it need a lot of light? My bright windowsills are going to be taken all spring/summer/autumn by chillies and sweet peppers...

I got it from Bonsai World in Cheltenham.  There are various places online where you can get them.  Mine cost £36.  Which seems about right when comparing online.  (Judging from the width of the truck to guess age)

Japanese maple is an outdoor tree (well, all trees are!), I keep mine outside, they are best with partial shade so I’m keeping it in the corner of the garden, they can survive up to -10c so that’s pretty much what English winters get as low to most years.  You might need to just put a cover on if it’s forecast to be really bad (I might stick it in the shed).  

Don’t be tempted to bring it into the house for a week because it might think it’s spring and starting sprouting too early.

they are meant to be easy to take care of, lots of people have them in the garden as pot plants get get up to 6ft tall without much attention.

side note, supermarkets sells really young maple trees in plastic pots for like £3 each. So young the trunk is still green; I bought 7 of these young trees to let it grow a bit and then put them together into a single pot to make a forest.  Maple forest bonsai costs hundreds of pounds so if thought I’d give it a go for £20.

https://www.herons.co.uk/MobileDetail.php?Prod_ID=10783

Again, they are just sitting out in the corner in the garden.  Just remember to water if it’s a hot day.

ThePrettyDamned

RaymondLin said:

ThePrettyDamned said:

@RaymondLin where did you get yours? I'm loving the maple, what a lovely colour. Does it need a lot of light? My bright windowsills are going to be taken all spring/summer/autumn by chillies and sweet peppers...

I got it from Bonsai World in Cheltenham.  There are various places online where you can get them.  Mine cost £36.  Which seems about right when comparing online.  (Judging from the width of the truck to guess age)

Japanese maple is an outdoor tree (well, all trees are!), I keep mine outside, they are best with partial shade so I’m keeping it in the corner of the garden, they can survive up to -10c so that’s pretty much what English winters get as low to most years.  You might need to just put a cover on if it’s forecast to be really bad (I might stick it in the shed).  

Don’t be tempted to bring it into the house for a week because it might think it’s spring and starting sprouting too early.

they are meant to be easy to take care of, lots of people have them in the garden as pot plants get get up to 6ft tall without much attention.

side note, supermarkets sells really young maple trees in plastic pots for like £3 each. So young the trunk is still green; I bought 7 of these young trees to let it grow a bit and then put them together into a single pot to make a forest.  Maple forest bonsai costs hundreds of pounds so if thought I’d give it a go for £20.

https://www.herons.co.uk/MobileDetail.php?Prod_ID=10783

Again, they are just sitting out in the corner in the garden.  Just remember to water if it’s a hot day.

Wow awarded for tips  

RaymondLin

ThePrettyDamned said:

RaymondLin said:

ThePrettyDamned said:

@RaymondLin where did you get yours? I'm loving the maple, what a lovely colour. Does it need a lot of light? My bright windowsills are going to be taken all spring/summer/autumn by chillies and sweet peppers...

I got it from Bonsai World in Cheltenham.  There are various places online where you can get them.  Mine cost £36.  Which seems about right when comparing online.  (Judging from the width of the truck to guess age)

Japanese maple is an outdoor tree (well, all trees are!), I keep mine outside, they are best with partial shade so I’m keeping it in the corner of the garden, they can survive up to -10c so that’s pretty much what English winters get as low to most years.  You might need to just put a cover on if it’s forecast to be really bad (I might stick it in the shed).  

Don’t be tempted to bring it into the house for a week because it might think it’s spring and starting sprouting too early.

they are meant to be easy to take care of, lots of people have them in the garden as pot plants get get up to 6ft tall without much attention.

side note, supermarkets sells really young maple trees in plastic pots for like £3 each. So young the trunk is still green; I bought 7 of these young trees to let it grow a bit and then put them together into a single pot to make a forest.  Maple forest bonsai costs hundreds of pounds so if thought I’d give it a go for £20.

https://www.herons.co.uk/MobileDetail.php?Prod_ID=10783

Again, they are just sitting out in the corner in the garden.  Just remember to water if it’s a hot day.

Wow awarded for tips  

There are a lot of things people don’t talk about. I watched a lot of videos on bonsai this week and they tell you when to prune but they don’t tell you why. 

there are essentially 2 sides to bonsai, the science and the art. The art is a very small part and without the science you will get a dead tree.  Because bonsai is constraint to a small pot, it is critical important to get the science right.

basically see the tree like a battery, when it has no leave on it in the winter, it is basically hibernating with the stored sugars made in the winter inside it.  When it is sprouting leaves, it is using energy to grow that leaf, so now the body of the tree has used up that energy, therefore don’t prune until it has had its return from its investment so to speak.

there is also where to cut, the rule of thumb is you cut to make 2.  That means you cut back to a point where the branch it has 2 sprouts.  By cutting the leading branch you stimulates growth to those 2 other smaller branch, and you also doubled the branches.  Otherwise the plant will priorities it’s energy to the lead branch.

if the plant look sick, don’t automatically think of fertiliser as the solution, it’s sick not because it doesn’t have fertiliser.  It’s usually about balance in the soil, soil needs to have a good balance of oxygen and water, that is the no.1 cause (unless it has a disease), so you need to address that balance.  Fertiliser isn’t food to the plant, food is sugar and carbs, fertiliser isn’t that.  Plant gets sugars by photosynthesis which is created from sunlight.  So give it some sun and water, get the balance in the soil right and it’ll be healthy, which is why maple tree indoors is a bad idea.  

Also, a lot of trees needs the hibernation in the winter, it’s like a rest.  If you take a 4 season tree to Florida it will thrive for a couple of years but slowly it’ll wear out and no number of soil changes will help.  

Once the plant is healthy then you can go for the art, which is subjective.