Plant Theatre Bonsai Tree Kit - Indoor Plant Growing Kit w/ 3 Mini Bonsai Seed Packs, 6 Pots, 6 Peat Discs and 6 Propagator Bags - Gardening Gifts for Men, Women and Room Decor - Crafts for Adults

Got this gift for my boyfriend's birthday and he was super excited to watch them grow. He started with the "easy" silver birch and noticed that the seeds were flat, no 3d dimension to them. He proceeded with the instructions only to have a pot full of mold and no tree growth after a month. Not sure if we got the "fake" stuff people here are writing about or the dirt included was not sufficient for something to grow in it.

The kit comes with everything needed to get the bonsai's started. 3 seed packs, mine all had plenty of seeds in them. Some of the mountain pine seeds looked damaged but there was enough in the pack that I don't think it will matter. The directions could have been better and included pictures. I went online and googled directions and came across a great tutorial so I used that to supplement the package directions.I soaked the seeds for 24 hours then potted them the next day. Since the kit comes with 6 pots and compost pods I decided to experiment a little and do 3 pots "by the book" and 3 of them "normal" without the frig. I got the idea from someone else online who had success germinating the seeds without the need from 4-6 weeks in the frig. I put the pots in a cool dark place and now, I wait. Hopefully some of them will sprout. I'm looking forward to the red maple the most.UPDATE 2/28/16It's been 2 weeks since I planted the seeds.Both of the silver birch pots have sprouts but the bagged one has more.Both of the Mountian pine pots have 2 sprouts as well.None of the Red Maples have anything growing.I'm going to put the red maples into bags and place them in the frig for a month like the directions say. The other pots are going to a window sill to get some indirect sunlight to hopefully help them grow. I'm giving them a tiny bit of water and misting them when the soil looks dry. Hopefully I can keep them alive.Update: 04/24/16:Sadly, I had an accident where almost all my pots fell on the floor and I lost all my saplings except one mountain pine. It's still hanging in there but hasn't really grown much in the last month. It's about 2 inches high and has 4 very small leaves. I think it needs to be reported.. it's still in the pot and soil that came with the kit. The soil drys out super fast so I have to make sure I stay vigilant with watering it. It had dried out twice and the sapling got all wilted but it bounched back after I watered it.I also took the 2 red maple pots out of the frig. After 3 weeks out of the frig they didn't germinate so I threw them away. :(

Delivered on time and the directions are pretty straight forward, though not super step-by-step what to do. Everything described in the kit was provided. Happy with the product, just hope they grow and survive!I chose to use all 6 pots that were provided and plant 3 seeds in each pot (two pots per type of tree) since I never expect ALL the seeds to sprout, a lot more seeds were provided so if these dont work out I can try again. It's been 11 days since I planted them and so far only the Mountain Pine have sprouted (4 of them!) nothing else seems to be doing anything. I'll continue to monitor them and update this as necessary.Update: In total I had 4 mountain pine and 2 red maples sprout (no silver burch ever came up) of my original sprouts only one has survived the holidays :( one Red Maple who's about 3 1/2 inches tall and has 4 leaves. Since I only used half of the seeds the first time I started the rest a few weeks ago, so far no sprouts from the second batch.

I was so excited for this to arrive. I read the instructions twice to make sure I followed them exactly right because I know seeds/sprouts are very sensitive. I get them all set and now that it has been a few weeks I'm EXTREMELY unhappy that of all the seeds I plants, I get five sprouts. That's it. $20 for five little sprouts. It is NOT worth it. I would suggest just buying a bonsai tree for a bit more cost rather than wasting both time and money with this kit. I was hoping to have a much better review to write.

Contents are seeds, resealable plastic bags, peat pellets, pot markers, and peat pots. If you're looking to get started in the hobby yourself, these items could probably be obtained separately for a lower price or by re-purposing other items. It is a nice gift idea for someone with some horticultural experience, or for children as a fun educational project to do with their parents. Regarding germination rates, I had moderate success: 1 pine, 3 maples, and 5 birches sprouted (about 10% of the seeds provided for each species). The species included are Betula pendula, Pinus mugo, and Acer rubrum.PSA: If you're not aware of how bonsai works, these aren't special "bonsai" seeds. Bonsai are just regular trees that are small because they are kept in tiny pots and trimmed regularly. If you plant these seeds in the ground, you'll get full-sized trees. (This should not dissuade you from buying the kit; you should know what you're actually paying for).Things to think about before buying (a.k.a. things I wish someone told me before I purchased this kit):1. This is a many-year project with many potential pitfalls. A lot of things can go wrong when you start from a seed. Germination rates in tree seeds are nowhere near 100%, and you're getting a very small number of seeds (from a random sample perspective; I think the amount of seeds provided is adequate for the price). Even if these seeds germinate and make it through their very precarious first year of growth (I have no confidence that the seedlings listed above will still be alive at this time next year), it will be many years before any of them will be close to bonsai-ready. Their growth rate depends on their environment (the fastest way to grow bonsai is to plant them in the ground; growing them in a pot generally slows growth rates), and they could be killed by plenty of things in the meantime (temperature extremes, undesirable tap water pH, overwatering, underwatering, bacteria, fungus, insect pests, other pests, getting peed on by a dog, etc.). The tree on the front of the box is almost certainly at least 10 years old. If you're looking for a project closer to completion, pre-bonsai plants and nursery plants are cheaper, bigger, and much less likely to die before you get them into their final bonsai pot home.2. These are all outdoor species. If you live in a tropical or subtropical climate or want to keep a bonsai inside, these are the wrong species for you.3. All three species require cold stratification to germinate. Starting the seeds in the right season is easy enough if you're in the right climate, but if you start out of season or you're in a warmer climate, these will take up some space in your fridge for at least several weeks.If none of these things discourage you (or would discourage the intended recipient of this kit), then it's not a bad purchase.

All my seeds germinated!- Soaked the pines for 24 hours and put them in the soil. Did not put them in the fridge first. I got 9 small trees, but 3 died because the seedlings were too weak so I ended up with 6.- I soaked the birches for 48 hours and put them in the fridge for 4 weeks. After being in indirect sunlight in the plastic bag for about 2 weeks, 7 seeds seem to have germinated.- I soaked the japanese maple for 72 hours. Put them in the fridge for 4 weeks. 3 seeds seem to have germinated. The problem with these seeds was that mine came out root first, so I probably put them in the soil too deep. I went in there and reversed the seedlings. They seem to be still alive after this intervention.Great kit, had a lot of fun, learned a lot!! Am still using the remainder soil/pots to germinate other trees so definitely worth the money.

I have so far 6 sprouts so far. I have included a picture of just one of my pots. So it has only been 2 weeks. I soaked seeds for 24 hours and then planted in pot and placed in ziploc bag and on top of the fridge. 2 weeks later 6 sprouts. Now I will take out the sprouts and place the remaining seeds in the fridge for the recommended 4 weeks. I hope the rest sprout. But I am happy with having 6 so far.****update I have been on my seeds in the fridge and found I have 2 silver birch sprouts. So I have my 6 mountain pines and 2 silver birch sprouts. Still waiting on red maple but they take much longer to germinate. I have updated new pictures.****update so the silver birches have now all sprouted. After a month in the fridge they have been under my grow light for 1 week. Just checked and I have 13 sprouts that is on top of the other two I have from last month****

You have to really want to invest your patience into this plant. There is absolutely no immediate reward from this because the plants take FOREVER to grow. That is to be expected however because they are trees. I gifted this to someone who loves plants about 1 year ago. They give you multiple of each tree type. In the beginning all but 2 started growing but now Only 3 of them have survived and are 2 inches tall two of the same kind one of another. Honestly the person loves it but it definitely is a gift that takes a massive amount tlc to get going. If you wanna gift this just make sure you know the person is ready to be growing this for life.

Presenté en anglais seuelement, le livret d'instruction est très peu detaillé. Ne dit pas le taux d'humiditer, si bien compacter ou non la terre, la profondeur ou planté les graines, etc..