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Originally Posted by PastorJeff
Wow...another great thread. I really appreciate this as the only bonsai store in the area sells stuff for too much.
Great post!
Jeffrey
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We all start out with nursery stock, and it's a great way to learn, and it's fun poking around to find a treasure.
In my early days of bonsai, my wife and I used to go on nursery crawls almost every weekend. When I say "crawl" I'm not kidding. Many times I could be found way in the back of the nursery, down on my hands and knees, looking for old rusty can specimens whose roots had grown into the ground. Often the nurseryman was happy to be rid of these trees as they had been around far too long.
It wasn't long before we were familiar with every decent nursery in a 50 mile radius.
So PastorJeff, stay out of the bonsai stores unless you need something specific that you can't find elsewhere. If it's a bonsai, the price may be too high, and you can't see the roots.
This reminds me of a true story. Years ago, a good friend went to a very well known bonsai dealer in the area, and bought a very expensive imported 5 needle pine. After a few months, it started into decline, and not long after,it became what we call a "sayonara style".
I did a postmortem on the tree. Almost no roots! What she bought wasn't much more than a cutting.
So, in bonsai, as in all things, know who you deal with, and caveat emptor.
Mike