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Bonsai Newbie
Tekmanx Jul 11, 6:28 pm show options Newsgroups: alt.bonsai From: "Tekmanx" - Find messages by this author Date: 11 Jul 2005 15:28:26 -0700 Local: Mon,Jul 11 2005 6:28 pm Subject: Bonsai newbie Reply | Reply to Author | Forward | Print | Individual Message | Show original | Remove | Report Abuse I just got some "Chinese Juniper - Juniperus Chinensis" seeds from ebay and I'm ready to get started with the germination process, problem is.. I want to be very careful and make the most educated decisions when growing this plant. I'm sure a bonsai guru will be here to confirm and guide me through the process. I also got this bonsai kit from ebay that are supposedly some type of pine seeds, I followed all the instructions in the book along with the steps given by the guy on this site: http://www.irateweirdos.com/bo nsai/bonsai.htm Here are the steps I took for the pine bonsai: 1. Soak on water for 24hrs. 2. Set in refrigerator wrapped in paper towel for one week. 3. Lightly press seeds into already moist pellet that came with the kit. (Final stage done about two days before this post) Let me know if I am going wrong anywhere, your advice will be -greatly- appreciated... did I mention this is my first bonsai plant? By the way.. are there any good online resources for bonsai? Here's a few pictures just in case my seeds were mislabeled . - http://tekmanx.serveftp.com/~t ekmanx/Bonsai Thanks in advance, -Tekmanx |
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I emailed Tekmanx offlist, but this got me to thinking: I have *never*
gotten a query about one of these bonsai kits on my "bonsai doctor" site. I get every other kind of newbie phenomenon: sulky serissa, crispy juniper, sticky fukien tea, so I wonder if these things are so spectacularly unsuccessful that no one ever gets the seeds to germinate and live long enough to ask me a question. I cry whenever I see one of these kits in a store. The *Smithsonian* sells them. Here is how I germinate seeds for my research: step 1) I read up on the plant in Dirr's "Reference manual of woody plant propagation". He usually gives detailed instructions on scarification of the seed, soaking it, giving it a warm period and a cold period. step 2) I plant a number of seeds in a large pot or tray filled with a good potting medium. step 3) We have warm and cool temperature greenhouses and overhead misting systems. I pick what I want and incubate the plants; germination can take several months, depending on the plant. step 4) When the seedlings are big enough to handle, I transplant them to their own pots. If I were raising these for bonsai (instead of ghoulishly raising them so I can infect and kill them), I'd plant them outside so they could grow big and strong. Nina |
#4
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Nina wrote:
I emailed Tekmanx offlist, but this got me to thinking: I have *never* gotten a query about one of these bonsai kits on my "bonsai doctor" site. I get every other kind of newbie phenomenon: sulky serissa, crispy juniper, sticky fukien tea, so I wonder if these things are so spectacularly unsuccessful that no one ever gets the seeds to germinate and live long enough to ask me a question. I cry whenever I see one of these kits in a store. The *Smithsonian* sells them. Bookstores (Barnes & Noble and Borders) sell them, too -- on the shelves with the books -- in the gardening section. There's a "Mini-Bonsai Kit" and a "Bonsai Kit." Also a "Zen Garden" kit. Another way to rip money from the pockets of the unsuspecting. At least in the Mini-Bonsai Kit, the seeds are from the Italian Stone Pine. The instruction book measures 1/8 inch thick by 2 x 2 inches, about 8 pages. The info in it is OK -- nothing that will flat-out kill seedlings. But nothing that will result in a bonsai for the unsuspecting buyer, either. Jim Lewis - - Tallahassee, FL - Nature encourages no looseness, pardons no errors. Ralph Waldo Emerson ************************************************** ****************************** ++++Sponsored, in part, by Kevin Bailey++++ ************************************************** ****************************** -- The IBC HOME PAGE & FAQ: http://www.internetbonsaiclub.org/ -- +++++ Questions? Help? e-mail +++++ |
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I guess I better be very carefull what I ask here..getting flamed in
all.. j/k. Ok, so what do you suggest for growing indoors? And I'm in Miami/The Bahamas. Something I can sit on my comp desk and say.. ocassionally set at the window for sunlight. |
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On Jul 15, 2005, at 3:26 PM, Tekmanx wrote:
I guess I better be very carefull what I ask here..getting flamed in all.. j/k. Ok, so what do you suggest for growing indoors? And I'm in Miami/The Bahamas. Something I can sit on my comp desk and say.. ocassionally set at the window for sunlight. I'd go with a succulent. A jade tree, Crassula argentea/arborescens/ovata, or Elephant bush, Portulacaria afra (solid green, not variegated.) Craig Cowng NY Zone 5b/6a Sunset 37 ************************************************** ****************************** ++++Sponsored, in part, by Kevin Bailey++++ ************************************************** ****************************** -- The IBC HOME PAGE & FAQ: http://www.internetbonsaiclub.org/ -- +++++ Questions? Help? e-mail +++++ |
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Damn, I didn't know I had so many options! I got a book alittle over a
week go "Sunset Bonsai", I'll look it up in the http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg...books&n=507846 I guess my next question is, what's the best site to order my seeds from? I can't wait to get started... by the way, about the pine seeds I got with that kit, I guess I'll still grow that in the background, give the other trees more attention. I figure it would be good if 5-10yrs from now I can look at the tree with pride and say "I did this". |
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Craig-I find the Portulacaria's are much much happier outside than in a
window, even a sunny one... the ones I have on my windowsill grow much slower, are more leggy, and are soft and pale compared to even the ones that are in the shade outside (I'm in S. Florida).... And actually, the variagated ones seem to do better inside that the regular ones! Portulacaria's are from africa and grow out in the full sun really well.... and mine don't seem to like the air conditioning.. Perhaps a jade tree would take it better? From: Craig Cowing Reply-To: Craig Cowing To: Subject: [IBC] Bonsai Newbie Date: Fri, 15 Jul 2005 15:34:28 -0400 On Jul 15, 2005, at 3:26 PM, Tekmanx wrote: I guess I better be very carefull what I ask here..getting flamed in all.. j/k. Ok, so what do you suggest for growing indoors? And I'm in Miami/The Bahamas. Something I can sit on my comp desk and say.. ocassionally set at the window for sunlight. I'd go with a succulent. A jade tree, Crassula argentea/arborescens/ovata, or Elephant bush, Portulacaria afra (solid green, not variegated.) Craig Cowng NY Zone 5b/6a Sunset 37 ************************************************* ******************************* ++++Sponsored, in part, by Kevin Bailey++++ ************************************************* ******************************* -- The IBC HOME PAGE & FAQ: http://www.internetbonsaiclub.org/ -- +++++ Questions? Help? e-mail +++++ __________________________________________________ _______________ Express yourself instantly with MSN Messenger! Download today - it's FREE! http://messenger.msn.click-url.com/g...ave/direct/01/ ************************************************** ****************************** ++++Sponsored, in part, by Kevin Bailey++++ ************************************************** ****************************** -- The IBC HOME PAGE & FAQ: http://www.internetbonsaiclub.org/ -- +++++ Questions? Help? e-mail +++++ |
#9
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I guess I better be very carefull what I ask here..getting flamed in
all.. j/k. Ok, so what do you suggest for growing indoors? And I'm in Miami/The Bahamas. Something I can sit on my comp desk and say.. ocassionally set at the window for sunlight. |
#10
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Did you see the link in my very first post? About the kit, I didn't
plan to start this hobby.. I just saw the kit and was like "Oh this looks cool, I should try it" I mean it only cost me $5? If that much. The seeds have already started to germinate. I accidentally pulled one out being filled with excitement, I thought it was a little pebble atop my soil. At this rate I think I should have pics up by...say next 3days with the main stem above soil level. Sorry if I offended you by buying this... I guess the crooks that sold it were successful in conning me.. Tekmanx |
#11
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Tekmanx wrote:
Did you see the link in my very first post? About the kit, I didn't plan to start this hobby.. I just saw the kit and was like "Oh this looks cool, I should try it" I mean it only cost me $5? If that much. The seeds have already started to germinate. I accidentally pulled one out being filled with excitement, I thought it was a little pebble atop my soil. At this rate I think I should have pics up by...say next 3days with the main stem above soil level. Sorry if I offended you by buying this... I guess the crooks that sold it were successful in conning me.. No one was offended at or by you. None of that was aimed at you, but at the barsteds that market stuff like that to folks who want to actually "do" bonsai. The seeds seldom survive much beyond germination. Assuming a few DID survive, they would take at least 5 years to make a baby bonsai, and they are NOT trees that would survive indoors under the best of office conditions. The result is a disappointed customer who is certain that the trees died because of something THEY did -- and it was NOT. So, just have fun with the little seedlings if they sprout and survive, but take Craig s advice and buy a succulent that makes a nice bonsai, or perhaps a Ficus of some sort that has small leaves. Visit your local library and pick up a book or two on bonsai and do some reading. Have fun. Jim Lewis - - Tallahassee, FL - Nature encourages no looseness, pardons no errors. Ralph Waldo Emerson ************************************************** ****************************** ++++Sponsored, in part, by Kevin Bailey++++ ************************************************** ****************************** -- The IBC HOME PAGE & FAQ: http://www.internetbonsaiclub.org/ -- +++++ Questions? Help? e-mail +++++ |
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