Casual Bonsai Hobby is that possible?

[Oakenshield]

D

Sorry to hear about your juniper! It was very pretty in that pot.

I'm going to give you some genuine newbie advice, from someone that is also brand new to actually practicing bonsai and is having a decent amount of success.

1. Do not despair over a dead juniper. For all the research that I've done, juniper are very finnicky, difficult trees to keep. They are not good as beginner trees. You certainly can't keep them indoors-- yet, keeping them alive is not as easy as simply keeping them outdoors, either. They are the cheapest trees at the bonsai store for a reason, and this is one of them. Almost any other tree would be a better fit.

2. That being said, not every tree is suitable for bonsai. Contrary to what many people on these forums seem to advocate, you can't simply pull a tree from the ground, put in a pot, shape and care for it, and call it "bonsai." This is the equivalent of shoving weeds in your friend's mouth and calling it "ikebana." There are trees which are traditionally used for bonsai, and I recommend that you try to stay in-or-near the guidelines when it comes to selecting a species if you are new. This is partially because of the availability of the information you will need to be successful. You may need to do some research in order to see what sort of tree might be a good compromise between the appearance you desire, and the amount of work you'll need to put in. This may all sound a bit intimidating, but that's leading into my third point.

3. Do not overstate the difficulty of this hobby, or you will lose interest in it. Although famously difficult to master, bonsai is an extremely easy hobby to pick up. As long as you pick the right species of tree, it can survive a bit of neglect. Please remember that your tree is not a dog or a cat, and that it evolved for millions of years to survive in adverse conditions. Of course, I am not advocating that you neglect your tree either. I am simply stating that, if you think of your tree as an "obligation," rather than something fun which you can take care of, then you won't take proper care of it either way and it will die. Therefore, it is better not to fret so much, and to just enjoy the hobby while always being honest with yourself, and always striving to improve.

Recommendations: If you want an ultra low-maintenance species, your succulents are a good choice. If you want something more hardy/ traditional, may I recommend looking into boxwood? Some of these trees are extremely tough. Mine is doing very well, and I barely touch the thing.

As always: Research the hell out of the species that you want to buy. Make sure it will thrive in your locale under the sort of care that you are wishing to provide it.

Do you have a picture you could share?

 

[Oakenshield]

I'm actually going to disagree with the above. Juniper are one of the easiest bonsai to keep because they need the least amount of specialized work. They don't need candle pruning or pinching and needle thinning like pines. They don't need to be kept on top of in the sping with constant pinching like maples. A bit of pruning and wiring is about it.

They are the cheapest trees at the bonsai store because the material they are made of are the cheapest to obtain. Typically you are looking at Procumbens nana juniper made into what we call "mallsai" trees. Good shimpaku juniper material is not cheap.

That said, it is very common for people new to bonsai to kill trees. There is a bit of a learning curve we all must get through in the process of learning. Get another tree and try again.

I had this tree outside through a Texas summer (last year) without issue. I have no clue what I did or did not do this year. It is possible I became to casual and let it dry out. Last year I was mostly doing weekly waterings, this year it became significantly hotter earlier in the spring. After its untimely ending, my wife purchased a another juniper bonsai and we have it in a south facing kitchen window. I have serious reservations about taking it out of a 70s° environment putting it into a 100°+ environment. Maybe I should wait till the fall to transition it outside.

 

[ShadyStump]

Trees like weather, so your best bet is outdoors. It will do better in a shady spot outside than a sunny spot inside, but I'm the last one to tell you not to try it.
If it was me, I'd put it in the coolest corner outside, and dress the top with moss or mulch to help the soil keep some moisture.

 

[Nick121]

Trees like weather, so your best bet is outdoors. It will do better in a shady spot outside than a sunny spot inside, but I'm the last one to tell you not to try it.
If it was me, I'd put it in the coolest corner outside, and dress the top with moss or mulch to help the soil keep some moisture.

I have my Juniper at full sun all the time but lately the temp here is 100+ all the time (Oklahoma). For the most part the plant is healthy and plenty of new growth but the last few days noticed some tips are browning, not much, just here and there. I just pinched them off and placed the plant in a shady area.

 

[Paradox]

I had this tree outside through a Texas summer (last year) without issue. I have no clue what I did or did not do this year. It is possible I became to casual and let it dry out. Last year I was mostly doing weekly waterings, this year it became significantly hotter earlier in the spring. After its untimely ending, my wife purchased a another juniper bonsai and we have it in a south facing kitchen window. I have serious reservations about taking it out of a 70s° environment putting it into a 100°+ environment. Maybe I should wait till the fall to transition it outside.

I know one thing for sure is that it will die if you keep it in the house. Been there, done that with a juniper.
Put it somewhere that it can get a little morning sun and afternoon shade until the temperatures cool off if you're worried about it and keep a light colored towel around/on the pot to help retain moisture. Wet the towel in the morning and check it and the soil again when you get home from work.
However junipers generally like full sun. Mine are outside in as much sun as my yard will allow and we have had temps to 95 here. which is a bit cooler than what you're experiencing for sure but I don't think its that different

 

[penumbra]

I know one thing for sure is that it will die if you keep it in the house. Been there, done that with a juniper.

Glad someone else said this. Frankly I grow weary of repeating this week after week and I was going to bail out.

 

[Oakenshield]

Was it inside to protect it from the heat, or was it inside all winter?

Sorry for the delay in responding to this, it was only inside after it got burned, hoping it might recover.

 

[Bonsai Nut]

Junipers can take the sun and heat... you just have to keep the roots from drying out. A drip irrigation setup can be snagged on Amazon for less than $40. Combine it with a garden hose and a sprinkler timer, and you can leave for two weeks and not worry about your trees (I just returned from a two week vacation and my only issue was overwatering some of my black pine seedlings).

Until you get an automated sprinkler system, you will be a slave to the hobby. As soon as my house is built, I am going to combine a WiFi sprinkler controller with a WiFi security camera system that will allow me to view and water my trees from anywhere that I have Internet connectivity I will probably be able to water my trees easier from across the country then by stepping into my backyard

 

[LemonBonsai]

If I may I consider myself as casual mainly because I work a full time job and have other responsibilities in my life. I can only show my trees attention on weekends, and during the week I have time to water in the morning, then water when I get home from work/do a health check before getting other stuff done like sleep lol. I have around 25 trees some in training pots, others in bonsai pots.

One trick I have used this summer for really hot days is puting aluminum foil on top of the soil and pot (shiny side up)

Some of my trees looked to dry for my taste after my work shift so I would cover those in the foil, on trees that would need watering twice a day, foil would make the soil stay moist for a day and a half in hot sunny weather.

However. If I could retire today and spend more time with my trees I would... so im casual by force

 

[Neo_Rokkenjima]

D

Do you have a picture you could share?

Developmental Indecesion re: My Wintergreen Boxwood. Need Suggestions!

Good afternoon, my brothers and sisters in the art of bonsai. I am making my first thread on this forum, in need of advice regarding which direction I ought to take my newly-acquired "Wintergreen" Boxwood tree. I recently acquired this tree, along with a Serissa Japonica (which is doing...

www.bonsainut.com

 

[BeepBeepBonsaiSheep]

I feel I’m casual. I water as needed, but don’t have a lot of time for much else

This past week I have found time to prune my olive, take some pyracantha cuttings, and do a light fertilizing

I’ll prob have more time in a few yrs and at that point, my material will be much more developed and needing more attention, so it works out maybe

 

[MaciekA]

I think one hand-waving interpretation of bonsai is to see it as a vigor control regime whose levers include:

• the expansion of length/productivity/surface area in some places (escape roots, sacrifice branches, running shoots / running tips)
• the restriction of length/productivity/surface area in some places (cutting back running tips, using a shallow bonsai pot)

and therefore

• the expansion of total water intake capacity
• the restriction of total water intake capacity
• the expansion of total water demand
• the restriction of total water demand

Problem (if chasing "results") is this: Some of the best results (as far as tree proportions/structure) in this discipline are the outcome of what you might say is an intentionally-engineered "short leash" or "thin cushion" of water capacity relating to the above factors. The trees in my garden have, on average, thicker "water risk cushions" than those of my teachers gardens, but my teachers' gardens are mostly composed of refined trees.

If you want to chase good visual results, then eventually, the leash will have to be short, and this can have an impact on lifestyle compatibility. For example, if your goal is to very carefully restrict the growth of an established/refined pine bonsai, even if it is your only tree and thus only represents a small amount of work per year, then that goal may be incompatible with a "lifestyle compensator" like automated watering while on vacation. My teachers would never risk automated watering on the majority of their trees that are in a bonsai pot for this and other similar reasons. It negates the chased-for visual result.

Setting aside chasing good visual results and getting back to a risk all of us share: If a grower -- casual or not -- doesn't carefully take into account that the "leash" length sometimes shortens itself to mere hours or minutes without too much warning, then a single case of being stuck in traffic or an unexpected travel layover can really bring to the foreground whether bonsai is sustainable for them. So long leash or short leash, some degree of this problem is always there in bonsai. After all, we all chose the constraint of a pot.

I think "casual" vs. "serious" vs. "water risks" present some difficult questions and finding one's own answers comes down to questions like:

• Do you want amazing visual results? Are you chasing the tao of bonsai to its absolute ends? You're probably looking at a short leash. Adjust lifestyle accordingly, the people whose results you're trying to mimick have had to do that.
• Are you comfortable with just getting "pretty good" visual results? Then many options are available to make a more casual interpretation bonsai sustainable for you
• Are you in year 0 to 10 and are just growing thick trunks for a long time? You might be able to lengthen the leash (reduce your risk) by quite a bit, and also use some automation to safely get around gaps in the meantime ... But keep "year 11" in mind as your trees increase density. Year 11 is coming for your trees and your spare time, eventually, even if you're safely on autopilot now.
• Are you suffering from zone envy and increasing difficulty needlessly? Are you trying to grow a japanese maple in the middle of the desert or on a blazing hot rooftop or south facing deck? Are you demanding too much? Some goals are going to be hard even if you only have 1 tree

On a related note, and kind of ironically for this thread, I see my junipers and pines as the ones most likely to be still with me in 10 to 20 years, having survived the "Life Happens™" culling filter as a result of their ability to survive long periods without water. IMO, most of the mallsai junipers that legitimately ran out of water (as opposed to simply dying from lack of light/etc) are reaching that point because of inappropriate potting methods / materials / order of operations. No bonsai likes to boil in a hot mess of decaying matter, drought-tolerant conifer or not.

 

[ShadyStump]

I think one hand-waving interpretation of bonsai is to see it as a vigor control regime whose levers include:

• the expansion of length/productivity/surface area in some places (escape roots, sacrifice branches, running shoots / running tips)
• the restriction of length/productivity/surface area in some places (cutting back running tips, using a shallow bonsai pot)

and therefore

• the expansion of total water intake capacity
• the restriction of total water intake capacity
• the expansion of total water demand
• the restriction of total water demand

Problem (if chasing "results") is this: Some of the best results (as far as tree proportions/structure) in this discipline are the outcome of what you might say is an intentionally-engineered "short leash" or "thin cushion" of water capacity relating to the above factors. The trees in my garden have, on average, thicker "water risk cushions" than those of my teachers gardens, but my teachers' gardens are mostly composed of refined trees.

If you want to chase good visual results, then eventually, the leash will have to be short, and this can have an impact on lifestyle compatibility. For example, if your goal is to very carefully restrict the growth of an established/refined pine bonsai, even if it is your only tree and thus only represents a small amount of work per year, then that goal may be incompatible with a "lifestyle compensator" like automated watering while on vacation. My teachers would never risk automated watering on the majority of their trees that are in a bonsai pot for this and other similar reasons. It negates the chased-for visual result.

Setting aside chasing good visual results and getting back to a risk all of us share: If a grower -- casual or not -- doesn't carefully take into account that the "leash" length sometimes shortens itself to mere hours or minutes without too much warning, then a single case of being stuck in traffic or an unexpected travel layover can really bring to the foreground whether bonsai is sustainable for them. So long leash or short leash, some degree of this problem is always there in bonsai. After all, we all chose the constraint of a pot.

I think "casual" vs. "serious" vs. "water risks" present some difficult questions and finding one's own answers comes down to questions like:

• Do you want amazing visual results? Are you chasing the tao of bonsai to its absolute ends? You're probably looking at a short leash. Adjust lifestyle accordingly, the people whose results you're trying to mimick have had to do that.
• Are you comfortable with just getting "pretty good" visual results? Then many options are available to make a more casual interpretation bonsai sustainable for you
• Are you in year 0 to 10 and are just growing thick trunks for a long time? You might be able to lengthen the leash (reduce your risk) by quite a bit, and also use some automation to safely get around gaps in the meantime ... But keep "year 11" in mind as your trees increase density. Year 11 is coming for your trees and your spare time, eventually, even if you're safely on autopilot now.
• Are you suffering from zone envy and increasing difficulty needlessly? Are you trying to grow a japanese maple in the middle of the desert or on a blazing hot rooftop or south facing deck? Are you demanding too much? Some goals are going to be hard even if you only have 1 tree

On a related note, and kind of ironically for this thread, I see my junipers and pines as the ones most likely to be still with me in 10 to 20 years, having survived the "Life Happens™" culling filter as a result of their ability to survive long periods without water. IMO, most of the mallsai junipers that legitimately ran out of water (as opposed to simply dying from lack of light/etc) are reaching that point because of inappropriate potting methods / materials / order of operations. No bonsai likes to boil in a hot mess of decaying matter, drought-tolerant conifer or not.

This should be a an article somewhere.
Well written and really lays the decision making process out there plainly.
Thanks.