13 year old bonsai beginner here needs advice

Njyamadori said:
I love pines , maples , and more. Ever since I was like 6 I feel in love with trees and when I was 12 I started bonsai because when I was 10 I started to look at them on Instagram. Also I have pines and maples near me because where I live is known for our Virginia pines and eastern white pines and also we have red maples and sugar maples so it’s so nice to have the bonsai trees around me that I love . I’m good at making plants survive . Also I made a maple forest today ! Making pine trees are very hard for me because there is just so many ways to do them
Click to expand...
Well, heck! Maybe you can give me some pointers.
I've loved bonsai since I was like 7, but didn't get to it for 30 years, so I'm totally jealous.
Pines are considered some of the hardest, so keep at it and you'll get there soon enough.
 

Newbies - want to share your trees?

I have primarily pines. I have had none of these trees for more than a year. I have repotted, wired into beginning style. the Ponderosa'a are Yamadori. Most of the rest are nursery stock. All have a long way to go.
www.bonsainut.com www.bonsainut.com

Someone must have seen you coming and started this one just for you.
 
United glowing emblems thrust to the sky, signaling your arrival, traveller. Once you’ve dug your roots comfortably into the substrates of the Tiny Forest, the Woody Dwarves shan’t ever let you return from whence you’ve came. ...so you HAVE been warned.
🤓

Lots of great bits of information already hurled in your direction... not trying to sidetrack with any usual shenanigans....

Just stopping by “for a minute” to say..

Pleasure to make your acquaintance.

🤓

(P.S. YES!!! SEEDS!)
 
I also started when I was 13, gifted a juniper and a calamondin. I still have the calamdin but the juniper unsurprisingly died.

Listen to the Asymmetry bonsai podcast on Spotify, if you can. Good info accumulated there. Other podcasts are coming out nowadays too.

Read bonsai blogs. Nebari bonsai, Adam ask why, valavanis international bonsai, this forum, etc.

Join a club if possible.

Fertilize with organic solid fertilizer every few weeks, combined with water soluable inorganic fertilizer every one or two weeks. In my opinion this is best, anyway.

Go cheap with soil. A good basic cheap soil mix is 50/50 aged pine or fir bark and perlite, sifted to remove fines and large pieces.

Plant SEEDS. Japanese black pine, trident maple, Japanese maple, ginkgo, hornbeam, mume, etc. All are great to work with but take time. Research methods to make the seedlings interesting, either by wiring or using the screen technique. You can read about the screen method here on bnut, using the search feature.

Learn how to take cuttings now if you're interested in low cost material. Tons on this forum about that.
 
Im also from NJ. I dont know what part of NJ you are from, but there are a few decent clubs in the area.

A quick google search of "nj bonsai clubs" will steer you in the right direction.

If you want to see some real life bonsai for free for study of some older specimens, deep cut gardens has some on display which are periodically maintained by deep cut bonsai society.

Best advice is to look at lots of pictures, dont get discouraged if a tree dies or someone gives you critical advice, and to meet others who enjoy the art.

I started a ginko forest this year. A red maple grew in the pot randomly. I think I'll leave it as it is!

20201020_180549.jpg
 
Orion_metalhead said:
I started a ginko forest this year. A red maple grew in the pot randomly. I think I'll leave it as it is!
Click to expand...
I like the idea of mixed plantings and have actually seen a few I like, but beware that your red maple will quickly take over your ginkgos if allowed to.
 
While you're still a developing human bean, I can honestly recommend to use your enthusiasm to start reading books that are going to be difficult to process later in your life because of the sheer page volume of those books, and because by the time your education provides them, you'll be busy partying.

Biology by Campbell et al. Is a tough nut to crack but if you finish this one, you'll have a 'sit on your butt all day while getting paid' job guarantee. And you'll ace all of your biology exams in the future.

Plant physiology by Taiz is a tougher one, but here too; if you finish this one, you'll be giving classes at your local bonsai club at age 15.

Send me a PM if you want them, I have both as a pdf file, saves you about 800 usd.
 
Orion_metalhead said:
Im also from NJ. I dont know what part of NJ you are from, but there are a few decent clubs in the area.

A quick google search of "nj bonsai clubs" will steer you in the right direction.

If you want to see some real life bonsai for free for study of some older specimens, deep cut gardens has some on display which are periodically maintained by deep cut bonsai society.

Best advice is to look at lots of pictures, dont get discouraged if a tree dies or someone gives you critical advice, and to meet others who enjoy the art.

I started a ginko forest this year. A red maple grew in the pot randomly. I think I'll leave it as it is!

View attachment 336964
Click to expand...
I’m in bayville nj and there is nothing close to me. We should talk
 
Bayville is by Toms River. Thats not that far from middletown where deep cut gardens is. Have your parents drive you out there. The gardens are beautiful to spend a couple hours at. June is the best time to go, since the roses are in bloom at that time.
 
I'm newer to this than you are, but you might look into getting a copy of Bonsai Heresy, by Michael Hagedorn. One thing about studying bonsai from online sources is that you'll find a lot of people that are very sure of what they've been doing all making conflicting statements about just about every aspect of bonsai. Hagedorn has picked out some of the more commonly said things and written about why and when they may or may not be applicable. I would think it should give you some foundation to stand on when you're trying to make some sense of all the differing opinions in the hobby. Michael Hagedorn and Jonas Dupuich talk about the book on their podcast Bonsai Wire, if you want to hear a bit more about it before making a purchase.
 
I'm about 3 years in also but around 10 or so years older lol. If your local library is open that's potentially a good source for bonsai books and as a few others mentioned start some seeds! You can always practice new techniques on trees you collect in your yard/area even if they aren't "bonsai suitable" look up what native trees are bonsai suitable so you don't waist time on a "lemon" so to speak. Youtube is a good resource if you can't find a bonsai club. I tend to watch the more professional skilled videos over the enthusiastic hobbiest because many tend to have little to no idea what they're doing and the professionals work is self evident (I like Peter Chan and Bjorn Bjorholm). Experiment with inexpensive free draining bonsai mixes and find out what works for you in your area. And overall just have fun hope that doesn't sound too cliche.
 
Rivian said:
I was around the same age when I started. Killed a bunch of trees around where I live, eventually dropped the hobby.
Click to expand...
Well guess what. I haven’t really killed any trees and still in the hobby. I’m now developing lots of seedlings to eventually grow quality trees in 30+ years . Thanks for the advice
 
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