Bonsai Junkies..

Greatings IBC! I have been following the forum for a few months now and decided to finally register. I must say there is some remarkable talent around here. I wanted to start this thread befor spring started when things were a little slow around the yard..forgive me if it has been started already. So I pose the question fellow bonsai junkies... What got you hooked?? And how did you stumble upon the art?

I myself am pretty new to the obcession. Roughly 2 years it began. At first I got intrested in plants and horticulture and wanted to decorate my small yard I used to have. My background is in art and painting so I had a nack for choosing plants with wild and vivid colors and design in general. Quickly after visitng all the nurseries nearby I had come across my first impressive bonsai (or so at the time I thought lol) I had always seen those what I now can call medicore bonsai that never really caught my attention around. But the one I did see was probly a elm of some sort about a little under 2 ft, with a 3 inch trunk. I quickly fell in love with golden yellow foilage, and at the same time amazed and intrigued on how a person got such a fat little tree in such a tiny pot. It tickled my little brain with great mystery! Shortly after I went to purchase one (sadfuly enough not the elm) that was a little more in my price range, which ended up being a common ficus. And again I would constanley stare at it in amazement on how this little gem was created,how was it grown etc. Shortly after again I bought a used copy of an older sunset bonsai book and another I can't remember at the time. Discoverd masahiko kimura and was completley blown away on the endless possibilities one could do with a "tree in a pot" after that the addiction began! An endless love affair with nature. Once I read through the books I had realized that I needed wire and pots, 2 essential tools most of the nurseries around didn't carry. It took me about 4-5 months befor I found out I lived less then 15 miles away from the wonderful Muranaka Bonsai nursery in nipomo ca. Now if only I had more money to spend!!

Welcome Albert!

...What got me hooked?...Large trees won't fit in my house and lawn. So I invented a growing technique on trees...called "bonsai" to satisfied my needs, and the Japanese and Chinese copied it.

Seriously though, I love trees and plants even tomato plants since I was a kid. And when I first viewed a live bonsai show it was love at first sight.

regards,
jun

[quote="jun"]Welcome Albert!

...What got me hooked?...Large trees won't fit in my house and lawn. So I invented a growing technique on trees...called "bonsai" to satisfied my needs, and the Japanese and Chinese copied i


THE JAPANESE AND CHINESE COPIED?????Are you dreaming jun....

[quote="ogie"]

jun wrote:Welcome Albert!

...What got me hooked?...Large trees won't fit in my house and lawn. So I invented a growing technique on trees...called "bonsai" to satisfied my needs, and the Japanese and Chinese copied i


THE JAPANESE AND CHINESE COPIED?????Are you dreaming jun....

hahaha! and another haha! I am not dreaming and I am very serious. I think they did copy me a couple of thousands of years and few centuries ago. I think I was still very young then because I can't remember If it's the Chinese or the Japanese who copied me first. and they also stole my copy righted term "bonsai".
Now, Where can I sue the Ming dynasty and Fujiwaras of ancient Japan dynasties for copy write infringement?

Come on Ogie! What's wrong? Provide some laugh sometimes, don't be too serious man! Bonsai needs lots of hard work we need few smiles from time to time.

P.S.
Using all caps is equivalent to shouting and it sounds and looks rude. specially with the use of ?????. are you mad at me Alex or something?

regards,
jun

Personally I graduated from my Landscaping course in Puerto Rico. The final get together was in the professor house Mr. Gustavo Bures. He happens to be a bonsai enthusiast (whole backyard). I ask him about taking a course and he referred me to Master Pedro J. Morales. I took the basic course in 1995 with Mr. Morales and been hooked ever since. Still taking lessons with him on a monthly basis. As you all know there is always something to learn. Even while serving in the Marines I have at least five to ten trees in my backyard. Nowadays its back to a full backyard.

To Jun it was just a quiry
Till then
Ogie

ogie wrote:To Jun it was just a quiry
Till then
Ogie

Glad to know that dre!.

I am inviting you to visit my garden and we can have a couple of beers and have a good discussion on trees and some other good things in life. It's all on me.!

regards,
jun

What got me started was a Serpent Juniper from Japan at the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens in 1968. It just blew me away and I've been hooked ever since.

Glad to know that dre!.

I am inviting you to visit my garden and we can have a couple of beers and have a good discussion on trees and some other good things in life. It's all on me.!

regards,
jun [/quote]


Your on dre,no problem,hope your tree will be ready for the coming exhibit,PM me your cp,
Tnx & regards,
Alex
P.S. I started with a small one and never look back ever since,love bonsai & keep on rocking
Alex/Ogie

Like you Albert I am quite new to bonsai and I feel like it is something that I've been searching for a long time. It's a perfect mix of my artistic abilities and love of horticulture. Being an artistic youth I was always expected to pursue the fine arts but never really enjoyed it. My love of horticulture comes from growing up in the country, and later in my self destructive years, I was a 'professional' grower of 'funny plants'. The funny thing was that I found I got more enjoyment out of the actual growing then I did the product and the money that came from it. It was a bad decade in my life but I sure learned alot from a horticultural standpoint. Then after I cleaned my act up, I continued to enjoy growing anything I could get my hands on. It wasnt till I saw a display put on by my local bonsai society that I knew this is exactly the right thing for me. And it's been love ever since.

Mike