Yewgarden wrote: But hey, I've only be gardening for 25 years, so what do I know?

I guess we can shake hands there. However, growing plants in general is not the same as growing bonsai.

I do agree with pretty much everythin you posted above though. You can style anything at any stage as long as it is healthy. BUT.. people should just realize whether there is potential to turn such plant -in a realistic timeframe- into a bonsai or not. If you are aware of that when you start off, there is nothing wrong working on recently rooted cuttings to get experience.

Two trains of thought though: If you start working on 'el cheapo' plants in the beginning, you do not care if it dies, thus thinking less about what you are doing. So the pro for cheap material: You do not loose a lot of money, and you do not kill a majestic tree if things go wrong. Downside: If you have paid 400 euro for a plant, you will think twice about trimming, wiring, watering before you actually do it. So you might learn more quickly.

And nope, it is not mallsai. It is just a rooted juniper cutting