Scooter,

Both Jim and Marty's advice is good, I too learned long ago that for me the
joy of bonsai is more in the --doing-- than anything else. Yes, I enjoy
going out and looking at the tree's I worked on for years and telling myself
that finally they're bonsai, but I've also got quite a few I had for years
that are still dogs, and not surprisingly I get great joy from them too.

Peter Chen's Bonsai Master Class is a very good book (IMHO) and our own Herb
Gustafson has several, The Bonsai Workshop comes immediately to mind.

When you learn to be at peace with what you're working on, and can see in
your mind where it's going in the future, you'll be making great strides in
the joy of bonsai.

Regards,
Shelly Hurd - Central CA - Sunset Zone 8-USDA Zone 9



----- Original Message -----
From: "Scooter the Mighty"

SNIP
All I can say is "Wow." It turns out that a picture of a really cool
bonsai only conveys about 1/100th of it's coolness. I'm both excited
about the possibilites and depressed about the collection of hacked up
junipers and boxwoods on my patio. I guess part of my lesson of the
day is that it looks like if you buy an unpromising plant and bust your
backside for the better part of a decade, you can have a respectable
looking bonsai. On the other hand, if you buy an already great plant
and bust your butt for the better part of a decade (and somehow learn
some skill along the way), you can make a bonsai that is a wonder to
behold.
SNIP
So anyway, my question is totally unrelated to this. Is there any good
books about bonsai that people recommend? Pretty much all of the ones
I've seen are beginning surveys of the techniques, which is fine but
there's only so many of those you need to read.

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