Looking for 5 year old tree to make Bonsai

Question

I'm trying to find some baby trees that are between like 4-10 years old so I can make them into bonsai, but I'm not sure what to search for exactly to find what I'm looking for. When I search for certain trees I keep finding ready made bonsai trees or seedlings that are too young.

Any help with search terms to use or anything that could help me find what I'm looking for would be great.

Answer 1

Indoor or outdoor will be the first decision. You can look at examples of bonsaied plants to see what you want yours to look like eventually. In the meantime, make note of the name and source that particular plant.

Example: If it's an outdoor deciduous plant then you're looking for a sapling.

If it's a schefflera then a 5-yr old plant is too old to bonsai because it would likely be beyond the malleable stage whereas a 5-yr old ficus would still be okay.

Getting involved with a local bonsai club is a good idea, too. Enthusiasts are very willing to share info and "mold" new members.

Here's some reference material.

http://www.american-bonsai.com

Answer 2

The best thing to start with is not baby trees, but LITTLE trees.

What you want to find is an older tree, that due to environmental reasons, it has not grown big at all.  There are 25 year-old trees that are under two feet tall.  Where are such things?  Check for very dry places, very windy places, and very rocky places.

Answer 3

What you are looking for are called bonsai "starter plants" or "pre-bonsai".

Quite a few companies offer these for sale, and sometimes you can find them on ebay.

This is a reputable company I deal with regularly -

http://www.meehansminiatures.com/

You could also try posting a "wanted" add in this forum. It's mostly used for trading but sometimes there are people willing to help someone get started the right way.

http://forums2.gardenweb.com/forums/bons...