Bonsai????do you guys bonsai??

so i have been studing the art of bonsai for some time now
i have a pine tree in a 5 gal pot i rug it up and rooted it in a bucket of water....2 weeks it sat in the water with a rooting compound it grew roots and then
i put in in the 5gal pot......how long should i let it grow roots till i start to wire it i was thinking 1 year?
im going bonsai hunting soon going to get a few different types of trees/shrubs and pot them all so i can bonsai alot since it is a art form and it takes time a whole lifetime some can truly spend perfecting their bonsai garden

you should wire it immediately. then go back every week to loosen the wire, and redo it (if its too tight, it cuts into the plant), same thing for string or any other LST. start early, when stems are soft and maleable. if you wait too long, they get thick, and instead of bend, they snap

i go through tons of wire and string on my pot plants. starting early is key to getting the shape you wanted.

nick17gar said:

you should wire it immediately. then go back every week to loosen the wire, and redo it (if its too tight, it cuts into the plant), same thing for string or any other LST. start early, when stems are soft and maleable. if you wait too long, they get thick, and instead of bend, they snap

i go through tons of wire and string on my pot plants. starting early is key to getting the shape you wanted.

Click to expand...

right i hear ya on that..... i need to get some wire preferably 1/3 thickness of the branch being wired....i just want to be sure the terr is going to make it all the pines are still green but i fear it is still week and dont know how it will react to the wire....it hasent been in the soil that long and i dont have it in the proper bonsai pot or soil yet.....my worry is that the roots need to be established before i transplant it into the final resting place you got me?

^^^ I have a Japanese Plant called: WaxLeaf Ligustrum- also caled Japanese Privet. You can do a traditional bonzai with it plus it does well in the heat and drought I get here in N. Central Texas (DFW). Many people trim these into circles, cones and even squares. I think that's kinda dumb...I'm trimming mine into small, multi trunked trees. Full size is up to 10 feet. There are lots of posibilities with this plant!! I'm not sure where you live, but you could look this plant up to see if it's sold in your area. These things are great for beginners! They grow fast, like lots of food, can tolerate shade....plus it's got pretty white flowers that smell nice. I wish these bloomed another couple weeks, but it's still a winner!


Mine will look like this after a few yrs from now




Here's a traditional Bonzai that's possible with this plant



Some people trim these into balls, like these.I think it's tacky. Better shapes are possible! You can trim this plant into many shapes!

I just started doing bonsai recently, but would definetly give the small tree time to grow a good root system before you start training.....

sounds good tex yes i will look into it..i figured it needed more time im just going to add to my collection or trees /shrubs some wild and some i will buy....i am excited for this the art of bonsai lol is very interesting to me i am going to make some beautiful trees i can tell you that lol