Bonsai Careers?

[Forestcat]

My experience with Neem oil is that you have to be careful applying it in late spring/summer, especially with varieties like juniper. My preference is to switch to a light horticultural oil for early spring applications and I usually only do it once. Thereafter, I use insecticidal soap and usually only do that once in the spring and another one in late summer. I was able to get scale on a plant that came into my collection under control in a year or so using that combination. Isolate the plant if you see scale so that they won't infest other plants near it.

This may be too finicky for you but I hand picked the scale off using tweezers and put them into a container filled with alcohol - no, not the good stuff

 

[rockm]

FWIW, Bjorn looks to have re-opened the door to his apprenticeship. He posted the notice again on Facebook yesterday.

Eisei-en Apprenticeship Application – Eisei-en

www.bjornbjorholm.com

 

[Mikecheck123]

FWIW, Bjorn looks to have re-opened the door to his apprenticeship. He posted the notice again on Facebook yesterday.

Eisei-en Apprenticeship Application – Eisei-en

www.bjornbjorholm.com

No one jumped at the opportunity? I'm so shocked.

 

[rockm]

No one jumped at the opportunity? I'm so shocked.

Nope. Apparently a candidate had been selected.

 

[HoneyHornet]

In the meantime keep collecting trees, keep practicing air layers and other prop methods to speed up process short of sitting on mad saplings til they are worth a damn— keep collecting and training at the end of the day( I know this isn’t real advice toward the business side of question but is certainly a necessity)

 

[ahuxefecu102]

I am wondering if any of you wonderful people could give me some advice.

I am young and have an engineering degree, decent job, house, getting married this summer, going to be starting a family soon…

But for me bonsai is quickly developing from a hobby into a passion/obsession. I find myself thinking about trees nonstop and all I ever want to do is spend time in my garden. I’m feeling like I really want to have a career in bonsai but I can’t give up on having steady income especially right now. I honestly don’t know when it ever will be a “good” time.

My fiancee and I share a dream of owning a nursery/garden center some day but I know that I will need WAY more knowlege for that to even be a possibility, and at this rate I might not ever get there on my own. Everything I know I’ve learned through the internet and I’ve only been at this for a little over a year. I also dream of how to create an ats platform that can generate additional income. It's also been my little dream for a long time.

What suggestions would you have for someone like me? What opportunities exist out there? What would the path look like for me to eventually own my own nursery?

Start with workshops, local bonsai clubs, or apprenticeships with experienced bonsai artists. In-person learning will boost your skills beyond what the internet can provide.