On Saturday 23 April 2005 13:36, Steven Wachs wrote:
starting from seeds is really stretching it. Being you are just starting
BONSAI get a book on BONSAI. Learn about style and pruning. then buy some
inexpensive plants and prune away. starting with a good size plant will
get you success sooner than some seeds which take years to grow into a
suitable size BONSAI. Pomegranits which is the same as Chinese Apples are
sold in fruit stores. Those seeds take about a week to sprout.. I never
tried Ficus from seeds. SteveW

Sheesh. It seems to me that he can start however he likes. Back when I was a
kid, my grandfather and I planted a little seed in the ground. I never even
thought about it for years, but one day I suddenly realised that the huge
tree outside their window was the one we planted together so long ago.

I've also sprouted a few trees from seed without even trying, and now I have a
number of seed trays sown out. If it doesn't work, so be it. Then, I'll
keep tending my fully grown bonsai, and plant more seeds. But if it does,
it'll be a pleasure to watch and help it grow, and every failure will lead to
more appreciation of my successes.

There's a lot to be said for starting from seed, and if people think they have
the time and patience for it, there's no reason to tell them any different.
Sure, they could buy a pre-grown tree in the meantime, and that might be good
advice to give, but telling people not to grow from seed seems quite
different to me. It's not *about* shaping branches for some of us, even if
that is a large part of the final art.

--
Lee.

************************************************** ******************************
++++Sponsored, in part, by Edmund Castillo++++
************************************************** ******************************
-- The IBC HOME PAGE & FAQ: http://www.internetbonsaiclub.org/ --
+++++ Questions? Help? e-mail +++++