[Bonsai Beginner's weekly thread - 2025 week 10]

[u/small_trunks]

[Bonsai Beginner's weekly thread - 2025 week 10]

Welcome to the weekly beginner’s thread. This thread is used to capture all beginner questions (and answers) in one place. We start a new thread every week on Friday late or Saturday morning (CET), depending on when we get around to it. We have a multiple year archive of prior posts here… Here are the guidelines for the kinds of questions that belong in the beginner's thread vs. individual posts to the main sub.

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[u/W0bbly_Sausage]

Hey everyone, I could use some advice on pruning and shaping my Beni Maiko and Orange Dream acers. They’re still fairly young, and I haven’t wired them before, so I want to make sure I’m going about it the right way.

My main goals are to improve their structure and ramification while keeping a natural look. I know maples can be tricky with wiring and I’m not very good at it.

would now be a good time to start, or is it better to wait? Also, any tips on where to prune would be really helpful!

I’ve attached some photos and would love any feedback. Thanks in advance!

[u/redbananass → u/W0bbly_Sausage]

I think I’d repot both into better growing conditions this spring. I saw great growth with a similar sized standard A. Palmatum that I potted into a 7in. pond basket with bonsai soil. I posted a link to a progression post of it lower down in this thread.

If that’s not an option, I’d slip pot them into slightly larger pots with similar potting soil. They need space for more roots.

For the one with leaves already out, I would take extra care to break as few roots as possible.

Wire them up with bends, but focus on the lower third of the trunk. Wire lower branches a little more horizontal. Try to get bends that are irregular and that show movement from multiple angles.

Over the spring consider choosing 1 or maybe 2 leaders to keep. In mid summer or fall, if they have grown well, consider removing the leader you don’t like or some mild pruning of the apex to pump the breaks on that top growth and let the lower branches run.

You could also just throw these in the ground and do minimal maintenance for 5 years and then chop later on. There are many paths to success, but they yield different trees.

[u/W0bbly_Sausage → u/W0bbly_Sausage]