My kids' school is offering a $2.00 "mini Bonsai Kit". It consists of a
2.5
inch x 0.5 inch mica(?) pot, a compressed peat pellet, 4 Jack pine seeds,
a
pair of Barbi doll scissors, and a tiny book on bonsai care. My
10-year-old
daughter got suckered because she knows I'm doing some bonsai.

I trust you spoke to the person who organized this folly without sounding
too
enraged.

OMG pull your heads out of your soil mix! Remember back so many years when
you were kids and every little gadget or kit in the back of a comic book was
the
greatest thing on earth! It was all junk then and it's all junk now, but it
is a part of
everyones childhood. How your imagination soared! Those are the good times
you look back on and laugh about. I have one of those stupid little kits on
the bookshelf
with my bonsai books. Yeah it's dumb but it's the cutest little thing. And
for the small price
of $2.00, you got your daughter interested in your hobby! What a deal!
Most kids
look at us like we are nuts!

Len

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My daughter got involved with bonsai about 2 years ago at the age of 14. At that time I got her a holly leaf cherry and a serissa. I took her to a local bonsai store and let het pick out the type of tree that she wanted. Both trees are still alive and thri
ving. She now has several more trees and is as addicted as I am :-)

Jim
S.E. Michigan, Zone 5b

John Jones 3/26/03 3:45:18 PM
All of you (in the USA) that have kids are familiar with the fact
that they are constantly pressured to sell overpriced junk to
help their schools. I hate this practice in general, but
yesterday, this problem hit me where I live:

My kids' school is offering a $2.00 "mini Bonsai Kit". It
consists of a 2.5 inch x 0.5 inch mica(?) pot, a compressed peat
pellet, 4 Jack pine seeds, a pair of Barbi doll scissors, and a
tiny book on bonsai care. My 10-year-old daughter got suckered
because she knows I'm doing some bonsai.

I'm glad she's showing an interest in bonsai, but it's
unrealistic to expect this pretend-bonsai kit to produce
anything. I told her that we could go through my potensai, and
pick one for her. Has anyone experienced something like this
before? Any advice on which plants a 10 year old would like?

We live in USDA zone 7.

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My kids' school is offering a $2.00 "mini Bonsai Kit". It
consists of a
2.5
inch x 0.5 inch mica(?) pot, a compressed peat pellet, 4
Jack pine seeds,
a
pair of Barbi doll scissors, and a tiny book on bonsai care.
My
10-year-old
daughter got suckered because she knows I'm doing some
bonsai.

I trust you spoke to the person who organized this folly
without sounding
too
enraged.

OMG pull your heads out of your soil mix! Remember back so
many years when
you were kids and every little gadget or kit in the back of a
comic book was
the
greatest thing on earth! It was all junk then and it's all
junk now, but it
is a part of
everyones childhood. How your imagination soared! Those are
the good times
you look back on and laugh about. I have one of those stupid
little kits on
the bookshelf
with my bonsai books. Yeah it's dumb but it's the cutest
little thing. And
for the small price
of $2.00, you got your daughter interested in your hobby! What
a deal!
Most kids
look at us like we are nuts!


I agree. I have one of these kits, too. I wrote about it here a
few months back. One of those $5 impulse buys at Barnes&Noble
books. ;-) There's a bigger "Bonsai Kit" too -- also a "Zen
Garden" kit. They're $10 -$15 I think. I don't have THOSE kinds
of impulses. ;-)

The tiny little book is surprisingly accurate, considering it
probably contains 150 words! ;-) I have it on my bookshelf with
all 135 of the "big" books. It produces the occasional
chuckle -- which (these days!) makes it worth the $5.00 it cost
me.

So $2.00 is a BARGAIN!

The round, black pot (it isn't mica) now houses a mame privet
which looks OK in it.

Besides, the seeds WILL (or should, with care) germinate, in or
out of the little peat hockey puck. The kids may learn something
there (and you might, also ;-). Who knows, you and your kids may
grow a mame grove of jack pine (Pinus banksiana -- so the kids
can learn a bit about nomenclature, too.)

If they want to do it, let them -- then go out and buy them their
own juniper, or ficus, or (for a REAL educational adventure)
Serissa to work with while the pines grow.

Jim Lewis - - Tallahassee, FL - Our life is
frittered away by detail . . . . Simplify! Simplify. -- Henry
David Thoreau - Walden

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Remember back so many years when you were kids and every little gadget or
kit in the back of a comic book was the greatest thing on earth! It was
all junk then and it's all junk now, but it is a part of
everyones childhood.

Kudos Len. I had similar thoughts running through my mind as I read this
thread, but you beat me to the e-mail. Let's not let our "sophistication"
ruin other people's fun -- especially if they're kids! My daughter and I
have planted innumerable lemon/grapefruit/orange seeds (every time she finds
one she says "hey dad, I have an idea!") I don't expect to have a citrus
forest in my house at the end of the day, but we sure have a good time
messin' around with the process.

Joe
-Ottawa

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"arzoo623" wrote in message
news:00e401c2f41b$cc338ce0$c3b30144@cx112520b...
My kids' school is offering a $2.00 "mini Bonsai Kit". It
consists of a
2.5
inch x 0.5 inch mica(?) pot, a compressed peat pellet, 4
Jack pine seeds,
a
pair of Barbi doll scissors, and a tiny book on bonsai care.
My
10-year-old
daughter got suckered because she knows I'm doing some
bonsai.

I trust you spoke to the person who organized this folly
without sounding
too
enraged.

OMG pull your heads out of your soil mix! Remember back so
many years when
you were kids and every little gadget or kit in the back of a
comic book was
the
greatest thing on earth! It was all junk then and it's all
junk now, but it
is a part of
everyones childhood. How your imagination soared! Those are
the good times
you look back on and laugh about. I have one of those stupid
little kits on
the bookshelf
with my bonsai books. Yeah it's dumb but it's the cutest
little thing. And
for the small price
of $2.00, you got your daughter interested in your hobby! What
a deal!
Most kids
look at us like we are nuts!

Good point. I tend to resent the pressure put on kids to sell
stuff to support their schools (I even offered to give my kids'
school $500 per year if they would stop sending those sales
competitions home, but they wouldn't go for it).

Anyway, I agreed to 1) help her with the 2 dollar bonsai kit, and
2) let her pick one of my potentsai as her own. I figure that
way, everyone wins.

"Jim Lewis" wrote in message
news:004901c2f45f$ad1b1960$49112cc7@pavilion...
[...]

The tiny little book is surprisingly accurate, considering it
probably contains 150 words! ;-) I have it on my bookshelf
with
all 135 of the "big" books. It produces the occasional
chuckle -- which (these days!) makes it worth the $5.00 it cost
me.


I noticed that myself, and was going to remark upon that fact
until my computer crashed in the middle of composing my original
poast..

So $2.00 is a BARGAIN!

The round, black pot (it isn't mica) now houses a mame privet
which looks OK in it.

Besides, the seeds WILL (or should, with care) germinate, in or
out of the little peat hockey puck. The kids may learn
something
there (and you might, also ;-). Who knows, you and your kids
may
grow a mame grove of jack pine (Pinus banksiana -- so the kids
can learn a bit about nomenclature, too.)

If they want to do it, let them -- then go out and buy them
their
own juniper, or ficus, or (for a REAL educational adventure)
Serissa to work with while the pines grow.


Here's the latest: We're going to follow the directions included
with her $2.00 bonsia kit (though the Barbi Doll scissors are
truly worthless and headed for the trash). In the mean time, my
daughter and I will go through my potentsai and pick a small one
she can call her own.

OK. Thanks everyone for your replies. I'm properly chastised.
hangs head

My son (15) has shown an interest as well. I couldn't be happier - a shared
interest at that age is priceless! Anyway, I would recommend Ficus or some
other forgiving plant that will survive inside during the winter (you don't
want that burgeoning interest to die during the winter). You want a
forgiving plant, because most kids (not all) tend to be a little forgetful
at times...

Jeff Isom
Cleveland, OH / Sunset Zone 39
My kids' school is offering a $2.00 "mini Bonsai Kit". It
consists of a
2.5
inch x 0.5 inch mica(?) pot, a compressed peat pellet, 4
Jack pine seeds,
a
pair of Barbi doll scissors, and a tiny book on bonsai care.
My
10-year-old
daughter got suckered because she knows I'm doing some
bonsai.

I trust you spoke to the person who organized this folly
without sounding
too
enraged.

OMG pull your heads out of your soil mix! Remember back so
many years when
you were kids and every little gadget or kit in the back of a
comic book was
the
greatest thing on earth! It was all junk then and it's all
junk now, but it
is a part of
everyones childhood. How your imagination soared! Those are
the good times
you look back on and laugh about. I have one of those stupid
little kits on
the bookshelf
with my bonsai books. Yeah it's dumb but it's the cutest
little thing. And
for the small price
of $2.00, you got your daughter interested in your hobby! What
a deal!
Most kids
look at us like we are nuts!


I agree. I have one of these kits, too. I wrote about it here a
few months back. One of those $5 impulse buys at Barnes&Noble
books. ;-) There's a bigger "Bonsai Kit" too -- also a "Zen
Garden" kit. They're $10 -$15 I think. I don't have THOSE kinds
of impulses. ;-)

The tiny little book is surprisingly accurate, considering it
probably contains 150 words! ;-) I have it on my bookshelf with
all 135 of the "big" books. It produces the occasional
chuckle -- which (these days!) makes it worth the $5.00 it cost
me.

So $2.00 is a BARGAIN!

The round, black pot (it isn't mica) now houses a mame privet
which looks OK in it.

Besides, the seeds WILL (or should, with care) germinate, in or
out of the little peat hockey puck. The kids may learn something
there (and you might, also ;-). Who knows, you and your kids may
grow a mame grove of jack pine (Pinus banksiana -- so the kids
can learn a bit about nomenclature, too.)

If they want to do it, let them -- then go out and buy them their
own juniper, or ficus, or (for a REAL educational adventure)
Serissa to work with while the pines grow.

Jim Lewis - - Tallahassee, FL - Our life is
frittered away by detail . . . . Simplify! Simplify. -- Henry
David Thoreau - Walden

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++++Sponsored, in part, by Evergreen Gardenworks++++
************************************************** ******************************
-- The IBC HOME PAGE & FAQ: http://www.internetbonsaiclub.org/ --
+++++ Questions? Help? e-mail +++++

I trust you spoke to the person who organized this folly
without sounding too
enraged.

Not yet. That's why I was soliciting advice here.

----------------------------

John,

Can you have a club you belong to put up a small exhibit
in the school and offer a talk to the students? You wouldn't
be off-track to tell them kindly that it is somewhat of an
insult to dedicated bonsai artists and to its centuries of
serious respect. I wouldn't degrade their attempt too
harshly, but be positive and try to bring some education to
them.
I feel somewhat the same about mallsai - it is a chance to
offer some knowledge, and I truly think mallsai and these
useless kits do bring about many interested, curious people
eventually.

Lynn

Lynn Boyd, Oregon, USA

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In message
87FC4D6C5FBDD311A6F00008C7E6F4C6243260BE@excmsg01 ptlge.penske.com,
"Isom, Jeff , EM, PTL" writes
My son (15) has shown an interest as well. I couldn't be happier - a shared
interest at that age is priceless! Anyway, I would recommend Ficus or some
other forgiving plant that will survive inside during the winter (you don't
want that burgeoning interest to die during the winter). You want a
forgiving plant, because most kids (not all) tend to be a little forgetful
at times...

And adults........... :-)

Years ago there was a craze for bonsai kits for Christmas : these were
aimed at adults. It would have been I think over 20 years ago as I
think I bought my green fingered granny one. Certainly my mum got one -
but she's not as naturally green fingered as her mother in law was.
Just tenacious. None of the seeds germinated.

Sincerely, Chris

--
Chris McMillan
reply to:
http://homepage.ntlworld.com/mike.mcmillan/

In message 008c01c2f4c0$326a9860$e1101ad8@choose, Lynn Boyd
writes
I trust you spoke to the person who organized this folly
without sounding too
enraged.

Not yet. That's why I was soliciting advice here.

----------------------------

John,

Can you have a club you belong to put up a small exhibit
in the school and offer a talk to the students?

I don't know about education in the US very much, but in the UK
education is all about 'topics' or 'modules', bonsai could make a very
good subject covering a multitude of areas I would think. And I know
(having done it) that upper primary/lower middle school age are very
pleased to have speakers in from outside.

May schools over here don't have areas of garden anyway so indoor bonsai
could be a seller if handled correctly. Since one is not able to take
home the 'school pet' these days (infant classes often used to take home
the class guinea pig or gerbil in days gone by apparently), perhaps
bonsai plant taking home would be another way of teaching care? As a
mum this sounds quite a winner for those children who are naturally keen
on plants.

Sincerely, Chris
--
Chris McMillan
reply to:
http://homepage.ntlworld.com/mike.mcmillan/

What does the word potensai mean? I've seen it used a lot now.


Potensai = potential bonsai -- poten-sai.

Jim Lewis - - Tallahassee, FL - Our life is
frittered away by detail . . . . Simplify! Simplify. -- Henry
David Thoreau - Walden

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HEY NOW...don't go picking on the Sea Monkeys ! Those were by far one of
the coolest gifts ever from my childhood. Watching those little sea people
and their antics..brings back a bit of nostalgia.

Tony Ashton
Portland Oregon

-----Original Message-----
From: Internet Bonsai Club ]On Behalf
Of Helena Handbasket
Sent: Friday, March 28, 2003 4:29 PM
To:
Subject: [IBC] Worse than Mallsai?


Don't you guys remember Sea Monkeys? Sheesh!

--

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I object to the programs because it's all overpriced junk that I'm expected
to badger my coworkers and neighbors into buying. The school only gets a small
percentage of the money, and they use techniques that I consider unfair to
pressure kids (me actually) into making sales: Any kid who doesn't sell at
least $300 of this junk has to sit in study hall with the other losers while
their classmates go to a party.

This is outrageous. If this is a public school, you need to speak to the school
board, and if that doesn't work, your state education department. If it is a
private school, and the board is unresponsive, you may have no choice but to
remove your children. This is definitely giving them the wrong education.
We are getting off-topic. I would love to continue this off-line, but I don't
know your real address. My granddaughter used to go to the Hebrew Day School,
so I have firsthand experience.
Iris,
Central NY, Zone 5a, Sunset Zone 40
"If we see light at the end of the tunnel, It's the light of the oncoming
train."
Robert Lowell (1917-1977)

"Iris Cohen" wrote in message
...
[...]

This is outrageous. If this is a public school, you need to
speak to the school
board, and if that doesn't work, your state education
department. If it is a
private school, and the board is unresponsive, you may have no
choice but to
remove your children. This is definitely giving them the wrong
education.
We are getting off-topic. I would love to continue this
off-line, but I don't
know your real address. My granddaughter used to go to the
Hebrew Day School,
so I have firsthand experience.

I sent you an email

Iris,
Central NY, Zone 5a, Sunset Zone 40
"If we see light at the end of the tunnel, It's the light of
the oncoming
train."
Robert Lowell (1917-1977)

In a message dated 3/29/03 12:10:19 PM, writes:

Any kid who doesn't sell at
least $300 of this junk has to sit in study hall with the other losers while
their classmates go to a party

In Florida and I suspect in other states as well this practice is illegal.
You can reward those who meet a certain criteria but you can't punish those
who don't. In our Florida district such sales are not allowed for the very
reasons we are seeing.

Billy on the Florida Space Coast

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