stullencone
Seed
My foray into bonsai started 7/4/23, with the purchase and (aimless and uninformed) “styling” of a Chamaecyparis Pisifera “Lemon Thread” from Lowe’s. On 7/5, and in the rain, I went around my backyard fence line harvesting white mulberry saplings which I planted in a “forest” configuration in an old motor oil catch pan (that I cut holes in the bottom of). On 7/6, I went to my parents’ backyard and collected the subject of this thread, my first Silver Maple.
Before pics I want to state for the record that I expected the mulberries and the maple to die on account of it being summer in central Illinois. I had learned enough (from lurking this forum) at that point to know that this was not the time to be collecting trees, but I figured “hey, these trees are nuisances and I’m having fun”.
7/6/23 Collection day
Potted into a tiny pot from Amazon (that has HORRIBLE drainage). You can see the top of my mulberry forest in the bottom left of the pic below.

I put it in an area that got quite a lot of sun, and over the next 20 or so days, it started losing all its leaves. I chopped the trunk to about 7ish inches at some point and gave up hope, but kept watering it when I watered the rest of my stuff.
7/29/23 New growth!!
It’s alive! After this I moved it to an area that gets only midday sun, for fear of burning off the little leaves in the afternoon sun.

8/12/23 Growing lots
I’m excited to see where this goes. Now that I have this thread I’ll post more pics of this tree. The vast majority of the growth is happening on two branches, and they are growing essentially vertically (which I’d like to change at some point). I do have two buds which have popped that are low, near the severe curve in the trunk. I don’t have long term plans at this point as I thought it would die and it very well may die this winter as I have no experience caring for trees in pots in winter.
Before pics I want to state for the record that I expected the mulberries and the maple to die on account of it being summer in central Illinois. I had learned enough (from lurking this forum) at that point to know that this was not the time to be collecting trees, but I figured “hey, these trees are nuisances and I’m having fun”.
7/6/23 Collection day

Potted into a tiny pot from Amazon (that has HORRIBLE drainage). You can see the top of my mulberry forest in the bottom left of the pic below.


I put it in an area that got quite a lot of sun, and over the next 20 or so days, it started losing all its leaves. I chopped the trunk to about 7ish inches at some point and gave up hope, but kept watering it when I watered the rest of my stuff.
7/29/23 New growth!!
It’s alive! After this I moved it to an area that gets only midday sun, for fear of burning off the little leaves in the afternoon sun.

8/12/23 Growing lots

I’m excited to see where this goes. Now that I have this thread I’ll post more pics of this tree. The vast majority of the growth is happening on two branches, and they are growing essentially vertically (which I’d like to change at some point). I do have two buds which have popped that are low, near the severe curve in the trunk. I don’t have long term plans at this point as I thought it would die and it very well may die this winter as I have no experience caring for trees in pots in winter.
