As said here more than a hundred times, it is just a house plant.
An unusually fat, distorted root base with some Microcarpa leaves grafted on top, sold by IKEA, Home Depot and Wallmart as a "young bonsai plant", Ginseng is produced by the thousands in China's growing farms, and has no qualities whatsoever to become a decent bonsai.
Besides that, even if kept as a house plant, it is a dangerous choice, as this very website warns:
"Ficus Ginseng Bonsai plants are poisonous for pets, it can be especially dangerous if they eat the leaves. The trees should be placed out of the pets' reach."
So why am I posting this?
Because most of the posts from last week were not about bonsai, but regarded dying ginsengs.
Please novices, don't be fooled.
A Ficus Ginseng is just not a bonsai, even if the vendor swears by it.
Sorry.

Are you arguing that just ficus ginseng isn't a bonsai or all ficus?

It seems to me that one still achieves the qualities of the natural, tropical ginseng plant as a bonsai. I'm not sure what lacking qualities you mean.

AdamGM wrote:

Are you arguing that just ficus ginseng isn't a bonsai or all ficus?

Ficus Ginseng, and then specifically the ones that are grown in such a way that they grow these fat and ugly roots, that have a clearly cut off top, and foliage from another ficus grafted on top.

These in no way represent a majestic and old tree in nature, are often in round white Ikea pots which are not bonsai pot, and can really not be considered bonsai.

It seems to me that one still achieves the qualities of the natural, tropical ginseng plant as a bonsai. I'm not sure what lacking qualities you mean.

This ficus has the qualities of a bonsai:


These don't, and to use LB's words, are a parody:

So, why wouldn't it be a bonsai if you're starting fat root version and trying to make something better out of it? That's what I mostly do..

AdamGM wrote:

So, why wouldn't it be a bonsai if you're starting fat root version and trying to make something better out of it? That's what I mostly do..

It is a little sad that i had to create a page dedicated to this question. But I did...

www.growingbonsai.net/why-is-my-tree-not-a-bonsai/

I'm not sure it's sad, I haven't found another place on the internet which creates this gateway.
I guess I'm going to have to stop telling people I like to bonsai, lol.
What am I allowed to call the the wiring, pruning, repotting, etc. I do to my "not bonsais"? Gardening I guess?

I'll probably still hang around this forum if that's OK, the principles are still applicable.

Lol, you call it a prelude to bonsai. Go out. Get more trees

My budget is probbaly going to restrict me to what I'm currently doing now,whatever that is.. haha

I have one other tree, but that one also doesn't look like a proper tree at all so also not a bonsai.

For reasonable money you can often get decent plants at smaller nurseries, not specialized in bonsai. Don't go out with the idea to get a bonsai. Get a plant which you will develop into bonsai. It really does not have to be expensive. In fact, the money spend on a ginseng ficus (10-25 euro) is often enough to get a basic japanese maple too. In a few years these cn make interesting small bonsai already. Also, hedging plants can be had cheaply in spring and make decent starterplants to work with. E.g. www.bonsaiempire.com/forum/progressions/9904-shokkan-yew

This is how I started my other not-bonsai, a forsythia, but it was still more than I should have spent unfortunately, haha.