133 lines
6.2 KiB
Plaintext
133 lines
6.2 KiB
Plaintext
From: tmkelly@shootist.EBay.Sun.COM (Tk)
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Newsgroups: alt.bonsai
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Subject: How to get started (long)
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Date: 1 Apr 1993 00:10:38 GMT
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Source: Bonsai Today Magazine #6 pg 24-25 (no author listed)
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Reprinted *without* permission
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How to Start a Bonsai Collection
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When bonsai suddenly bursts into your life, you are greeted, perhaps
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inundated, with new horticultural concepts, Eastern and Western
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aesthetics, and lots of advice, some of it seemingly contradictory.
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Add a dash of plant names in Latin and design concepts in Japanese,
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and just the thought of jumping into bonsai can be almost over
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whelming.
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People find bonsai to be of interest for many reasons. <<reasons
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deleted by Tk>>
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Regardless of from which direction you approach bonsai, there is
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always the question of how to get started.
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The first thing that you should realize is that interest in bonsai
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implies a profound respect and love for Nature. One does not start out
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into bonsai by collecting trees that are growing in the wild.
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Although you may follow the bonsai manuals on digging practice to the
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letter, you probably do not yet know how to even water your new
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acquisition, how to fertilize it, or how to preserve or enhance its
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original form. In many instances, a tree similar to the one you have
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just collected could have been bought for very little money at any
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nursery. Growing bonsai from seeds is an alternative, but this takes
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an awfully long time; it may take 10 years for an experienced
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enthusiast to produce an attractive bonsai.
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The same is true for cuttings. This method is used by enthusiasts who
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wish to reproduce specific varieties that are difficult to obtain by
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any other method.
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Layering is a good way to obtain fine bonsai stock. It is however a
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fairly advanced technique, and is really a better method for
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completing and improving your collection, rather than starting it.
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The quickest way is to start out with a bonsai that you have purchased
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from a nursery. Talk to the nurseryman and learn all you can about
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how best to take care of your new little tree.
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After you have gotten over the initial awe, it is time to be
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objective. Study your tree, compare it with the fine bonsai that you
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may see in books or magazines that have a similar design. Look for
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its flaws, and strong points. Realize that inexpensive bonsai may be
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sometimes little more than nursery trees that have been planted in a
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bonsai pot with little or no styling. Do not feel that you will in
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some way be violating the tree's artistic integrity by changing the
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its design: it is your artistic judgement that is most important.
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Perhaps a better way to get started with bonsai is to purchase a
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nursery plant that has been grown in a pot for ornamental purposes. If
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you pick one that has fairly dense growth, you will be able to shape
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it very quickly into almost any form you like.
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In a well stocked nursery, you will be able to find almost any
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variety. The majority of them will be well suited to your climate and
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location. In addition, working with a nursery tree allows you, without
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too great an expenditure, to begin to learn and practice those
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techniques that you must know to become a true bonsai enthusiast:
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branch pruning, wiring, root pruning, transplanting, pinching back,
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etc.
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To get started, you will need only some pruning cutters, scissors,
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wire cutters, some chop sticks, 1,2,3 and 4 mm copper or coated
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aluminum wire, bonsai soil, and a training pot.
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Do not start out with complicated material: look for a plant with a
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single trunk, many branches and one that is not too tall. Look, too,
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for a forgiving species that will survive in spite of what you are
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about to do to it: junipers are ideal species for beginners.
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Next do some searching around a nursery. Locate a tree or shrub that
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you think may have promise, and purchase it. Now only one more thing
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is left to do: style it.
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Look through all the bonsai books and magazines you can find; look at
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the photographs of fine bonsai for a design that can be adapted to
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your pre-bonsai. Then look your tree over, assessing its qualities
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and its defects. You are not yet Kimura , but the essential
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techniques only require practice and a little imagination.
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A bonsai is viewed from only one direction, call the front of the
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tree. Look at the tree from many directions until you find what you
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feel is a pleasing trunk line. This will be the front. Push a small
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stick in the soil in line with the front as a reminder. Then decide
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which of the branches should be removed before you do any actual
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pruning: you can mark then with a piece of string. To get an idea what
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the tree might look like with a specific branch removed, take a sheet
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of paper or paper towel and cover the branch.
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From then on, work slowly; look over the articles on design and wiring
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and then begin to shape your first future bonsai. If you use a
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juniper, the result will be immediately apparent and if you ant not
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completely pleased with it, plant it in the yard and try again with
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another. Bonsai is a learn-by-doing experience: there is no other
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way.
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After the tree has been styled to your satisfaction, it should be
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planted in a bonsai pot. A bonsai is not a bonsai until it is planted
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in a proper pot. Remove the tree from its plastic pot and prune the
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roots so it will fit in your bonsai pot. If you have removed half of
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the branches, then the tree really only needs about half of the roots
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it originally had.
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From one of your bonsai references you can learn the details of root
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pruning, drainage, and potting soil suitable for bonsai, and how and
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when to transplant your little tree into a bonsai pot.
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Then sit back and enjoy your new creation for a few moments. You will
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find yourself trimming a little here and there, perhaps moving a
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branch to a better position. You are on your way.
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There are many things yet to learn, foremost of which is how to keep
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your bonsai alive and vigorous. So read everything you can and learn
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by observing how your plant responds to sun and shade, watering
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frequency, fertilizing, pruning, pinching, and so on.
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Join a club if there is one nearby.
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To sum up, practice and observation are the essentials fro developing
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bonsai skills and building a collection of Bonsai.
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-end-
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