I hijacked this subject from a search because I too found a tortured soul at my local nursery this weekend. This 15 gal Corkscrew Willow (Salix Matsudana 'Tortuosa') was in the "hospital" of my local specialty nursery and listed at $40. Since it had a bunch of suckers and side growth but the main trunk had died way back, I asked if they would give me a "no guarantee" discount. I got it for $20 and I plan to try my hand with a "field grown/container grown" bonsai. Up until now, I have just purchased "ready made" young bonsai from Brussels Bonsai just down the road.

Here is a picture just after getting it home and chopping the dead top trunk off the top. I plan to let it recover for a week then re-pot because I suspect the medium is bad. It was so heavy that I think the soil is somewhat waterlogged so I punched a bunch of drain holes in the container.

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