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Complete newbie to bonsai. Figured that since I started from seed I would have enough time to figure this out while the trees are growing. :blush:

I bought a few different types of seeds on Ebay.
Of course I forgot to label in which pot I put what.. so..could someone please ID this as either a Japanese Green Maple (acer palmatum) or a Trident Maple (acer buergerianum)? Or something else (I might have misplaced 1 baggie of seeds..).

I am pretty sure the option of Paulownia Tomentosa is what I first thought was weeds (so I pulled it all out..) but there now are two tiny happy little tomentosa seedlings in a pot waiting to get bigger.

Back to the maple.
Is this pot too small for this tree? If so, when should I repot and how big should the pot be?
Should I have added the fertilizer thingies (blue/green little pellet in picture) to the soil?
How long should I leave it alone, when should/can I start cutting it back to keep it small?
Will the trunk get bigger fast, or does that take a few years?

I plan to put it outdoors when the weather gets better, and then leave it there full-time. (It was seeded and grown indoors, I skipped the 'put the seeds in the freezer' part and just put it in soil in Jan).

I might even take it out of the pot and put it in the backyard depending on the advice I get here. I have about 2x2m backyard with not much room left - there are some herbs/beans/carrots/gooseberry in there already, as well as a tiny pomegranate seedling that seems to be doing OK so far.

If I plant the maple I need to be able to (easily) dig it out and put it in a pot it in at most a year or so.

It's grown a lot this past month - the picture attached is from March. I've got 14 leaves and a lot more height now. Can post additional picture if that helps..

Thanks!

The seedling should be put in the ground for more than a year. This is a rule to go by...One year in the ground is equal to 5 years in a pot.
A tree will develop much quicker in the ground. I don't think a year is enough time.

Thanks, I put it outside last night.



Is this an Acer Palmatum?



It's very windy at the moment so I put a bamboo stake next to it (I'd like it to grow straight up anyway). Without the stake it's pretty much collapsing to a point that it's level with the ground. As soon as it's strong enough to stand up I'll remove the stake.

How long should I leave it outside? Should I just let it grow and do nothing (except keep an eye on it to make sure it's not dying)? Will snails be an issue?


Also, is this still indoor seedling in the pot indeed a Paulownia Tomentosa?
And should I plant that in the garden for a few years as well?



Thanks!

keep the tree in the ground until the trunk has reached the thickness desired.
you should pinch the top leaves so the tree doesn't let tall and lanky.

Thanks!
I'll give it a few weeks to adjust to being outdoors, and then just cut off the top leaves to just about the point where the leaves below it start?
As

Or should/can I go shorter?

actually you want it to get long and lanky.the more energy you get pumping throught he trunk the fatter it will get. eventually you will cut it back to the 1st or 2nd branch and then let it get long and lanky again only to cut it back again. starting with young trees leads to this process.grow chop wait grow chop wait ect...

well there you go..
I would have pinched it back fearing that it wouldn't back bud later on.

As soon as the very bottom part of the trunk starts to harden out a bit, you may want to remove the bamboo stake, highwaykind. If a sapling is allowed to sway in the wind, it'll develop a tapered trunk to keep upright, and more surface layer roots to anchor itself. So it's better to grow it in a spot where it won't take the full force of the wind, then to tie it to a bamboo stake.