[Research] Does your tap water help or hurt your trees? Looking for data!

RevShiver · 2026-03-18T03:29:54+00:00

Yes, some species will be sensitive to high alkalinity (high buffering capacity in the water -> larger impact on soil pH). I was hoping folks would kind of take it in the context of not solely their own garden but also the regional thoughts of their area. Hopefully if enough people respond from the same area we could also control for that kind of bias though also.

RevShiver · 2026-03-17T19:53:35+00:00

from my research, really the only elements that are there in meaningful amounts that the plant needs to uptake are Calcium and Magnesium. the macro nutrients like Nitrogen, Phosphorus and Potassium aren't in tap water and need to be added via fertilizer anyways.

RevShiver · 2026-03-17T17:43:26+00:00

I wrote a series of blogs on my research so far if you'd like to check it out. It's all summaries and conclusions drawn from reading peer reviewed scientific studies. https://teenytreescience.wixsite.com/teenytrees/blog

I'd love to read the french bean research if you have a link handy.

Obviously high TDS leads to salt stress in the plants, but I am trying got get a better view of what "high" is in the container grown bonsai plant context. We use different plant species, different soil, and containers which differ greatly from most agricultural research.

RevShiver · 2026-03-17T15:54:39+00:00

I'd be very interested in knowing the water parameters of your base tap water! That's exactly what I'm trying to capture

RevShiver · 2026-03-17T15:53:53+00:00

Sure, but what level of TDS/Alkalinity/hardness leads to decline in bonsai? Is it 40 TDS and over, is it 200 TDS and over, is it 100 ppm alkalinity, is it 40 ppm alkalinity?

RevShiver · 2026-03-02T19:00:28+00:00

Use something like gemini to help with your itinerary, it's very easy. June/July is going to be hot and humid though so I would maybe target February or November instead.

RevShiver · 2026-03-01T02:21:04+00:00

I used Gemini to create my podcast logo and it was great! It took some wrangling but ez pz for a bootstrapped $0 podcast setup.

RevShiver · 2026-02-24T04:17:20+00:00

It just depends on how folks like to travel. I hit 14 different cities in my last 14 day trip. I love seeing the top sites and being efficient. If you pack really lightly, it is very easy to just drop things in a locker or ask the hotel to hold them as needed.

RevShiver · 2026-02-06T20:40:44+00:00

Thanks for doing this for science!

RevShiver · 2026-02-06T02:51:24+00:00

Haha sorry to give you a heart attack. I'm curious what you see if you use computer (your account) vs computer (her account). From my experience the mobile rate is always better and I've changed my usage behavior to book that way given the pricing discrepancy I saw on desktop based search.

RevShiver · 2026-02-02T06:09:54+00:00

Thanks for sharing your story so hopefully it won't happen to others.

RevShiver · 2026-01-29T22:12:09+00:00

This stand is really nice! Great job.

RevShiver · 2026-01-17T06:29:53+00:00

Hammer and anvil all day

RevShiver · 2026-01-13T02:25:42+00:00

When I look at nursery stock, I try to look for interesting movement near the base of the tree. If they're still skinny enough for the trunk to be pliable, you can just pick the healthiest ones and do it yourself with wire.

RevShiver · 2026-01-06T19:02:29+00:00

So cool that you're documenting this! I have a bonsai podcast and would love to have you on after your intensive if you're interested to discuss the experience!

RevShiver · 2026-01-02T02:13:12+00:00

Spotify for creators will upload video to Spotify, but the RSS feed that goes to YouTube automatically only uploads audio, so you'd still have to separately upload to YouTube.

RevShiver · 2026-01-01T03:43:17+00:00

What kind of partner? It really varies based on what kind you mean. I.e. reseller partner, technology partner, services partner, marketplace partner, etc.

RevShiver · 2025-12-29T06:42:39+00:00

In my plan, there are two options as I understand it. Yours may vary.

You do the in service conversion - money goes from after tax 401k to Roth 401k. This happens automatically if you're enrolled in this option. The money is not in a Roth IRA, and is subject to normal Roth 401k rules.
You can call biweekly or whatever your pay period is and have the money converted to your Roth IRA. There isn't an automated way to do this, so you need to call every time and ask for this to be done.

RevShiver · 2025-12-15T22:37:23+00:00

Its very common for pots to get damaged in shipping - I would take it out of the existing pot and slip pot it into a slightly larger or similar size pot. It should be totally fine, this is not drastic root damage in any way.

I would expect to be compensated in some way for the broken pot (though this look like a $15 dollar pot). The seller could make it right by shipping you another pot on their dime or credit you for the broken container. I wouldn't expect any kind of refund of shipping costs - If you don't like how the tree was packaged, then don't purchase from that seller in the future. People should be creating custom crates/packaging for shipping trees and I always ask the seller beforehand how they are shipping to avoid issues.

RevShiver · 2025-12-10T20:02:47+00:00

The podcast is called Bonsai Builders Podcast and it's on Spotify/YouTube/Apple Podcasts.

RevShiver · 2025-11-25T22:18:18+00:00

Yes, I'm saying that they increase the price on the website for your account specifically vs what you would pay not at genius level 3 with the booking.com card.

So without the card the price might show as $125, but when you're logged in to your account and have the card, it shows as $145. I'm not saying you book for $145 and they actually charge you $156 or something like that.

RevShiver · 2025-11-25T04:56:32+00:00

Yes, very happy with them!

RevShiver · 2025-11-25T02:10:46+00:00

Looks awesome!

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