best beginner trees around southwestern PA?

[Oboedatree]

hello all! been looking around google for about 45 minutes now, and all the species that i have come across in my area seem to not be good for bonsai. any recommendations?

thanks!

 

[Paradox]

Its late in the year right now honestly as most trees have been put to bed for their winter dormancy.
As a beginner, I would not recommend trying to learn by collecting local native trees anyway.

A good first tree for a beginner IMO is a procumbens juniper, but you wont really find many at local nurseries right now. You might be able to get one online but youll have to be careful with it until spring.

If you are interested in tropicals which need to be kept inside under lights during the winter, Brazilian Rain tree, willow leaf ficus and tigerbark ficus are good starter species.

Over the winter would be a good time to do as much reading and asking questions as you can to start getting the basics down.

 

[Desert O'Piñon]

Your best bet is to do a search for trees native to the Pittsburgh area. If I'm not mistaken, there's probably several elm species that grow well, and they are typically considered great starter trees because of their resilience; they're a pretty tough genus. You have oaks and maples native to Pennsylvania as well. I'm not especially familiar with the American NE, but you have a lot of options.

 

[Gabler]

You have lots of native plants great for bonsai, mostly deciduous, but a few conifers, too. Make note of the species you see growing around you and look for examples as bonsai. If you aren't seeing them as bonsai, they're a bad choice for a beginner. If you see lots of us growing them, then give the species a try yourself. I'm personally partial to Quercus alba, Acer rubrum, Carpinus caroliniana, and Fagus grandifolia.

 

[Jrmcmich]

Here’s another source that is helpful having many articles. I have also bought few trees from Brent at evergreen gardenworks so you can also see type of trees that would be suitable for bonsai.

Evergreen Gardenworks

 

[Oboedatree]

Thank you everyone for the short yet very detailed responses, I’ve been having so much fun researching and learning more about this hobby ( sometimes getting a little to carried away and staying up far past midnight haha).
This is such an amazing thing and can’t wait to progress in it!