Hi new to the bonsai tree game just need some help like what's the best soil and good for them. Thanks

It depends upon what plant you are growing but usually, the best soil for bonsai is either cactus soil or bonsai soil. If neither are available, potting soil with added perlite or pumice will work. The idea is for the soil to drain quickly but also retain some moisture. Don't fertilize. By the time the bonsai needs it, its time for soil refreshing anyway.

Thanks for the info 👍 much appreciated when do you re-pot em the only little en but I've got 4 in 1 and 1 in another thanks

Every 2 - 3 years. It involves root pruning so it will fit back into the same pot.

But if you have little seedlings in a bonsai pot, you have missed a step or 2.

They was from seeds

Those are Pine tree seedlings. Your first step will be to transplant them to 5 liter nursery pots (deeper) and letting them grow for several years. They will do better outside.

These 2 little pines are in a 5L pot. The stem of the larger one is about 15cm - they are 3 years old and just starting to branch. If I put them into a larger pot or the ground, they will grow faster but I am trying to grow heftier trunks, not bigger trees. Bonsai in training (what you have) need to grow size and bulk before they can be bonsai.

Thanks alot they was from a grow kit the book you get with it is not that good thanks

Carper86 said:Thanks alot they was from a grow kit the book you get with it is not that good thanks

Doesn't look like the seed choice was that good either...
At my house, pine trees generally have a single unbranched trunk, cut the growth tip off, kill the tree... not the best choice for a bonsai, in my opinion.

If I was attempting a bonsai, I would prefer to start with a tree or shrub that branched, and was tolerant of being cut back.

Personally, I usually work with citrus... they grow easily from seed, and do not mind the cutting & repotting required by bonsai culture.

Probably a tree with tiny leaves would be better... I'm thinking something like a yaupon holly (Ilex vomitoria) It's evergreen, has small leaves that you can even make a caffeinated beverage from after cutting them off, and is frequently used in landscaping...

Sorry about the poor quality of the grow kit... Suggest a visit to the library, and checking out a book on bonsai... Quite a lot to it...

Thanks I will have a look for the book I put a few seeds in but only the pine took I got about 6 different seeds with the grow kit.

stone said:
Doesn't look like the seed choice was that good either...
At my house, pine trees generally have a single unbranched trunk, cut the growth tip off, kill the tree... not the best choice for a bonsai, in my opinion.

Pines are very popular bonsai plants but they grow terribly slowly. My little pines in the photo are 3 years old and 6 inches tall. For that reason, not a good choice. Those little trees won't be ready for bonsai training for 10 years.

Finding a "How to" bonsai book is a good idea but find one showing the steps and techniques to growing a bonsai, not just pretty pictures. The trees in the pretty pictures could be 50 years or older. My oldest bonsai is a ginkgo forest - its about 50 years old and just a young thing in bonsai culture.

If you are patient, you can grow a bonsai from your little pines. If you aren't, you may want to find a different, faster growing plant. Growing indoors or outdoors also will change the choices. Pines are outside plants, even as bonsai.

Also bonsai aren't necessarily tiny. Any plant pruned for size, manipulated for shape and grown in a pot normally considered too small is a bonsai. Bonsai is a growing technique only.

Thanks for the info and for putting em outside mite be abit cold for em al try some more seeds see what happens

Do you know what specifically what of seeds you got? How cold does it get at your house?

Al have to have a look later on I'm in UK so cold lol

Carper86 said:... I'm in UK so cold lol

Can you ptovide a temperature range? Coldest temperature in winter?

0 to -4 ish
These are the seeds I got with the kit.

Most of England is considered zone 8... with milder summers than zone 8 here in the states.

I googled "judas tree"... looks like our redbud...
The legend of the judas tree... is that after Christ was hung from the wood of the redbud, the flowers were stained to the colour of blood...
Be a neat plant if you could get the seeds to grow.

Hard to say exactly what seeds you have, when they used common names...

Also... some seeds are going to need to experience the changing seasons before they will germinate.

I couldn't read the names on all the packets... suggest searching the names on the internet to discover what conditions the seeds require to grow.

Also... do you have any trees at your house? in the neighborhood?

I collected some Chinese elm seeds a couple of years ago (from street trees), and planted them in some pots that I was over-wintering inside... they came right up... they have such cool bark that they seem like naturals for bonsai culture... and... when I googled them just now.... that was a google suggestion.

Y'all have some interesting oaks over there... I'd try planting some acorns... they generally are easy...

Thanks al try and find some redbuds yes we have tree but nowt like the tree your will have in the 🇺🇸 I like growing em but I want em grow quicker lol but that's not the case with these. I've looked at some books on ebay ect but not sure which to buy do you know any good ones? For the new starter

The only packets I can read besides Judas Tree (Redbud) is Japanese Black Pine and Japanese Red Maple. The maple will need cold stratification to germinate, I'm not sure about the Redbud but I suspect it does also. All those trees are very hardy in zone 8 and will do much better outside.

Do you want something fast growing inside the house you can train as a bonsai? If so, I would suggest a Ficus, Dwarf Umbrella Tree or a Jade. There are lots and lots more choices though.

I'll think about a good beginner bonsai book.

Thank you for the help

Carper86 said:I've looked at some books on ebay ect but not sure which to buy do you know any good ones? For the new starter

Don't you have libraries open to the public over in England?

England is so well known for their gardens that I'd be very surprised if you couldn't find a surfeit of bonsai books free to peruse...

I just googled beginner bonsai.... How many of those sites are you visiting?