# Free bonsai? Well, not quite....



## KyushuCalanthe (Apr 26, 2010)

Yesterday I went to a local orchid show and was surprised to see a collection of bonsai at the entrance. There were around 30 trees, all Japanese black pine, _Pinus thunbergii_, except for one Japanese white pine, _P. parviflora_. There was a sign that read, "¥1000 and up". Wow, now that's cheap (around $10 US). 

I immediately began hunting for the best one and soon found my favorite. The guy who was selling them agreed it was the best of the lot. I asked, "how much for this one?" He responded, "any tree is ¥1000." I was dumbfounded. The tree I had picked would cost a minimum of ¥15,000 at any bonsai nursery. I said, " REALLY, ANY TREE?" He said, "yup!" Well, I got that one on the spot and took the white pine as well. I would have taken another of the blacks, but we had no more room in the car!

Here they are, remember only about $10 per! The first is the black pine. The dimensions are about 22" tall and 32" maximum spread, a pretty big tree. It weighed a ton, I can tell you! The man said it was around 35 years old. Value in Japan between $150 - $250, depending on the nursery.







The white pine was smaller, only about 18" tall and 22" high. A bit younger as well, less than 30 years. Value in Japan between $80 - $100.






I got the scoop on this from the man handling the trees. He said it was the collection of a man who is unable to care for them anymore. He recently turned 80 and just found them too difficult to move, prune, wire, and so on, so he was forced to give them up after 40 years of keeping them. That made me feel bad, but they assured me there was no other choice. Honestly, Japan is FULL of such collections and many are being lost now because younger folks are uninterested in such things. In the old days trees were handed down from father to son, but that tradition is going away as more and more young people head off the the big cities to find their fortune. It is an unfortunate trend.

Anyway, I'm psyched! I've been toying with the idea of getting a pine bonsai for several years now, but was put off by the price and also maintenance. Since these were basically given to me, I feel very lucky. If that weren't enough, they also gave me two _Dendrobium moniliforme_ for free! I drove off with over $300 worth of plants and only laid out $20. Not a bad deal!


----------



## biothanasis (Apr 26, 2010)

Excellent deal Tom!!! You are very lucky indeed!!! WOW! Happy growing!!!


----------



## JeanLux (Apr 26, 2010)

OMG Tom!!!!! What a deal!!!!:drool: You should have hired a van and taken all of them :drool:!!! I have a rel. nice parviflora, but that cost me xx the price you paid for! The thunbergii has really a very good shape!!!! This was THE purchase! Jean


----------



## goldenrose (Apr 26, 2010)

:clap::clap:Nothing like being in the right place at the right time! Great find, great buy!


----------



## Dido (Apr 26, 2010)

I can imagin how happy you must be. 
Kepp them in a good shape for the honer of the old man


----------



## etex (Apr 26, 2010)

Great deal! Both look great!
It is sad that less people are interested in keeping the tradition alive and that collections are being lost.


----------



## Clark (Apr 26, 2010)

Nice specimens at yardsale prices!

Will you keep these outside in winter, exposed?


----------



## Lanmark (Apr 26, 2010)

Stunning! How fortunate for you to have found these! I hope you will keep them for the next 50 years.


----------



## Leo Schordje (Apr 26, 2010)

Serendipty

Both trees have real potential. Wabi and Sabi

The rough bark on the white pine suggests it might be white pine branches grafted onto a black pine trunk, or perhaps it is one of the rough bark varieties, like Ara Kawa or Ibo Can. In either case, the white pine definitely has a better than average trunk. Really nice find.


----------



## nikv (Apr 26, 2010)

Wow! The price you paid probably doesn't even cover the cost of the pots, much less the fabulous trees. Please take good care of them and think of the elderly gentleman whenever you care for them.


----------



## SlipperFan (Apr 26, 2010)

Wow, Tom -- you are lucky. I know these treasures will be well cared-for in your possession.

As I get "up in years" I am reminded that this will happen to all of us. What will happen to our treasures as we get too old or however are unable to care for them?


----------



## JeanLux (Apr 26, 2010)

SlipperFan said:


> ....
> 
> As I get "up in years" I am reminded that this will happen to all of us. *What will happen to our treasures as we get too old or however are unable to care for them*?



Omg! Dot you hit the basic point!!!! 

IMO, Not many (if any) family members and other friends are interested, and enough informed!!!! 

Jean


----------



## NYEric (Apr 26, 2010)

Hmmm, what happened to my post? 
Anyway, Nice acquisition. 
Dot, you can bequeath your plants to me.


----------



## smartie2000 (Apr 26, 2010)

I wish I was there! Bonsai is nearly impossible to find around here. I think the price would be quadruple here!

I love the white pine. The tapering of the trunk is great.

Since I cannot find many bonsai/penjing here, I am currently working on a young dwarf pomegranite tree indoors. I had it wired and shaped this spring...lets see how many years I can keep it alive looks like a young stick right now compared to your plants. (I am hoping to see a Serissa foetida for sale eventually!! mine died when I went on vacation)


----------



## Hera (Apr 26, 2010)

The white pine is particularly appealing. Nice find!!! I always liked looking at bonsai, but I think the upkeep would do me in.


----------



## KyushuCalanthe (Apr 26, 2010)

They were a steal, pure and simple. Living in Japan I realize that one day, perhaps not too far away, I will have to give up my growing collection of plants...I don't intend to retire here. It is a sad thing, but the joy I get out of having them makes up for that inevitability.



JeanLux said:


> OMG Tom!!!!! What a deal!!!!:drool: You should have hired a van and taken all of them :drool:!!! I have a rel. nice parviflora, but that cost me xx the price you paid for! The thunbergii has really a very good shape!!!! This was THE purchase! Jean



Jean, if I had the facilities, I would have bought them all. Think about it, I could have walked off with $2000+ worth of trees for $300. I agree that the black pine is the buy, even though most people would be more attracted to the small, tight needles of the white.



Clark said:


> Will you keep these outside in winter, exposed?



Yep. Bonsai collections don't need to be protected from the elements here since the winters are relatively mild and importantly, we don't get ice storms (a welcome quirk of Japanese weather).



Lanmark said:


> I hope you will keep them for the next 50 years.



Thanks for the compliment, I hope I can keep myself for the next 40! Then again, my grandma is going to turn 100 this October, so there is hope...



Dido said:


> Kepp them in a good shape for the honer of the old man





nikv said:


> Please take good care of them and think of the elderly gentleman whenever you care for them.



I will do my best!



SlipperFan said:


> As I get "up in years" I am reminded that this will happen to all of us. What will happen to our treasures as we get too old or however are unable to care for them?



Yes, it is a problem, isn't it? A good friend of mine in Victoria, B.C. has amassed a collection and yard over the past 25 years that exceeds a botanical garden by far in both quality and variety. He and I have conversations about losing such things and puzzle over what to do. The all too common "garden raid", a bunch of folks coming over and devouring your garden the day before you have to sell, is an unhappy prospect.



NYEric said:


> Hmmm, what happened to my post?



I ate it. It was delicious.



smartie2000 said:


> I wish I was there! Bonsai is nearly impossible to find around here. I think the price would be quadruple here!



Ah, but the catch is that you have to live in Japan, and that is a whole other reality! I don't know what these plants would fetch in an overseas market. Here there are so many trees at present, but I imagine private collections will rapidly diminish as the older generation passes on. In Japan keeping bonsai is an "old's man's delight" - younger folks and women generally have no interest at all.



Hera said:


> I always liked looking at bonsai, but I think the upkeep would do me in.



Let's hope it doesn't do me in! Yes, the up-keep is tough and takes skill. In Florida I maintained a couple trees over a 20 year period and had to leave them behind when I came here. Bummer...but I remind myself, "it ain't the having, it's the doing that counts."


----------



## Jorch (Apr 26, 2010)

Very nice acquisitions!!! I love to look at bonsai, but just don't have the patience to grow them 

Fren, come to Vancouver or visit Toronto, I'm sure you'll be able to buy some nice plants  LOL


----------



## Lanmark (Apr 27, 2010)

Sometimes I think there should be (or wish there were) a place for us to take plants of value when we get old, someplace like a Plantsonian Institute where treasures such as these will be nurtured and appreciated for generations to come.


----------

