soonami

It's not hard to make good trees out of mallsai. They are often species that intrinsically have qualities conducive to bonsai culture, such as juniper, chinese elms, and ficus. The problem with them is not the tree itself, but the rocks glued to the surface, poor maintainence by the seller, and contrived styling. But taking off the rocks, good light, water and soil, and a good eye can fix a bad tree.

However, remember for the price of a mallsai you can order a tree from someone like Brent at Evergreen Gardenworks or visit a local bonsai nursery and get material that exponentially better. Instead of spending time fixing mistakes, it would be by far easier to begin with starting material with more potential.