Hello everyone! As my username suggests, my name is Chris, and I live in Mississippi, USA. Got started with bonsai a year ago, did some experimenting with common species in my area -- Chinese privet, sweet gum (Liquidambar), and inexpensive finds at Lowe's, such as juniper and Alberta spruce. I branched out a little to some more exotic kinds, namely Sequoiah, Cedar of Lebanon, and Dawn Redwood. There were some successes and a few failures, and much learning.
Now my focus is on the mighty Baldcypress (Taxodium distichum). It so happens that I've spent the last five years exploring the huge Pascagoula River Swamp in south Mississippi, looking for the Ivory-billed Woodpecker. I haven't found it, but in the meantime I've found LOTS of baldcypresses, both babies and some ancient behemoths! It's become my favorite species of tree, and is (for me) a living embodiment of our beautiful, wild swamps. When I find the right forum topic, I'll share some photos of the trees from that place, and some of my bonsai.
So I had one baldcypress in my back yard that I'd planted five or six years ago, a purchase from Lowe's. It wasn't doing great, since it was in the shade of a much faster-growing water oak. I cut the top out of it late last summer, then dug it up and put it in a "pre-bonsai" pot last winter. It's done beautifully! Now I'm hooked on the species, and have access to many places where I can safely collect young 'uns from the wild Swamp.
I hope to learn more about this species and possible bonsai techniques I can use as I manage my growing baldcypress bonsai forest.
