Is it difficult to find junipers that would be suitable for the upright styles? I personally like those two the best but junipers seem to look they wold be more suitable for cascade styles (which I personally hate.)

It very hard to find junipers suitable for cascade, I would say. Plants have a tendence to grow up. And junipers that do not grow upwards, have branches that never seem to set in shape.

So.. Finding upright junipers in general is a lot easier than suitable cascading material.

In either case.. Regular nursery stock might be too young to get started on. You should really be looking at plants that are upwards from half a meter diameter, which would have a trunk of a few cm diameter.

So far, I haven't had any luck finding a store that carries junipers right now. Of course, I've only checked one, Home Depot, but I'm going to check Lowes tomorrow.

Don't buy plants at a hardwarestore. Go to nurseries. :S

Is there a particualr reason why? If there's (unlikely) a suitable tree at the hardware store, then why shouldn't I consider it?

thebonsaiguy wrote: Is there a particualr reason why? If there's (unlikely) a suitable tree at the hardware store, then why shouldn't I consider it?

One reason is that they will sell you a ficus ginseng as a bonsai and tell you it is probably a maple, that can be kept indoors and needs to be bathed daily.

thebonsaiguy wrote: Is there a particualr reason why? If there's (unlikely) a suitable tree at the hardware store, then why shouldn't I consider it?

The word "unlikely" pretty much summons everything up... There will be a 1/1.000.000 million chances that you can actually find a suitable pre-bonsai material in such places.

Alain

Auk wrote:

thebonsaiguy wrote: Is there a particualr reason why? If there's (unlikely) a suitable tree at the hardware store, then why shouldn't I consider it?

One reason is that they will sell you a ficus ginseng as a bonsai and tell you it is probably a maple, that can be kept indoors and needs to be bathed daily.

I wasn't going to buy a tree that they consider bonsai. I was just going to buy a regular sized juniper that would be suitable for bonsai.

Hi bonsai guy,
Id like to share some experience ,even tho i dont have much of it .
I used to buy trees from supermarkets and hardware stores all the time thinking i had made a good purchase , then get home , post on this forum and find out that it really wasnt as good as i thought .
I kept trying these places and eventually i learned my lesson , but in the mean time i developed a bit of an eye for good material which, as the more experienced members suggested , is easier to find in a nursery.
So if you dont want to waste to much time i would listen to them, or learn from youre mistakes like i did .
Regards
Nico

Alright, so, quick update. My grandmother told me that she has some baby wild red cedar trees (Juniperus viginiana) growing wild. I'm going to have a look at those and see how they look.