A lot of our club members will take people and show them the types of spots to look for. All about those relationships!

Hey Adam, you'll want a transplant permit or a forest materials permit. Each district for BLM or Forest Service does things slightly differently, so you'll have to reach out to them based on where you are hoping to hunt. If you've not yet had a ton of experience collecting I recommend holding off and going with someone from the club with experience. Very easy to lose those collected mtn trees. Have fun and be safe!

Do you have any photos of the work you did?

That was a great episode!

What did you decide on David?

In some mountainous areas trees might overwinter under snow for months! garage ok, but the trees need cold, and garage area or shed might need venting if they get too hot. (esp in spring)

Hi Dylan! A number of us do similar things for the winter season. The wind can be particularly desiccating for outdoor trees. If you can limit wind, keep small pots from completely drying out, and prevent/limit the freeze/thaw cycle that may help. I personally bury my largest trees in mulch up to the pot rims, in a sheltered portion of my yard that gets less temperature fluctuations, and is blocked from the wind. Then the rest of my trees go into an unheated garage, with a small sensor to turn on a heater if the temperature there goes below ~28 degrees.

Doug firs have been difficult for me, but perhaps speaking with Todd at First Branch would be an option.(he has collected many) You can technically collect any month of the year, but for most folks you're going to have a lot more success in the Spring right before buds push when the tree is energy positive. (with almost all trees) I would recommend networking at the next meeting or two and see if you can plan a Spring collecting trip with one of our experienced collectors.

That's a cute one!

Come grow moss in my garden Mike!

Hi Michelle, where are you located? That might help some of our folks point you in the right direction.

You can buy window screen by the roll from Walmart/Ace/HD/Lowes. I'm still using a roll I bought a few years ago. With your Dramm, you can turn the water flow down on your input from the house, you can turn the spout upside down while you're holding it, and you can practice watering in waves instead of keeping it in one place the whole time. Kind of like you don't leave a hair dryer in 1 spot for long or you get burned. All that said, soil will still wash out sometimes. If you watch through this watering video from Mirai you can see what I'm talking about in several of the clips. They also grow moss pretty well. :) Bonsai Beginner Series - Watering,https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MkkO4x5wjDI

Echo what Evan said. Just remember if you put it into a smaller pot you're committing to slowing the growth further. With spruce I usually wait until the buds start to move in Spring before repotting. Nursery stock is often especially vigorous though.

Other things that will help: 1. A really fine watering watering spout. 2. Control while you're watering to avoid flooding. 3. Leaving a "ditch" around the the outside of your pot, slightly below the rim of the pot. This allows a little movement, without the soil washing out. 4. If you fertilize with anything that contains or is humic acid, the soil particles eventually stick together pretty well.(on my trees) This shouldn't be confused with soil going hydrophobic! 5. You can use window screen on the top of the soil, and this can also help prevent washouts. -Spaghnum technique doesn't work in my yard very often.-

Send me an email at boxnicholas@gmail.com and I'll send you Darrell's contact info.

Hey there! Have you started coming to our meetings yet? Shadecloth can help, timing of morning vs afternoon sun can help, deeper pots can help, and you can also place your pots on the ground as a heat sink...which can REALLY help. I can't recommend being a part of the meetings enough. We have some members who can help mentor you and we will likely have some home workshops coming up as well for the membership. (1 just completed last weekend) The education portion of the website also has some good information including this short article by Andy Berry. Heat Protection -Nicholas

Heavy gauge wire frame perhaps? Or you could try building a frame out of wood, rebar, etc.

I also have a nice dramm

Mike I hope you'll keep us in the know as this one evolves. Great tree. Personally I like the "newer" trunk as a deadwood feature that can gain interest over time.

Last item Bonsai Techniques #1 just went up on the blog thanks to donator Sam Holm. The zoom link for the auction will be going out today!!!!