I’ve always enjoyed bonsai since I was a little kid and had always thought that being able to create them was out of my wheel house. Years later with professionals like Ryan Neil sharing their knowledge with the world it seems as though it may be possible to create such works of beauty.
I’m pretty new to the hobby and just wanted to ask the question, What are the biggest hurdles/challenges that people face while going on this journey either as a hobbyist or as a professional?
Examples might be, lack of material, watering, lack of resources, lack of interest in the community, etc.
I read something when I first started… (paraphrasing) most people dont expect it to be as challenging as it and quit inside the first 5 years. Most (not all) people who make it to the 5 year point, end up sticking with it indefinitely because of how rewarding it it.
So it seems like a war of attrition, I am still inside the first 5 year mark, so I dont have any real wisdom to add. Personally it was challenging for me to get larger material when I started but looking back that might be a blessing because I sucked at selecting material in the beginning. So at least I was stuck falling in love with small sucky stuff
For me the biggest challenge is finding the time to get the projects done.
“Simple” tasks like say unwiring take a lot more time than i first thought. bigger projects might take a few days to get finished.
As i work fulltime i find it very challenging and frustrating at times to be able to alocate the proper time the tree or the project needs and deserves. Life gets in the way and my priorities some times demand that my trees have to wait…
At this point in life with our first child on its way i really am thinking hard on getting rid of a few of my least favorite trees and focusing on my nicest or favorite trees and projects. But as you all know letting a tree go is a challenge in of itself…
When starting, having too few trees so that you baby them to death. A couple of years into the hobby the problem can become too many low quality trees to be able to really advance your trees. After a few years into the hobby the problem is hanging on to trees that you should have passed along to newer folks or tossed into the rubbish bin. Funding to buy decent material can be an issue at most points along the journey.
Thanks for all the insight so far, yeah I definitely think I relate to a lot of these hurdles. I either have too little trees and want to continue to work on them which has led to a lot of them not making it or life has gotten in the way and out here in the desert environment hot & dry I have lost a few to neglect as well. I’m hoping to keep going and look forward to one day have a decent collection and skill sets to match
I am combining all challenges mentioned above, spice it up with going backwards due to events beyond your control (wild animals, weather) add occasional questioning whether you have a talent to create something beautiful at all… 10 years later I have no tree that I would say is worthy bonsai created by me.
Still it is one of the most interesting and rewarding hobbies I can think of and maaaan I learned so much not only ab trees through the journey !
For those who are having issues with losing trees I suggest listening to this Bonsai Wire Podcast - Chat with Richard Wright (bonsaiwirepodcast.com). He lost most of multiple collections due to moves and three rounds of brain cancer, but is one of the most positive people I have heard talk about facing challenges.
This probably sums up most beginners first year or 2 until we figure out, bonsai is hard.
I agree though, wanting to do too much work on too few trees. Ryan’s resources for learning and practicing technique are there, but the tailoring to your situation will take time. Be patient with yourself AND your trees.
Having had my first tree blow off the bench and come out of a pot last night… knowing what to do because you read it (tie things down they can blow off) and waiting to learn by consequences…sort of sums up the first 2-3 years… with that said I am grateful for all the amazing information here and without it, I might have given up or run out of money to replace trees!
