I do have a couple of questions the first one is. I was wondering on what kind of tree my Bonsai is. Also, I was wondering on what kind of spray that I could maybe use to maybe prevent any bugs from attacking the tree? At the moment I do have tiny house flys hanging around it however, they dont seem to be doing any major harm to it at the moment for I am keeping an eye on it and i am not seeing any other types of harm to it just yet but, I wouldn't mind trying to maybe prevent it from happening if its a possible thing... since its what we sometimes do with our outdoor plants.

Included is a picture of what my tree looks like.

Cupcakeswirldots wrote:

I do have a couple of questions the first one is.

This is a garden center fancy gift tree. It is no in a bonsai pot, the stone with print has nothing to do with bonsai and the plant has no bonsai quality. I would not call this a bonsai or even a mallsai.

Could be a Ligustrum but I think we'll need a better picture.

Auk wrote:

Cupcakeswirldots wrote:

I do have a couple of questions the first one is.

This is a garden center fancy gift tree. It is no in a bonsai pot, the stone with print has nothing to do with bonsai and the plant has no bonsai quality. I would not call this a bonsai or even a mallsai.

Could be a Ligustrum but I think we'll need a better picture.

That is the sort of thing that has blighted my life. To think this is the introduction to Bonsai many newbies get from people who don't know the first thing - and these innocent newbies don't even know it. Aren't even aware of it. Newbies don't know how wrong trees like that are and how easy it is to just buy a good garden center product like my Juniper and just get something really good from it by just planting it in the ground for a few years.

However I will give it it's dues. As something to practice different techniques on and to hone skills on you can't go far wrong. Low risk. If it dies what have you lost, assuming you didn't pay much for it?

But if the OP thinks he has something good there, I am afraid I have to say he hasn't. Sorry Cupcakeswirldots. To us that is unnatural and ugly. Bonsai is meant to replicate trees in nature complying to the natural growth patterns of full-size versions. If you planted the Bonsai in a natural landscape, it would look look like it is meant to be there. That has been artificially styled by people who have taken the artistic side to Bonsai rather to literally.

But I would get it outside. No tree is meant to be indoor unless it is a tropical IIRC. I have a Ligustrum and it has always been outside.

I feel like I need to chime in on this topic as well. Now what cupcakeswirldots has is not necessarily a "bonsai" tree now, there is no reason to say that it can't be... Bonsai is an art form and the bottom line is that bonsai means "tree in a pot". Any tree can be turned into a bonsai tree with the right care, pruning, training, etc.. Just because the pot that particular tree is in isn't decorative doesn't disqualify it from being called bonsai. What does disqualify it is exactly what BonsaiMackem wrote. A bonsai is meant to mimic a larger version as if it were in nature.

Now this particular tree is currently pretty ugly and does not mimic anything natural. But with the right care, pruning, training, etc... there is no reason this could not be turned into a bonsai tree.

Am I totally off base here?

Yes I think you are "off base" It will never make a beautiful bonsai. Yes bonsai is "tree in a tray" but it is much more than that. Go to a show see some real quality bonsai and then you will understand the difference.

Maybe it is a bit off-base to discuss the fylosophy of bonsai in the thread of a first-poster.

However, in short.. Any tree kan be made into a bonsai. Question is, how much time do you want to spend, or in other words, how much potential does it have already. Ideally you start with trees where some basic features are already there, or you decide you want to hrow a bonsai from the groun up, and are willing to spend decades doing so.

A remark that bonsai basically means tree in pot tells me that you do not take bonsai very seriously and have not spent enough time looking at bonsai.

I understand that bonsai is much more than a tree in a pot. All I'm trying to say is that I've seen a lot of beginners post on here asking for help and guidance and most of the time they are shot down or put down because they are naive and maybe do have a mallsai tree. I just want to give a little more hope to those people and create a more positive atmosphere.

My first tree was a mallsai tree and it was a present to me from a good-intended girlfriend who didn't know that she was getting me something less-than good. It was a good intro for me to the art of bonsai though because I was able to try and work with it and cultivate it.

leatherback wrote:

Maybe it is a bit off-base to discuss the fylosophy of bonsai in the thread of a first-poster.

However, in short.. Any tree kan be made into a bonsai. Question is, how much time do you want to spend, or in other words, how much potential does it have already. Ideally you start with trees where some basic features are already there, or you decide you want to hrow a bonsai from the groun up, and are willing to spend decades doing so.

I think there's a difference between someone interested in bonsai, who buys his first mallsai by mistake, and someone who buys a gift-wrapped nonsense-sai with stones with sweet texts on 'm, in a colorful indoor plant pot. The second one is interested in funny room-plants, not in bonsai.