Hi, if you want to give your father a decent gift, don't give him a bonsai 'kit'! They are gimmicks and while he might at some point get a seed to germinate, it'll be many years before he has anything resembling a bonsai! If you think he has the energy, patience and inclination to learn about bonsai (before spending money on anything) there are local clubs he could join - great places to learn - and/or a lot of reading, e.g. www.bonsai4me.com, which gives basic information on growing, plus loads of books (see the book subforum of bonsaisite.com) for good ideas. Bonsai in fact are generally made from larger trees that are cut down, and have their branches regrown, rather than seeds, which take forever, though if you're already 'doing' bonsai you would do the seed thing as a sideline. The little trees you'll see in Wal-Mart, H-D, etc., are mass produced in China and are very young, and badly trained into cookie cutter shapes not resembling any living tree (the point of bonsai is to try and reproduce real trees in small pots, not to take real trees and make them look like "bonsai"! There is a lot to learn about soil mixes, available light, watering - very different from what you'd do with a houseplant - seasons, training and pruning for shape, etc. etc. etc., so don't spend your money yet until you're sure your father really has a strong interest plus at least basic knowledge of what it's all about, but kits are definitely not the way to go. And PS - junipers need to live outdoors for life, regardless of what some care tag, or store clerk tells you!

dean,

Check out JoeBonsai.com, I am new at this and liked what I received for this company. It came with a basic book on what to do and general discussion. It sounds like bonsai4me.com would be similar. My tree is in a nice bonsai container and is thriving. My tree came with well packed and with fertilizers, extra rock and watering spout. Aloha

Do NOT waste your money at that site - the prices are shocking for what you get and what you get are not bonsai, but recent cuttings taken from other trees, and stuck into the 'wrong' pots with no training or understanding of what they are doing. Terrible idea!

Larke,

Well just shows how much I don't know about bonsai and where to buy one. I am joining a local bonsai club to improving my lack of knowledge. My little tree seems to be doing well and seems to have a good root system. I will find out more when I go to the club meeting. Thanks for setting me straight on this one because I was thinking of buying another ficus from them and combining the two trees together in the same pot. I did like the book that came with the tree written by Jerry Meislik. Sorry about the wrong suggestion Deanie.

thanks for the comments! thanks larke, and no worries lehua.

so it turns out i'm not too far from a bonsai nursery (miami tropical bonsai). i bought my dad a juniper and ended up getting a fukien tea for me so that we could start learning together. it was great because by buying a plant and ceramic pot together, a free repotting was done. while watching a worker repot the plant, i learned so much from what type of soil was recommended, watering, fertilizing and even basic wiring. what a great experience! =)

Hi - tell me what you planted it/them in mix-wise, and how you plan to keep them going re watering, light, location, etc.

for the juniper, was told that it needed to be outdoors with full sun. it should be watered carefully since it does NOT love being wet. but at the same time, it shouldn't dry out between waterings. was recommended a 12-6-8 fertilizer (i haven't gotten this yet and i'm still doing more research).

for the fukien, i was told that this doesn't need as much light as the juniper and could be an indoors as long as it's by a window with adequate lighting. this one prefers humidity. was told that it can dry out a little bit more between waterings than the juniper.

thank you. please help if you notice any red flags.

oh, and for the soil i was told that it should have good drainage and definitely not to use normal potting soil.

on the packet they gave me they recommended mixtures that "include mulch, pine bark, sand and loam"

Hmmm - Unfortunately you've been given a lot of misinformation. As far as watering goes, the juniper's mix can come close to drying out between waterings, easily! The Fukien's is just the opposite - only the top half inch or so can get dry and so, in the right mix, ends up usually being watered about every 36-48 hrs, but that's not a schedule, it's a guideline. It needs at least as much light as the juniper and just about all of us growing them have full spectrum, high wattage fluorescents hung 5-6 inches above them, turned on for 15-16 hours each day, with wide trays of stones and water underneath, the stones keeping the pots from touching the water however, so it doesn't get wicked back inside and rot the roots by just sitting there. It's a tropical, and the juniper's native to high, dry places in the west. The juniper's mix should be 90% grit, plus 10% organics - go the Soil forum on bonsaisite.com for component choices and bonsai4me.com for all around basics on both plants. The Tea's mix will be similar, but the grit part only 50-60%, with the rest organic. Forget loam and sand for either (or any bonsai mix). Do read both those links carefully.

thanks so much larke for taking the time. you've been very helpful. obviously i'd have to do way more research, for sure.