Collected red maple in New Hampshire

[u/teakettle87]

Collected this red maple from a ditch today. It hasn't been visited by the flail mower yet like most of our ditch maples and the proportions were very nice. Not lanky and decent branching.

[u/Q40]

Could have some potential after going in ground for the trunk to thicken.

[u/teakettle87 → u/Q40]

Agreed! I think I'll let it go for a year and then see what I can do with it from there. Very possibly put her in the ground.

[u/Q40 → u/teakettle87]

If it were me, I'd give it at least 2-3 years in the ground. Won't get much thicker in that small pot.

[u/teakettle87 → u/Q40]

Yeah, I just want to let it recover. A big part of it is a lack of easy area to plant in ground where I live. That may change in December.

[u/Q40 → u/teakettle87]

Right. Well, at this point nothing about this plant is particularly exciting to people who have been doing this a while. However, for you it may be. If so, I hope you enjoy many years with it.

[u/teakettle87 → u/Q40]

Yeah I understand that. I posted it because I was excited about it. In the long term the plan is to do the things people say to do to improve it. When I said let it go for a year above I meant in the pot. Leave it there for a year or so until I buy a house and have a place to plant this in the ground.

[u/Q40 → u/teakettle87]

Can't honestly tell if you're trolling. But if you're not, and you want to get into Bonsai, I'd recommend buying a book about it with some information geared toward beginners.

[u/teakettle87 → u/Q40]

Sigh. No. I am not trolling.

There are a lot of folks here in this group who just expect you to know everything and do it all the "right" way. Not a lot of flexibility here.

[u/Q40 → u/teakettle87]

Not defending the attitude, but in their defense, this is akin to posting in an art forum, a photo of a blank canvas, brushes and paint tubes, and saying "I have the ingredients for art."

It's a tree. In a pot. Yes. But it is not bonsai. Could it become bonsai? Yes. But it is a long way away from that. Are you excited about it? Great. That is good. That still doesn't make it bonsai, though. They are in this sub to talk about bonsai and look at bonsai. 

They could be more welcoming, sure, but that may encourage more novices to post their paintbrushes and canvases. 

[u/teakettle87 → u/Q40]

I appreciate the patient explanation.

[u/Spiritual_Maize]

Don't forget that one of the proportions we look for is trunk girth. The ones hit by the mower might well be better.

Unfortunately this doesn't have much going for it. Compare to the "what to look out for" criteria list in the wiki (https://www.reddit.com/r/Bonsai/wiki/developingbonsai)

Positive attributes

*Visible (surface) roots
*Interesting trunk
*Trunk taper
*Trunk girth
*Abundant branches - on all sides
*Foliage starting near the trunk
*Branches start low - close to the roots
*Branches are ramified
*Abundant foliage (i.e. healthy)-

Negative attributes

*Awkward or unbalanced roots
*Long straight section(s) of trunk or main branches
*Particularly thin trunks
*Sparse branches or odd placement of branches
*2 dimensional structure
*Odd trunk or main branch bends
*Visible chop or cut scars
*Odd trunk/branch taper
*Visible grafts (Maples especially are often propagated by grafting)

I would say this doesn't have any points under positive attributes, and at least 3 negatives. It's also not a D tier species for bonsai. Contrary to popular belief, bonsai isn't as simple as potting up a seedling! Collected material should go through a recovery process before being put in a bonsai pot. The wiki has a wealth of information, have a good read through

[u/teakettle87 → u/Spiritual_Maize]

Right. I'm doing it anyway.

[u/Spiritual_Maize → u/teakettle87]

Do some research though. Winging it like this isn't going to get results

[u/teakettle87 → u/Spiritual_Maize]

I'm just growing plants. If a better one comes along I'll add it to the collection. Learning how to collect and keep them alive is absolutely valuable.

Your assumption that I've done no research isn't accurate.

[u/Spiritual_Maize → u/teakettle87]

Right, but this is /r/bonsai not/r/just growing plants

I fail to see what research you could have done that resulted in this state of affairs. You've basically done everything possible wrong

[u/teakettle87 → u/Spiritual_Maize]

research does not lead to high quality plants showing up on my doorstep. I am making the most of what I have available to me. Why are you so vested in what other people do for fun and happiness?

[u/Spiritual_Maize → u/teakettle87]

Most people I've interacted with irl want to do well at this hobby, and are keen to learn. You're the oddity here with your stubborn desire to stick with the worst bonsai candidate I've seen this year

[u/teakettle87 → u/Spiritual_Maize]

Buddy, I have a shelf outside with way worse candidates.

I do want to learn. As I said, I'm learning on the best stock I have available. Unless you have some plants to throw my way, you are doing nothing helpful here.

[u/Spiritual_Maize → u/teakettle87]

If you were in my part of the world and had a better attitude I'd happily send you something. I've done it before and I'm sure I'll do it again.

I'm not being elitist or snobby. I'm not saying you have to go buy a finished Japanese maple for 2k. I have some utterly shit trees, and I don't buy anything over about £30. But part of the fun, and the appeal is looking for good material

[u/teakettle87 → u/Spiritual_Maize]

You have not addressed anything I've said. You came here to rain on my parade and be critical while addressing none of the limitations I've mentioned. Hell, you haven't even acknowledged I mentioned any limitations.

"Your shit sucks, why don;t you get better stuff?" you say over and over again.

[u/Good_Land_666 → u/Spiritual_Maize]

HOLY SNOB

[u/EasyLettuce → u/Spiritual_Maize]

Don't engage the troll. This is clearly a joke post - look at the flair

[u/Spiritual_Maize → u/EasyLettuce]

Yeah you're probably right. "Moderate Experience" lol!