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You have not filled in your flair but I'll assume Canada, so you've got a long way until a proper spring.

Your conifers will take a bit more time to ID. They need to be outdoors, but if you put them outside right now, they'll die from climate shock. When you put them outdoors in the Spring, they will be in for a weird year, having not had any wintertime dormancy (think back to what it's like when you miss an entire night of sleep), so you should prepare yourself for the possibility that you'll lose them. If they manage to survive till fall 2020, keep them outdoors forever after that. These are mountain plants and need to experience winter cold to survive more than a couple growing seasons.

If you are on the western half of Canada, visit nurseries in your area and see if you can find bags of pumice. If you're in the eastern half of Canada, you can consider something like Turface or similar. Both of these should be extremely affordable compared to bonsai soil. In addition to these, get sphagnum moss. You want the stuff that hasn't been pulverized into dust.

Get a large mixing tub and sieve and sift out all of the dust and small particles in whichever inorganic media you selected (i.e. the pumice vs. turface vs. other fine gravel-like substance). Aim for a consistent particle size so that your final mix will have lots of spaces in for oxygen.

Take the sphagnum moss and soak it for a good 20 minutes , pushing it down occasionally to ensure it gets fully wet. Then mix the moss and pumice/turface/etc into a blend. Plant your conifers into this without disturbing their existing roots and keeping a bit of the existing.soil Note that many if not all pines require beneficial mycorrhizal fungi in their soil to ensure that the roots are able to take up nutrients, so you may want to look into inoculating your soil somehow.

If this sounds complicated and you just want to order something that works and have the cash to burn, order something online like Boon's bonsai soil.

Your conifers will require full sun and to be outdoors. The pine, assuming it's a pine, will want to dry out a little bit between waterings. The spruce, assuming it's a spruce, will want to be a smidgen more moist than the pine. Start looking into bonsai care calendars and learning the overall annual cycle of activities and maintenance tasks (this will include feeding, pruning, thinning/needle plucking, shoot plucking, etc).

EDIT: One more thing -- avoid bonsai pots for your conifers for now. What you want for maximum success and best root growth is a pond basket. The ones you want look like this: https://www.amazon.com/Laguna-Sturdy-Plastic-Square-Planting/dp/B000256E5I/ref=sr_1_9?keywords=pond+basket&qid=1573233867&sr=8-9 These are great because they will absolutely guarantee that you cannot overwater your conifers, and you can use the basket as a support for wiring.

Welcome. They are ginseng ficus, standard big box store bonsai.

Your best bet is to slip pot them into bigger containers with soil such as this:

https://www.amazon.com/Bonsai-Jack-Inorganic-Gallons-Quarts/dp/B00RANTEPW/ref=sr_1_7?crid=L4WYV1NZGDYQ&keywords=bonsai+jack+soil&qid=1555525055&s=gateway&sprefix=bonsai+jack%2Caps%2C137&sr=8-7

This soil will help grow lots of tiny roots, which is good. Any kind of container is fine as long as it has good drainage. I but cheap bonsai trainer pots off amazon.

Otherwise, ficus are pretty easy to care for. They are very tough and fun to work with (I think). Get them outside in the sun if you can, the more light the better. You can fertilize in the summer twice a month if you'd like. Don't prune or cut back for a while, let them grow through June or so just to be safe. You never know how they were cared for at Walmart, or on their trip here.

ha "winter" you don't know winter! :) you can grow almost anything where you are.

a bonsai is a bad idea as a gift, but a bonsai book is a good idea. i got a bonsai4me book by harry harrington (www.bonsai4me.com) on my kindle, and read a lot of stuff online but this book has been suggested.

bonsai's can literally last 100's of years, some are older than Canada and Australia. the most satisfying result i get from having one is watching it grow and the transformation that occurs yearly. The downsides are, if i was to go away for 3 weeks i would need to worry about my trees, but it's possible to leave them with proper precautions. I inspect my trees daily in the summer to make sure they're watered and pest free, so there is a daily time commitment that's required, in the winter we have snow here and most of them get buried in it, i hardly see my trees from dec-feb :)

so just to recap, don't buy a tree as a gift. A good bonsai book will be an eye opener to anyone that's interested in bonsai but has never dived in. good luck!

After a different LED bulb with terrible heat dissipation nearly caught on fire, I'm trying this one out:

https://smile.amazon.com/SANSI-Daylight-Spectrum-Gardening-Residential/dp/B07BRKG7X1

The spectrum seems more toward the 5000k side, but I'm pretty impressed with the spread and intensity. It actually looks like my catlin elm is sitting in its own pool of sunlight. I have a fair bit of experience with lighting for a saltwater tank & macroalgae refugium and so far I'm happy with this for the tree. The LEDs are a blend of:

Blue (400-499nm) 19.46%
Green (500-599nm) 37.70%
Red (600-699nm) 36.23%
Far Red (700-780nm) 6.61%
PPF 98.28μmol/s

Heat dissipation seems to be great as well. Hope that helps.

I'm in SoCal and feeling you on the heat - we have some cool weather right now, but summer is rearing its head. :( My garden beds have been empty for the past 3 seasons because I just cannot for the life of me keep them from drying out!

> I see a lot of YouTubers using their shears to clip thin wire and I just cringe every time.

Bonsai shears are typical carbon steel and typical can stand up to aluminum wire with no issues. Sure it dulls them faster but if you cut on the back part of the blade, which rarely gets used anyway, it isn't a big deal. The problem is when you start using the tips on heavier wire like I did plus it dulls the tip down no matter the wire size and you want the tips to be super sharp.

> Would you recommend beginners start with the cheap Amazon pair

Within reason this is probably a good idea. The problem is I wouldn't recommend the $9 pair I got as the tips are too rounded over which makes all the detail work very hard. Here are the long handle ones I now own. Zoom in and look at the tips of each. Note how the left pair has the tip broken on the right blade and the middle pair look like both tips are broken.

• The left pair are the first ones I got given as a present. They where $50 on Amazon at the time. They were awesome. Comfortable, the tips meet perfectly and they were easy to use for hours.
  
  
• The middle pair where $9 and I got as punishment for being dumb and breaking the tip off my nice pair. I would not recommend them because unlike what the picture looks like on Amazon, the tips are very much rounded and look like they are both broken off instead of coming to a point. This is by design but it makes them much harder to use for detailed trimming. While they will work and are better than anything you will find at a home center, only get them if you are extremely budget constrained.
  
  
• The far right pair were $25 and are very nice. They aren't quite as ergonomic as my first pair, but for 50% of the price I can't easily live with that. They are a bit longer which is nice since I work with a lot of sharp needle junipers and the tips are sharp and come together nicely. I would recommend these as the entry level pair.

If you trunk chop at the right time of year (very early spring), new shoots will grow below the cut that will eventually form new branches.

This is a good book on japanese maple bonsai, and covers trunk chops, among other techniques.

It's a long process, but will eventually achieve the results you are looking for.

A few things to keep in mind:

• Make sure you get an appropriate species
  
  
• Look carefully for grafting marks. Often what you see on the top of the tree has been grafted onto a trunk of a different species or cultivar. In other words, you could do a trunk chop and what grows back won't be what you were expecting.
  
  
• Focus on trunk width and roots (nebari). If you're going to do this much work, you may as well start with something desirable.
  
  
• If you wait until the end of the season, you can often get a much better price. I've gotten some great deals in September/October.
  
  Also, if you don't want to do this much work, you could always order one online if you can't find one local.
  
  It also looks like you have the Pennsylvania Bonsai Society as well - you might have some luck with that. On their site, they list some local shops that aren't too far away from Philly.
  

Some information on my Ginseng Ficus.

Height: 18 in. (including pot) and Width: 9-10 in.

For the upcoming 9 months, I'll be living inside of an apartment and looking to start growing my Bonsai in that environment. The main concern I have is lighting, I have no southern-facing window with the only window I have being eastern-facing. This window isn't even the biggest and I'm concerned about the health of my tree if it had to live in these conditions. However, the option for a glow lamp should hopefully solve this issue. The issue in that being I have zero clues what glow lamp is optimal for my scenario nor what exact specifications I need to look for in a glow lamp. I've down small amounts of research and found you need roughly 300 nm-800 nm spectrum but am unsure if that's actually true. If anyone could provide some guidance or insight on what I should be looking for that'd be greatly appreciated.

I've attached three glow lamps I show through amazon that seemed like viable options(my price range is $50). Also, I've included an image of my bonsai tree to hopefully give you a better understanding of what I'm dealing with.

Lamp 1

Lamp 2

Lamp 3

Ginseng Ficus Photo (This was not taken in the apartment I'll be living in, just another angle of the tree)

Thanks for reading! If you have any recommendations or lamps that have worked for you in the past I'd appreciate it if you commented those below. I'm looking for lamps that can be attached to a desk as that's where my tree will be.

I have really wanted to get into Bonsai for a long time. I am going to receive this starter pack this Christmas, which seems to look great. It looks like it just comes with everything to start you out okay.

Is there anything else I should pick up immediately? Any kind of special fertilizers to buy? A pruning compound?

I am also concerned about sunlight and indoor/outdoor growing. Right now it is winter in the Midwest US. Am I fine to just leave these in by the window inside? Is there a kind of special light I can buy for more optimal growth?

Alright, I just read the wiki and that was humbling..

I'll still end up getting this starter pack as a gift, even though now I know that it is kind of a silly thing for a person to try to grow bonsai from seed (especially a beginner). But, oh well, I guess I'll give it my best shot anyway.

So I guess the real questions I should be asking is:

Will the following trees

• pinus aristata
  
  
• picea mariana
  
  
• delonix regia
  
  
• jacaranda mimosifolia
  
  even have a chance at growing in Illinois, USA, Zone 5b? If any do, should I begin germinating them when I get them, or hold off until Spring? Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

A decent pair of shears / scissors are very helpful. I don't know why I waited to so long to buy a pair. For a beginner you don't need anything fancy, something like this would do just fine

I have been very happy with my Ryuga Concave Branch Cutters. Good quality, not expensive, have worked well for me as a intermediate hobbyist. I don't use these nearly as often as the shears.

Fertilizer - everyone has different opinions. This has much to do with the tree and what stage of development you're at. My go to is the Portland Rose Society 5-4-4. It is gentle, won't burn your plants, and encourages myochorrizal growth in your soil. Don't put this directly on your soil - it breaks apart very quickly.

Hi guys. My wife got me a Bonsai Azalea for Valentine’s Day for my new office because she knows I was always intrigued by them. I read they can be cared for indoors. Thing is, I don’t have a window, only thing is the drop ceiling with the fluorescent lights. I ordered a little full spectrum LED light with a clamp but I’m reading that they need diffused light.

​

Will this light be fine?

​

[LED light](https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B07C68N7PC/ref=psdcmw_14252941_t1_B07LBQYDCW)

​

Not sure I even trust it lol I can always return it, that’s why I like Amazon. They are full of knockoffs, though. For all I know it’s just a standard LED.

​

Will this be bad for the Azalea? Is it fine? If so, should I point it directly at it? Sorry I’ve never had any kind of plant.

​

I don’t even understand and how it’s going to know it’s “growing season” if I come in, have a light on for 6-8 hours, turn it off and go home year round. This is all knew to me.

​

If anyone could explain what I should do in terms of light/diffused light I would appreciate it. Thank you!

Yea, that huge change in temperature is not going to be something it likes. Hopefully when it drops below 70 you are pulling it inside, if you are not start doing that.

You never really want to repot an unhappy plant, but sometimes if it is the only thing that would have a chance of saving it, you may need too. Is the soil indeed just standard potting soil? And there is probably a cheaper alternative to your area (many people use certain types of cat-litter or oil-spill cleaner).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akadama

That is generally something you are looking for. A non-organic rock mixture that can retain water to some extent. Lava rocks, slate, etc will work as well. These are superior as they do not condense over time and cause drainage issues. As long as you keep up with your fertilizing you will be fine (for that, you can use slow release pellets if you are not crazy about controlling it yourself).

These are the things I use:

http://www.amazon.com/Bonsai-Boys-Professional-Soil-Bag/dp/B002C6BQ4E/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1370023315&sr=8-3&keywords=bonsai+boy+soil

http://www.amazon.com/Bonsai-Fertilizer-Pellets-free-Shipping-Purchase/dp/B001CZ9R1A/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1370023308&sr=8-1&keywords=bonsai+boy

Heh, well welcome to the hobby. I must say that its been my experience that there are two... groups? in the hobby at the moment. Alot of the knowledgeable, experienced people tend to be a bit older, and hence not as computer savy. This can probably explain the lack of polished web pages devoted to bonsai.

If there is a bonsai club in your area, I'd suggest joining them and attending their meetings. There are two equi distant from where I live, and both of them have monthly meetings, demonstrations, etc. that are very informative. Both have many people who have been doing bonsai for longer than I've been alive.

If you are looking for a book, many of them will go over the same information (repotting, the basic styles, basic propagation methods, etc.) and then something else. This book is fairly decent in that it shows pictures of 50 trees at various points in their lives:

http://www.amazon.com/Bonsai-Life-Histories-Lives-Photos/dp/1552096157

Its very interesting to see the progression of a tree over a decade.

The last bit of adivce I can give is to subscribe to Bonsai Focus (http://www.bonsaifocus.com/) a bi monthly magazine devoted (obviously) to bonsai. Each issue contains a gallery of very nice bonsai, a tree critique (send a picture of a pre bonsai and getting different suggestions with drawings of how to style it), a "master class" where they demonstrate an advance technique, and a couple of styling demonstrations with explanations of why the artist chose to do it the way it was done. Plus a few other minor features... All in all, its very informative, and again, inspiring.

Just bought it on Amazon. Used hardcover.
http://www.amazon.com/Bonsai-Japanese-Maples-Peter-Adams/dp/0881928097/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1425446690&sr=8-1&keywords=bonsai+with+japanese+maples
I browsed through the pages and it looks great. I'm actually going to give it to my friend. He has two 4 year old and really good looking Japanese Maples. He's my tree service buddy and basically creates actual size bonsai for a living. I'm pretty much trying to shove him into this hobby...

Virnibot has detected a misspelling or incorrect use of grammar in your comment.


> I see what you mean, I've been doing some research and I found some CFLs that are specific to growing. Like this link. I don't know how well they work though. I like keeping it in my room and I don't really want to hang overhead florescent lights so a smaller light would be ideal.
>
> Thanks for the advice! I won't remove any more leaves for now, until I learn more.

• You wrote florescent which should have been fluorescent
  
  
  <3 Good day Courtesy | Of | User Virnios
  

I really enjoy Harry Harrington's books. Although most of the information from his first book is free on his website.

I'm also a big fan of the wiki of this sub. It's got a lot of info in it.

A less historical, but much more modern and technical book is Modern Bonsai Practice: 501 Principles of Good Bonsai Horticulture. The information is great, but the author is a terrible writer. It's really sort of like the wandering thoughts of an old man, not really connected, jumping around, and not completing thoughts. But the info is challenging old bonsai myths, which I like.

1. If you see the wires digging into the bark you can remove otherwise it will scar the trunk/branches.
   
2. You don't really need many, some scissors/bonsai clippers if you want to prune and a watering can.
   
3. I don't know about Jade specific, if you are passionate about the hobby you will probably buy more trees and I'm not sure how much fun you can have with a Jade. I recommend this book.
   
4. Not too sure about this one, someone smarter will come along.
   
   My advice is to really consider other peoples suggestions, enjoy yourself, read the links in the sidebar and don't forget to water it!

Thanks for those comments.

So based on that knowledge, which of these would you suggest? I see references to Joshua Roth a lot but have not seen anything about the TinyRoots stuff... Which would you suggest going with?

TinyRoots

[Joshua Roth 1]
(http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000X9GDNQ/ref=ox_sc_act_title_6?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A3NXCE6RJIY9N2)

Joshua Roth 2

Mu Tian


Joshy' Ohkubo Hasami


I am ok spending a few extra dollars for shears if they are better in the long run.

Thanks!

They're the biggest and best bonsai nursery in the UK. I know both sons (Corin and Paul) - great guys, their father wrote one of the best selling bonsai books ever. I had lessons from him.

www.bonsai.co.uk

What I'll be doing is, I'm going to order [these](https://www.amazon.com/Laguna-Sturdy-Plastic-Square-Planting/dp/B000256E5I/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1541539284&sr=8-4&keywords=pond+baskets) and slip them into these pots so they can have the room to grow and recover. The reason for this is you want the tree to have access to air and the roots will grow radially and "air prune." These pots will ultimately promote better root growth which in turn will promote better health of the tree.

Love maples. Cuttings are difficult. Air Layer is easier and faster way to a specimen tree. If you control access to the parent tree, mulch under it and collect babies in the spring with a spoon after their second true leaves form. I've collected 50 at a time like this with 100% survival rate. Get Peter Adams book on bonsai with maples. He has lots of good techniques.

I'm pretty new to the whole bonsai thing myself and I found this book Bonsai 101 Essential Tips pretty helpful, it gives a ton of basic simple info and it's pretty cheap.

A couple of months ago I purchased a Fukien tea bonsai and everything is going well. Recently came on orders to move to Fairbanks, Alaska and I am trying to work out the math problem of how I am going to keep him alive in the months of darkness.

My Funkien Tea is already an indoor tree that I am supplementing with the light that is linked below. My question: is it possible for a plant to live 100% on the light itself? Or am I better to hand him off to family before I make the journey to the great white north?

​

https://www.amazon.com/Abbicen-Flexible-Gooseneck-Spectrum-Greenhouse/dp/B07NVFH9W8/ref=zg_bs_14252961_8/145-8137623-3567547?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=30S3K5DB13E877M9EAXG

I see what you mean, I've been doing some research and I found some CFLs that are specific to growing. Like this link. I don't know how well they work though. I like keeping it in my room and I don't really want to hang overhead florescent fluorescent lights so a smaller light would be ideal.

Thanks for the advice! I won't remove any more leaves for now, until I learn more.

Currently working on setting up some grow lights next to a south facing window. From reading the previous posts about this and doing some of my own research I’m thinking of the following:

6500k T5 or T8 lights (maybe on something like this?) https://www.amazon.com/Start-Light-System-Stand-Fixture/dp/B0001XLSGQ?th=1&psc=1

AOVOK LED grow lights (Amazon) https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B07CNRSGJC#Ask

Any recommendations on what light is the best? I’m planning on setting up a 2 or 3 level shelf in front of the window. I don’t have enough space outside for my jade and portulacaria afra and wanted to get them more light. Thanks!

Check the links on the sidebar ->

For now I will give a couple quick answers....

-I have never done seeds, so I don't know of the best seed places.

-There are no "good indoor deciduous trees." Deciduous means that a tree loses it's leaves seasonally. You can't have a tree like that indoors because when they aren't exposed to the temp changes outside, they will just die. I will go ahead and assume you meant "I want a tree with regular leafing, not needles, etc." In that case you can't go wrong with a ficus (benjamina or microcarpa would be good).

-For materials your really jumping-the-gun. At best you might need a small pot or series of small pots for your seeds, and soil. Before the seeds pop, a fluorescent light. Then it will be another 2 years at LEAST before you need to look into bigger pots, tools, wiring, etc.

-Same goes with root pruning. You are years away from that.

-For book, you don't NEED one. I have only ever had one. Nearly all the info it contains is available in the links on the sidebar, or in several bonsai forums, but the pictures are inspiring. The author also created a smaller and cheaper book with just the general stuff.

Everything i've read online about grow lights (very little i've found relating to bonsai) , they always say 16 hours. I bought a 4' grow light this one and a month ago and I've been keeping then under the light for a good 12-15 hours . And all seems good so far.

I'm too new to comment on the soil i'm afraid :)

Depends on how big of an investment you want to make. A lot of people like HLG brand and in particular the v2, although all of their stuff is good. If you want to go cheaper, you can probably find some cheaper t5 bulbs if you already have some fixtures overhead. If you are looking for something clip on, I'm currently using a couple of these: https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B07JCLX39G?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title

They seem to be doing the trick, have lots of new growth on my tropicals since bringing them under the lights. But coverage is kinda small.

Hi everyone, I'm new here and I have a few questions...
First of all, I just bought this tree along with this fertilizer.

• The amazon page says its fine indoors but should I keep it outside or let it get some air sometimes? I'll probably leave it by my window so it gets some sun but would a grow light work too? if so should I leave the light on it 24/7 or just a few hours such as while I sleep?
  
  
• How much fertilizer should I put and how often?
  
  
• How often does it need to be watered and how much water?
  
  Sorry if this is asking a lot, I just don't really know much but I always wanted a small bonsai. Any tips would be greatly appreciated!

Buy it new and support his estate -- he was a great man that never really fiscally benefited from the artistic rigor he brought to our hobby. Not shaming, simply suggesting.

I have been growing a bunch of different plants at my cubicle desk at work - which means nowhere near enough sunlight even for a spider plant - and that includes quite a few cottonwood seedlings who are all doing very well.

I use an LED grow light at home and and the office desk that does a lot for plants.

>Bulb: https://www.amazon.com/SANSI-Daylight-Spectrum-Sunlight-Greenhouse/dp/B07BRKG7X1/
>
>Lamp: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00HX2EVPS/

It is a full spectrum light that is in the same range as natural sunlight. It has been perfect for me, every plant I have put under it has started putting out new growth almost right away and bends toward it just like they do with the sun. (Which is how I am getting interesting curves in my seedlings.)

You do need to keep the lamp about 16 to 18 inches from the plant to get the full amount of light for it though, but it will not put off any amount of heat worth worrying about.

This is the light I got:

Roleadro Upgrade and Newly Developed LED Grow Light Full Spectrum 2nd Generation Series 300w Plants Light https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01HI3AFYM/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_TtlOzbXWSYYMW


I also just picked up a cheap $9 timer on amazon. Works like a champ. I keep mine on from 9:30am to 9:30pm

Edit: here is the timer

Century 24 Hour Plug-in Mechanical Timer Grounded https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MVFF59S/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_AvlOzbW25N6CN

One of my friends gifted me a Bonsai Tree Seed Starter Kit, I’m new to bonsai and was wondering if anyone else had any advice for using these kits? Thanks!

Here’s the link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07DRQ3382/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_E0QxDb6WDPYS5

if you like maples, may I suggest Peter Adams' quintessential work on maples in bonsai. THE best book on working with maples. Couldn't recommend it enough.

http://www.amazon.com/Bonsai-Japanese-Maples-Peter-Adams/dp/0881928097

Plant them in the ground if possible. Wait at least 2 full growth seasons. Read this in the meantime.

If you can't plant them in the ground get them into some better draining soil, and a pot like an anderson flat. If you're serious, I'd also seriously consider purchasing Peter Adam's book on Japanese Maples.

If you really can't put it outside, I'd place it in the sunniest part of the room and install something like this above it https://www.amazon.com/SANSI-Daylight-Spectrum-Ceramic-Vegetative/dp/B07BRKG7X1

Using some 18-6-9 slow release pellets that i got on Amazon:

Slow Release Bonsai Fertilizer Pellets https://www.amazon.com/dp/B001CZ9R1A/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_bKIczbER532GX

I'm sure there's more economical options out there but i felt good about this stuff for my first go around.

I have a copy of Bonsai 101 Essential Tips by Harry Tomlinson. It outlines the basics of bonsai in a quick and easy to digest manner. It will definitely get you started on your journey. That combined with some research into the types of trees your using should be more than enough to begin.

I have those exact same lights. They work great for my tropicals and my girlfriends house plants.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07C68N7PC/ref=cm_sw_r_em_apa_i_g4xODbHR7604Z

Extremely interested. I am preparing for my first winter here in colorado.

I am looking at the following

• 15W led bulb
  
• 40W led bulb
  
• strip led

Inb4 the Peter Adams book that I've ordered, not yet read - http://www.amazon.com/Bonsai-Japanese-Maples-Peter-Adams/dp/0881928097

Heard good stuff about this one!

Peter Adams’ Bonsai with Japanese Maples has really good information

I'm not sure if this is the exact one, but it looks like it.

Should I get the pinkish grow light or the yellowish one, both 75 watts. Two small jades and a small Brazil rain tree.

LED Grow Light for Indoor Plants - Relassy 75W Sunlike Full Spectrum Plants Lights 3/6/12H Timer CREE COB Grow Lamp - Dual Head Flexible Gooseneck - 4 Dimmable Lights for House Plants https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07JCLX39G/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_tai_b1DRDb09YCY2Z

https://www.amazon.com/Bonsai-Japanese-Maples-Peter-Adams/dp/0881928097

Long internodes are common after a hard chop, because there are fewer buds that can receive the tree's energy from the roots. You're many years away from having to worry about ramification with these trees, though.

This is a solid book on maples that covers a lot of topics: https://www.amazon.com/Bonsai-Japanese-Maples-Peter-Adams/dp/0881928097

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Bonsai-Basics-Comprehensive-Cultivation-Paperbacks/dp/0600619109/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1344196648&sr=8-1

I bought three books myself, and this is by far the best one that I've read as a starter book. It's simple, explains about what a tree is on a photosynthesis etc level, but in a way that people who haven't studied biology can understand. I frequently go back to this book if I'm in doubt of small general issues.

I was given this tree, this soil, and these pellets for my birthday recently. I live 10 feet away from a window at work and the idea was to keep the tree either next to my desk or on the window sill where it will be facing the east and be in sunlight from sunrise to about 3/4pm every day.

I have no idea how to get started, absolute no idea. This is what the tree looks like.

Shipping a tropical tree in winter is a terrible idea. If temps drop and shipping gets delayed (both likely around Christmas), you end up receiving a very dead tree.

The only way I'd get a tropical right now is if I could go to an actual garden center/greenhouse and buy one that I could see and immediately take home with me that day.

And as the guy who wrote that wiki page on gifting trees - my strongest possible recommendation is to buy her some really nice bonsai books instead, or a bonsai class in the spring if there's a place near you that offers them.

• This is a good book
  
  
• So is this.
  
  
• And this one too.
  
  You can even make it a couple's project to go and pick out some nursery stock in the spring (or a finished tree, if you prefer) and work on it together. Or you could buy two seats to that bonsai class instead of one.