19Mateo83
Masterpiece
Your supposed to have a CHEAPER hobbyYa I started a salt water fish tank for another hobby. Now my money is really REALLY gonechoose your hobbies carefully haha
Help me rescue...my budget!!
- Thread starter Deci22
- Start date
IzzyG
Shohin
Start off with a more expensive hobby. Bonsai will be significantly cheaper relatively speaking
Scorpius
Chumono
Budget. Hogwash. You plan on taking that money with you into the afterlife?
ShadyStump
Imperial Masterpiece
I've been broke as the 10 commandments the past two years, and managed to acquire more trees than I know what to do with in that time.
Some were given to me by friends, a few trades, but the rest were all bought. Same for pots, substrate, etc. I've spent maybe $500 or so all together since jumping down the rabbit hole in 2019. Most of that's been since I quit drinking a year ago. My next great love is camping, and I've probably spent the same over the past 10 years.
The trick?
Get used to disappointment.
You don't want to cook tonight? Well, if you want a tree next month I guess that means you're eating cold cereal in stead of going out. Car needs fixed? There goes that pot.
It's all about priorities, problem solving, and expectations. I went from $300 a month on booze to $400 a year on trees. I built my bench from half rotted scrap wood. I expect my trees to be mediocre in the end.
All that is just another way of saying I'd rather be disappointed in my trees than in most other aspects of my life, so I got used to that particular disappointment.
Some were given to me by friends, a few trades, but the rest were all bought. Same for pots, substrate, etc. I've spent maybe $500 or so all together since jumping down the rabbit hole in 2019. Most of that's been since I quit drinking a year ago. My next great love is camping, and I've probably spent the same over the past 10 years.
The trick?
Get used to disappointment.
You don't want to cook tonight? Well, if you want a tree next month I guess that means you're eating cold cereal in stead of going out. Car needs fixed? There goes that pot.
It's all about priorities, problem solving, and expectations. I went from $300 a month on booze to $400 a year on trees. I built my bench from half rotted scrap wood. I expect my trees to be mediocre in the end.
All that is just another way of saying I'd rather be disappointed in my trees than in most other aspects of my life, so I got used to that particular disappointment.
19Mateo83
Masterpiece
I did last year without drinking too and it’s amazing how much cheaper life is
vp999
Omono
This is gold !!!!! When I was starting out I was buying EVERYTHING just to have one of each specie, didn't know what to look for in a good bonsai and such, now 90% of those trees are gone as give away or trades.
PaulH
Omono
I have a separate "bonsai bank account" that is the only place bonsai money comes from and goes to. I start seeds, cuttings, field grow trees and collect yamadori, both wild and urban. Most of this I sell at club sales, etc. and only keep the best. I evaluate my collection a couple of times a year and sell 5 or 6 of my least favorites. often I get enough to buy one far better tree. And so it goes.....
vp999
Omono
My last hobby was saltwater fish and corals so I jumped from one expensive hobby to another, but at least now my trees don't die as often as my fish. lolYa I started a salt water fish tank for another hobby. Now my money is really REALLY gone
ChefB
Mame
The addiction is real.
Scrogdor
Chumono
To quote JudyB, this is a great way to chip away at the cost and become self-sufficient. What I've discovered is that people in the city/populated areas tend to pay quite a bit for bonsai, even raw material. I noticed all the city nurseries in the bay area charge outrageous prices for pretty poor/mediocre bonsai. If you're willing to drive out to a legit bonsai nursery and grab a bunch of pre-bonsai stock, you can flip them for a decent return without really doing anything. You can also practice a bit on the stock you buy, maybe apply some wire and style them a bit, then sell them after. That way, you get to practice and recoup some $$$. This can obviously backfire, and you're stuck with a bunch of pre-bonsai, but at the very least, you break even and get some free practice. This is also a good way to support your local bonsai nurseries, help them move the 8000 trees they're all sitting on.
Also to this comment, a critical point here. I spent a ton of money on small sticks and nursery stuff as well, until I realized 4-5 cheap nursery plants is a decent pre-bonsai.
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Potawatomi13
Imperial Masterpiece
Deci22
Yamadori
A few of you had mentioned cleaning up and selling some pre-bonsai. I love this idea! I have several nurseries near me and 2 hrs south there is a huge bonsai nursey that sells decently priced pre bonsai....where do you guys sell these? this would be fantastic practice!
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Pixar
Chumono
I sell on the local auction market buyer has to pick up . I have sold all my trees grown this year .
Also I sell from the front door of my business ( cash only )
Also I sell from the front door of my business ( cash only )
HorseloverFat
Squarepants with Conkers
I agree.. kind of...
I do music, and have been since classical training at 9.... My BUDDIES spend a ton of money on our studio...
But I can do A LOT... on my windows 8, 2003 PC, with FruityLoops 7...
At the STUDIO...we have all the pads, drum machines and two varying "live" sets...
...but just my keyboard, mouse, and a knowledge of music at my house..
Anyways, OP...
It will take a couple seasons to learn balance ...
Collecting trees and spending money on SEEDS helps.
Keep your actual TREE purchases larger, and more premeditated.
Learning Moderation will come.
I bought a 300€ Trident and a 10€ beech recently and love both. They are both project but the beech might be the fastest. There is plenty of cheap starting material around visit lots of nurseries but don’t buy something each time.
eugenev2
Shohin
Learn how to budget and learn how to stick to it, that's the first thing i did when i started.
Other tips would be, learn how to make cuttings and airlayerings, do this to increase your practice material and to stave off the need to buy more. Even better if you can get these from neighbour/friends/people you know that might have rare/expensive species. Eventually you might even be able to sell some of the cuttings/layers and buy something else.
Other tips would be, learn how to make cuttings and airlayerings, do this to increase your practice material and to stave off the need to buy more. Even better if you can get these from neighbour/friends/people you know that might have rare/expensive species. Eventually you might even be able to sell some of the cuttings/layers and buy something else.
sorce
Nonsense Rascal
Dig free things.
Sorce
Sorce
I started out years ago with just a workstation synth (no computer-based DAW) and a practice amp. I'm currently switching over to a PC-based setup. Granted, most of these are one-time purchases (FL Studio, Pigments, audio interface, condenser mic + shockmount + boom + pop filter + XLR cable, desktop-sized MIDI controller keyboard, MIDI cable, TRS cables, direct box, etc.) that'll last for years, but it does add up. I'm a one-man band so far, so there are no buddies to delegate the spending to.I agree.. kind of...
I do music, and have been since classical training at 9.... My BUDDIES spend a ton of money on our studio...
But I can do A LOT... on my windows 8, 2003 PC, with FruityLoops 7...
At the STUDIO...we have all the pads, drum machines and two varying "live" sets...
...but just my keyboard, mouse, and a knowledge of music at my house..
Back to tips for frugal bonsai practice:
- Save the akadama, pumice, and lava for stock that is already pre-bonsai or bonsai. You can get by with coco coir and sifted coarse perlite (approx. 1:4 ratio) for growing out seedlings (something that Eric Schrader advocates). Do the sifting outdoors and wear appropriate PPE (dust mask + eye protection) to do the sifting because perlite dust floats around easily in the slightest breeze and it's not something you want in your lungs or eyes.
- You really don't have to become an afficionado of fine bonsai pottery if that aspect isn't what floats your boat about the art of bonsai. There are undoubtedly some folks for whom the pottery appreciation aspect of bonsai is perhaps even more of a draw than the trees themselves. If you're one of those people, ignore this tip. But, if you're like me and the pot isn't all that important to you as long as it can withstand winter weather and it doesn't look obviously cheap, there are plenty of mid-range production pots out there that look nice and won't break the bank. You don't have to collect high-end pottery. Also, it's ok to keep pre-bonsai in plastic or mica training pots until they're reached the point where you want to show them.
- Local club auctions are really where it's at when it comes to getting nice bonsai stuff at reasonable prices.
Pixar
Chumono
Get a Metal Detector
Like all things bonsai, it depends. There is a certain cost to entry, but we don't have to break the bank (a relative concept as well). Bonsai costs include (i) trees; (ii) materials; and (iii) education costs. Starting with the last category, in addition to classes, videos and books, making mistakes is part of the education and there is a cost to that in terms of dead/mangled trees and wasted materials. It's hard to know in the beginning what "good" material is and what we want to work with, so we inevitably buy things that we probably should not have (I'm looking at you Alberta spruce). Bonsai is all about patience and I would have saved a ton of money if I simply exercised a little more of it in the beginning and spent more time learning and less time buying (then again, I learned a great deal from my many mistakes). Bonsai is a marathon and definitely not a sprint, so spending a year on learning the craft instead of locating the perfect trees you will be working on for decades is probably a money saver. Start with things that help you learn about watering, feeding, sun requirements, soil etc. in practice. These don't have to be fancy.
Trees - this is one of those "how long is a string" issues. One can spend a few dollars to many thousands on a tree. Everyone has their own budget. There is, however, a value to our time and we need to make a decision on what type of tree we want and how long are we willing to work to obtain such a tree. A seedling, a finished trunk with nebari and an award winning tree can all be developed to the same end - it's merely a question of the time and effort it takes us to get it there. The goal is buying the tree at the desired stage at the right price. This is where buying "good" material comes in - if you need to spend 10+ years chopping and regrowing the trunk of a nursery tree that you spent hundreds on and then ground layering it, perhaps your time and money would have been better spent with an inexpensive young tree.
Materials - Somewhat of a never-ending expense. The more trees I have, the more soil I need. I buy bonsai soil in bulk, but I wouldn't say its cheap. Fertilizer. Water isn't free. There's always the odds and ends perlite, sphagnum moss, wood for grow boxes etc. But it's not necessarily life styles of the rich and famous kind of an expense. There's no need for fancy bonsai pots (although they are nice). There are a number of tools you will need. From my woodworking days, I've learned that I save money on tools by spending more in the beginning. Otherwise, I end up buying two pairs of the garbage tool which break and then I finally splurge. Just my experience.
