Who can give me some tips?!:)

Heeey

i am just a starter and don't have much knowledge about
bonsai and i find styling and seeing good material a bit difficult:!

Here are some yamadori 'bonsai' that i have for
a year or more..

My question was if someone could help me with these ones.
styling tips and all other tips would be really welcome

I dont know which species this is.. it had light red/yellow berries.
Removed some thick branches.. but dont really
know what to do with it now.. i dónt have carving material
at home.. This was my plan: carving from left at the top and at the right side where
where there is no branch anymore.
it leans to the back , I think the best front is a bit to the left.




This one was at a side of a stream
it had really big leaves.. i think it was a maple but i dont know
which kind exactly.
I tryed to make a little bit of deadwood that you can see whehe.


and this one looks kinda weird but i like it!
think it is an sorbus/ash
I made a picture of the leaves.


any advice would be really appreciated

Hello Maart and welcome. The first photo might be a crabapple tree. Since you have seen your tree with leaves, you might be able to find photos of crabapples to compare the leaves.

I like your curvy maple. With the angle the trunk comes out of the ground, you may be able to create a full cascade with it.

The ask looks like it could go over a rock, if you find the right rock. I am concerned about your soil. It looks very heavy and wet; like potting soil. Bonsai grow best in a very free draining soil mixture.

Have fun,
Todd

Hello Maart. Todd is right, your compost does look like it holds too much water. A more open mix suits trees better in the long term.
Your first tree I do not recognise and may well be a crab. To be honest, it shows little promise. I would suggest you chop it to the red line as you suggest and put it in the ground for a few years.
The second looks like Sycamore and athough it has some shape, has very little taper. I suggest you cut back to the first branch, eliminating the upright section and developing the tree from there. They do bud back very well but have very large leaves.
The third is a Mountain Ash (Sorbus). Personally, I would firstly airlayer around the base of the tree to eliminate the heavy roots. Once airlayered, I would cut back the top branches really hard to start development from the trunk.
Hope this doesn't sound too harsh and its really good that your out there collecting local stuff but there are many unnatural faults that I'm sure you will not like in the future. Deal with them early and you will improve your collection and technique quite quickly.

Helo Maart,

welcome to the Ibc, Do what Will said and you will thank him in a few years, also I want to ad if you want to learn something, come to the Noelanders trophy this weekend in Heusden Zolder Belgium.
You can talk with fellow bonsaipeople and from the exhibition you can learn a lot just at looking at the trees.

Kind regards
Peter

Hy Maart,

Cheque out the thread about 'Diatomée calciné'
Garden soil in the wet Netherlands is asking for root problems in a bonsai pot. (had that to be experienced by myself first)
Till repotting time in spring you could cover the pots with something against the rains.
Maybe -The Dutch Bonsai Federation- is something for you to cheque out to?
There is certainly some potential in your trees though.

regards, Sunip

Hi Maart,
Just my idea ,if you think this is good.

Heeey

Todd Ellis, The maple as a cascade was also my idea, wasnt sure how it should grow and
where to cut it, mainly because the branch goes up again, but i like the opinion of Will
Baddeley and I will remove the thick branch from the first side branch

The compost i am using is just potting soil for general plants. I have some bonsai soil,
some japanese split and akadama but havent used that yet, thought is was okey to use
normal potting soil because im just training them/letting them grow big like placing them in the ground.

I know that these trees are not the traditional/classic looks for bonsai, but that is something that attracts me,
bonsai that will look very different than the ones that are already on the internet. thats why I liked the ash with the big roots above the soil But also really like the more natural looking trees!

Thanks Sunip for saying there is some potential, means a lot because I havent heard that one before whaha:)
(checking the site right now)

I really like the virtual u made Aab900, it gives me a more open mind on ways to style the tree!

BTW Will Baddeley I don't think you can be (too) harsh, I have read some of your replies and think you have much knowledge of the subject, for me this is a good way to learn a lot more about bonsai;)

Maart,

he is not to harsh, he is even saying things midly, if you listen to him now you wont regret it.
If I have to be completly honest, I would say dich the trees and find better ones even pay for one perhaps.
This is harsh, but after experience for quiet some years now, I only help you so you can avoid the things I went trough and save you a lott of years working on rubish that perhaps never will be a bonsai.

Kind regards
Peter

Haha yes i know what you mean

This is not the material to get really nice
bonsai, but i can learn a lot with these and
meanwhile look for other trees.

These trees were found at a place where people throw there unwanted
plants, when i saw them i thought that i could at least try something with them

Maart wrote:Haha yes i know what you mean

This is not the material to get really nice
bonsai, but i can learn a lot with these and
meanwhile look for other trees.

These trees were found at a place where people throw there unwanted
plants, when i saw them i thought that i could at least try something with them

Yes thats okay, but never forget they are your practice trees
And really you should come over to Belgium this weekend its worthwhile and you learn a lott
Peter

Hello Maart. I smiled when I saw your posted trees, as they reminded me so much of the material that I collected years ago. I cut my teeth on this kind of stuff. Very few of those original trees remain with me but my carving, wiring, pruning and styling techniques all progressed from poorer quality collected trees. I have had many an argument with people that say you can bypass this stage and start with good quality material, but you have to be able to recognise good material and not be told what is good.

Hello Maart

Welcome in the world of bonsai. If you have the opportunity to join a local club I will recommend that. Hands on experience with the help of experienced bonsai people will make many things easier. Joining this forum is a very good information source and help, but it needs to be supported by local clubs, or a person that can help you on first hand also. Good luck and much joy with your trees.

Regards
Morten