Page 21 - Tạp chí bonsai cây cảnh BCI 2016Q2

But there are still many places where interesting
trees can be found and collected. National and state
forests (as opposed to national and state parks) will
often allow collecting in areas where they also allow
other commercial uses of the land, such as timber and
firewood cutting, mining, oil production and livestock
grazing. Since many normal forest management ac-
tivities destroy the same trees we would like to use for
bonsai, collecting them is not necessarily prohibited.
The Bureau of Land Management (BML) also often
allows trees to be transplanted from their lands.
Collecting from public lands always requires a per-
mit of some type, which must usually be purchased.
Since I live near a lot of public lands I regularly buy
transplant permits from national and state forests as
well as BLM lands. Permit prices range from $2 to
$20 per tree, though between $5 and $10 is the norm.
Not every district will allow collecting, and you will
probably have to do some research to find a place.
When you do, the restrictions and number of trees
allowed per collector will vary, depending on what the
resource manager thinks is acceptable. Generally, the
farther you are from a major population center the less
restrictive the permits will be. It is sometimes helpful
to talk with a forester or a resource person and explain
exactly what you are looking for. The front desk per-
sonnel may not even be aware that transplant permits
exist and may simply tell you “no,” because they think
that’s the correct answer.
In any case, make sure you get the necessary permit
before you start.

I love being out in the cold,
windy mountains and searching
for ancient trees, dwarfed and
contorted by decades of growing
in some tiny rock crevice on a
lonely crag.

April/May/June 2016 | BCI | 19