bonsaiTALK Community - View Single Post - Advice on my first bonsai creation

My take on this is that you're going from having one tropical species directly to a pine (a white pine at that!) , which is one of the more difficult trees for bonsai for those with little experience. I would recommend you put this pine in the ground if you have the real estate, and bone up on pine technique before styling it.

In the meanwhile, pick up a juniper and try your plan on that now if you can't wait. The end result won't be a pine but if you're itching to style something, a juniper will be more forgiving.

If you do decide to go ahead with styling this pine now, I would say that now isn't a good time for beginners to style pines before going into winter. If you had more experience, now would be o.k. But if you're just starting out, spring is the most forgiving season to work on almost any tree; that is the time when they are most vigorous and the weather works for you, not against you. I think it gets pretty cold in Nebraska in the winter, doesn't it?

28-Oct-2007	#2
gregb bonsaiTALK Master Join Date: Jan-2005 Location: Hood River OR Country: U.S. USDA Zone: 7 AHS Heat Zone: 4 Posts: 437	My take on this is that you're going from having one tropical species directly to a pine (a white pine at that!) , which is one of the more difficult trees for bonsai for those with little experience. I would recommend you put this pine in the ground if you have the real estate, and bone up on pine technique before styling it. In the meanwhile, pick up a juniper and try your plan on that now if you can't wait. The end result won't be a pine but if you're itching to style something, a juniper will be more forgiving. If you do decide to go ahead with styling this pine now, I would say that now isn't a good time for beginners to style pines before going into winter. If you had more experience, now would be o.k. But if you're just starting out, spring is the most forgiving season to work on almost any tree; that is the time when they are most vigorous and the weather works for you, not against you. I think it gets pretty cold in Nebraska in the winter, doesn't it?