Stages.....in wich are you now?

[canoeguide]

1. Be interested in scale models, competent at growing things, and have studied trees for ~30+ years.

2. Realize that bonsai taps into all of that and more, and it's not too late to start. Learn a lot. Get hooked. Get joy from the process.

3. Struggle to explain the patience, dedication, impermanence, care, technique, and attraction to the "non-bonsai" people in your life.

 

[Cajunrider]

Right now I am in the midst of the Whatchamacallit-adori phase. Listed below are the subphases.
Whattadori.1 Where the hell can I collect some trees? Passed with flying color by dumb luck.
Whattadori.2 What are the best tools to collect the trees? Get a Root Slayer XL, a Corona 20" pruning saw, a Japanese bypass pruner, a good length of 1/2" UHMW rope, and some gloves.
Whattadori.3 I am so good, I can collect anything and keep them alive.
Whattadori.4 Uh oh. We really can't chop that much roots off. The trunks will push a good flush but then the trees falter.
Whattadori.5 Current phase: Learning the limits and setting higher standards for collection.
Whattadori.6 Learning to make good bonsai out of what I collect.
Whattadori.7 Find new territories/species and repeat.

 

[Cajunrider]

Right now I am in the midst of the Whatchamacallit-adori phase. Listed below are the subphases.
Whattadori.1 Where the hell can I collect some trees? Passed with flying color by dumb luck.
Whattadori.2 What are the best tools to collect the trees? Get a Root Slayer XL, a Corona 20" pruning saw, a Japanese bypass pruner, a good length of 1/2" UHMW rope, and some gloves.
Whattadori.3 I am so good, I can collect anything and keep them alive.
Whattadori.4 Uh oh. We really can't chop that much roots off. The trunks will push a good flush but then the trees falter.
Whattadori.5 Current phase: Learning the limits and setting higher standards for collection.
Whattadori.6 Learning to make good bonsai out of what I collect.
Whattadori.7 Find new territories/species and repeat.

Whattadori.3 is where I killed a bunch of collected trees.

 

[dbonsaiw]

I'm in the "what the hell did I get myself into" stage.

 

[Cajunrider]

I'm in the "what the hell did I get myself into" stage.

I am forever in "root shock" status.

 

[JudyB]

I’m in the satisfied with what I have for now phase. Went thru all of the others to get here, and now just happy to relax and love and better what I’ve got. Still a sucker for good but raw material that I can do major first stylings on tho…my favorite thing to do…

 

[leatherback]

I still have too many trees stage

 

[michaelj]

I never fully emerged from the tree hoarding stage, but I have started selling, trading and giving away some trees, and I kill probably a tree a month on average still (out of more than 500), so the benches aren't expanding at the same rate they used to.
And I'm getting to the point where most of the time, if I do something wrong, it's out of laziness, impatience, or willful risk-taking, and not because I didn't know any better.

 

[BonsaiPoppie]

I am semi-retired, so I can now spend more time with my trees. I just dug my first tree out of my sons yard. I have a bunch of cuttings that I have started. And last, I have realized that if I can't grow something in this climate, stop trying.

 

[Relic37]

I am new and have discovered that at 68 1/2, this was probably the wrong hobby to embrace if I ever expect to create a "nearly finished" product. I've searched all my trees for the fast-forward button and none of them has one...

 

[Cajunrider]

I am new and have discovered that at 68 1/2, this was probably the wrong hobby to embrace if I ever expect to create a "nearly finished" product. I've searched all my trees for the fast-forward button and none of them has one...

That’s why I picked bald cypress. Their development to OK trees to look at is quick.

 

[BrianBay9]

I am new and have discovered that at 68 1/2, this was probably the wrong hobby to embrace if I ever expect to create a "nearly finished" product. I've searched all my trees for the fast-forward button and none of them has one...

It's all about time and money.....spend money to save time. Buy trees closer to "finished"

 

[Shogun610]

Hate writing about myself and prefer trees or the similar matter… but Material Material and Material is my stage . I think in the 3 years I have been doing this I’ve grown a lot as a practitioner and as a person. Starting in my late 20’s to being 32 in October , I’ve invested a lot of time apprenticing at the studio with Bob and the crew who have been supportive / provided me with more resources than I can imagine , and been good with my money. My collection is all over in terms of raw to almost finished. This so far year is about setting up trees for success in the future ,creating compositions as forests or in flats intended to grow as forests ,and quality raw/ pre bonsai material ( from other sources, collected or imported) . I think I have set high hopes for myself in the future as well and hope to reach those goals , and make the community proud. In May im presenting at a native plant nursery near me on my work so far with native species used in bonsai, with goals to raise more awareness of Bonsai with native species. June I will be running a workshop with some coworkers on my team for team building and giving them a glimpse of my life outside of work besides my friends and family . Im also applying again for the Ben Oki scholarship, the intention would be to give back to the bonsai community in a way that can promote the practice, while also educating on the relationship of native planted pot culture and growing awareness of the surrounding ecosystems they inhabit outside of containers.

 

[Carol 83]

I am new and have discovered that at 68 1/2, this was probably the wrong hobby to embrace if I ever expect to create a "nearly finished" product. I've searched all my trees for the fast-forward button and none of them has one...

Just enjoy the journey.

 

[Scorpius]

I'm in the stage of buying nicer stuff to enjoy now while I'm still young, 36 yrs old, versus growing a seedling out and maybe having a nice tree if I make it that far in life. Let me tell you good trees are pricey.

 

[Relic37]

Just enjoy the journey.

I'm trying to work myself into that mindset. It's a little like going to the movie everyone is recommending, knowing that 20 minutes into it the usher is gonna come make you leave...

 

[Deleted member 47471]

I bought my first bonsai, a green mound juniper, a few weeks ago. It is 4-5 yoa and semi-cascade with branches previously cut for size and tapering.

I slip-potted up into a black nursery container, fertilized (slow-release), and now I’m enjoying watching the growth. I plan to accomplish the desired size, fullness, and tapering while wiring it up from semi-cascade into a new style, creating a total of 4 pads which exist on all planes (front back, left and right with a peak to apex).

I’m not certain which “stage” category I belong to, but I have a deep love and respect for the art, science, philosophy, etc. of bonsai. I’m learning from Bonsai Society of Portland, Bonsai-en, Eastern Leaf, and soon reading Deborah R. Koreshoff. I’ve created a portfolio specific to my type of Juniper, spanning a brief history of bonsai to the details of refinement and maintenance. I’ll probably add much to it as I learn, but it will be my first portfolio/reference and I hope to build a tiny library of them.

Attached are photos of my bonsai since my purchase, the current stage of development (very early), and one of a few ideas I have to reshape. The tree reveals its potential to me, so I want to provide its needs to accomplish them moving forward.

From a landscape perspective, I have in mind that the pads will both allow light (and the birds) to get though the tree, but also provide shading below. Below will likely feature moss, a lined stone walking path around the tree, beginning behind the tree on one side and ending on the other side in the rear (as of walking through an exhibit or a park). A bench placed underneath/to the front and on the right, inviting you to have a rest and enjoy the afternoon.

I’ve read about people buying large quantities of one particular tree, or several types, but my focus is on mastery and execution of growth and refinement of a singular project with a view towards creative end goals as they are revealed.

 

[BonsaiPoppie]

I'm trying to work myself into that mindset. It's a little like going to the movie everyone is recommending, knowing that 20 minutes into it the usher is gonna come make you leave...

Just sit back and enjoy it. I got into this around 1982 or 1983. Working long hours, then kids showed up, damn stork. Still working long hours. I was lucky just to water them. There was a big move in the picture, still working long hours. Got laid off after 30 years on a job, working no hours. I got a little job that i like , working 20 hours a week, 10 months out of the year. I have done more in the last four years than in forty years. I still have this Schefflera from 1983 that was in a 4 inch pot at King Soopers in Denver. I do my own thing, I like my trees and it keeps me out of the bars. Und! I got a signed Bonsai Techniques I book from John Naka. I happened to know his nephew. Like others who have said, Enjoy the journey!

 

[19Mateo83]

I comment, I plea the 5th

 

[Cajunrider]

I comment, I plea the 5th

All my BCs in the backyard look like Mr Banting's after I finish a fifth. This is how I skip stages of development and go right to the top. Oh I mean the tip(sy).