Basic Information About Bonsai Trees

bonsai trees

While the origins of how to create and nurture a bonsai tree come from China the actual name of these potted trees comes from Japan, in fact the word bonsai refers to a small potted tree. The cultivation of such beautiful trees was actually started by wealthy Chinese people who lived during the Han Dynasty which was famous because it lasted for about 400 years in many of the arts flourished during this period.

The Art of miniaturizing this beautiful trees was passed on from generation to generation and continued in other countries such as Korea, Japan and Vietnam. The process of miniaturizing these plans is actually very intricate due to the fact that they are not naturally small, in other words the seeds and plants used to create bonsai trees are not genetically dwarf, instead their size is modified through pruning and what they use of wires.

Literature which describes the entire principle of a miniature garden was developed by the Japanese monk Kokan Shiren, these principles included what is called bonseki which is the principle of creating miniature landscapes on black lacquer with the use of stones, pebbles and other materials.

The stick and yet beautiful shapes of traditional bonsai trees are actually achieved through techniques applied during the process of cultivation, the two most popular techniques used to create beautiful bonsai trees are called jin and shari. The first method which is known as “jin” consists of removing the bark from an entire tree branch in order to create the illusion of a snag of deadwood, the physical appearance of the tree changes as this technique is applied. This technique which is called “shari” involves stripping bark from areas of the trunk which emulates the look of natural scarring which is normally acquired by trees after it loses one of its limbs or its stroke by a lightning.

Not every type of seed can be used in order to create a beautiful looking bonsai tree, the best seeds used to create these trees are: Trident maple seed, hedge maple, field maple, Japanese maple, vine maple, red maple, Barberry, strawberry tree, Bougainvillea, Cedar, Hinoki Cypress, Fig, ginkgo, olive tree, etc.

The list shown above only includes a few of the many types of seed and trees which are actually perfect for bonsai tree cultivation and the appearance will obviously change from one type of tree to another. Due to the many physical differences between one tree to another those who have adopted the creation of bonsai trees as a pastime have also decided to create entire miniature gardens using different types of bonsai trees.

Tags: about, Basic, Bonsai, Information, Trees

Important Information About Bonsai Tree Care

bonsai trees

When thinking about Bonsai tree care, the most important thing to think about is proper watering. This is the type of tree that can die from both over watering and under watering. If you over water this tree you can cause a fungus to grow in the soil, which will essentially cause the roots of the tree to decompose. If the tree is not watered enough, it can suffer drought which is a lack of water and the tree will once again die. While bonsai trees can be grown indoors, at some point in order for the tree to be healthy and survive for a longer period of time it must be taken outside. Bonsai trees that are grown exclusively inside do not have a high success rate.

The soil and the pots that are used when planting a bonsai tree are extremely important as well. The type of soil you use will affect how often you feed and water your tree. The recommended soil content should be as follows, 30% grit, 70 % humus for deciduous trees. However the type of soil that you use will depend greatly on which type of bonsai tree that you grow. For example the combination of grit and humus is reversed for evergreen bonsai trees. The type of pot that you plants your bonsai tree in plays an important role as well. While there are different recommendation for pots you try to select a pot that is two third to three quarters as well as the tree is tall. It should also be half as deep as the tree is tall. A general rule is to keep the pt as high as the width of the tree trunk. This will give the tree room to grow and expand in the pot. If you have selected a pot that you that you tree has outgrown or will outgrow do not rush to replant the tree. Replanting the tree can cause some damage and cause the tree to die.

Another important part of caring for your bonsai tree is called pruning. There are different ways to prune your bonsai tree.  There is branch pruning and root pruning. However, they do go hand in hand. If you are pruning the roots of you bonsai tree it is important that you also prune the branches of your tree. This will keep the tree balanced. The less foliage that you have up top means that there is less foliage that the roots have to support. If you are planning on doing some branch pruning it’s a good idea to clip the tip of the branches and the some slight pruning of the leaves. If you have branches that are crossing each other to crossing the trunk of the tree it is a good idea to cut these branches to give tree room to continue to grow. If you have twigs that are pointing straight down off the branches it is also a good idea to cut these as they will cause the branches to droop down.

Tags: about, Bonsai, care, Important, Information, Tree

Bonsai Tree – Black Pine / Pinus Thumbergii Tips And Information

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Hello all bonsai devotees. How are you? My name is Suhendra. I want to tell you my experience on how to keep, treat and create black pine bonsai. Perhaps this experience is only suitable for tropical area and I hope those who plant black pine will also have different experience to share. I have tried to plant black pine since 5 years ago (around 1980) when I got the seed from a friend traveling abroad.

I have known and fallen in love with black pine bonsai, since I had learn about bonsai for two years from a foreign book on how to treat and create bonsai by practicing directly, so that I gradually master it. When I learned that book, I saw a picture of black pine and Cemara (Juniperes) bonsai that were so beautiful and robust. Even more so the black pine with its cracked bark so that it looked old, antique and elegant. According to Taiwanese bonsai grower, black pine could live in both winter and summer. In those seasons, its leaves are still green and thriving, so that we can call it evergreen tree. From books I have read, I’m sure that this tree could grow in tropical area. From that time, I had been determined to get that kind of tree and tried to plant and grow it in Indonesia.

In the mids of 1980 I and my elder went to Taiwan to attend an international exhibition of bonsai. While looking for special new trees to enrich the variety of bonsai in Indonesia, from Taiwan I brought home some kinds of bonsai that I’d been always seen on some foreign bonsai books that we couldn’t find in Indonesian market (before 1985). They are: Hokkian Tea (Carmona mycrophylla), Pyracanta (Pyracanta Grenulata), Ulmus (Ulmus Parfiflora), Karet Kimeng (Ficus Microcarpa). After buying those bonsai, one thing I shouldn’t forget to be my prime target of searching is Black Pine. Setting aside my pocket money for returning home, I spent the rest to buy various kinds of pine, starting from seeds, young trees, half-grown bonsai, and grown-bonsai.

Some Taiwanese bonsai grower told me that Black Pine (Pinus Thumbergii) grows best compared with any other kinds of pine they plant. There are three kinds of Black Pine:

1. Those with long leaves (which is generally spread out in the market).
2. Those with short leaves (Seu Sung).
3. Those with mini leaves (Zuen Sau Hei Sung).

The three Black Pines are the most preferred by Taiwanese bonsai grower to be dwarfed. Beside that, I have learned some techniques on how to plant and treat black pine that I want to share with you.

PROCESS BEFORE PLANTING

Coming home, I had all my trees washed because it’s forbidden to bring the soil from Taiwan. This is the regulation among countries to prevent the spread of plant pest. Then I opened the plastic cover of mos (soil substitute covering the root so it stays moisturized along the trip) one by one. After that all the roots that had been cleaned from mos was soaked with plant vitamin or organic fertilizer liquid for about one hour. Last thing to do was to keep the plant out of soaking liquid and planted it on the pot.

MEDIUM FOR PINE (Suitable for Casuarina=Juniperus too)

3 bg sand of 1-2 mm (do not use powder sand) +
1 bg loose soil (Do not use sticky soil such as clay, etc.) +
1 bg humus (or compost to substitute humus).

After being mixed well, it can be used to plant (you can see how to plant in a pot on article of Loa Variegata). I’ve got a little story about sands. In around 1990 in Indonesia there has been found a kind of pit sand (pasir gunung) from perimeter of Malang, so that it is called pasir Malang (Malang pit sand). This kind of sand was found by hobbyist and raw-material (bakalan) bonsai hunter in the nature. The specialty of this sand is clean and has no powder or waste. We may say that it’s been free from pests and germs that are usually found on soil or pit sand. So there’s no need to have it washed it anymore and it has pores to keep water and air. There are several kinds of plant that are better being planted on this sand rather than any other media, i.e. Santigi (Phempis Acidula), Cemara Udang (Casuarina Equisetifolia), Black Pine, Cemara, etc. Naturally Malang pit sand is beneficial for bonsai hobbyists and some devotees of ornamental plants such as cactus, adenium, sansivera, etc. Then I use this pit sand as composite for media to plant Black Pine and other bonsai.

PROCESS AFTER BEING PLANTED

After black pine is being planted in a pot, the trunk always has to be tied tightly into the pot so that the tree is more stable. It’s because any repotting tree is in critical period. Its root hasn’t been converged with its new media so that it hasn’t been normally functioned. Moreover when we cut some of the roots and new roots grow, the latter is still easily snapped off if it is shaken, and the tree will be possibly died. After being tied, put it in the shade then water it perfectly (until the water comes out of the pot bottom hole). Let it be there for about two, but please not to let it be too wet or too dry. We’d better to keep it a little bit dry than to keep it too much wet, in order to prevent its root from getting rotten. This will be different from what we should do to growing black pine (see the description below on watering). After two weeks the trees will look healthy and strong with its green leaves. Now it’s time for the tree to have sun bath gradually. Then wait until new bud comes up, which is a sign that its new root has grown and the tree is ready to have a full sun bath.

There are some bonsai hobbyist who don’t know the media and the planting process, or don’t have much patience in planting and treating black pine (which is different from maintaining ficus or any other kind of bonsai). Doing treatment improperly will lead to the death of black pine. When this happens, they will easily say that black pine could not be planted in Indonesia or will be dead if it’s being re-potted. The worst is when there are bonsai hobbyists and sellers who has just seen black pine picture on bonsai books tell the same things. This makes bonsai newbies or collectors being defrauded and don’t want to treat black pine.

TREATING GROWN BLACK PINE BONSAI

The pruning (cutting the leaves), can be done when we see the old leaves has been grown yellow or looked a little bit dull. We can do it in two ways: shearing or pulling out. The best way is the second one, that is gradually pull out the old leaves. To prevent pulling out the whole group of leaves, use your left hand to hold the lower end of the leaves group, and use your right hand to pull out the old leaves one by one, and leave the young ones. If you prefer the first way, shear the old leaves at about 1 cm higher from the leaf stalk. This is to provoke the new bud from the rest of those old leaves. Unfortunately, shearing will leave brown traces, and these unsightly traces will stay there for months before they disappeared.

To keep the twigs and the leaves short and dense (to avoid disfigured or to keep the good shape), do the following:

1. Gradually pull out the old leaves every year.

2. Cut the twigs, small twigs, and new buds once every two or three years. This is to keep the shape from being undesirable. Two or three new buds usually come up once a year naturally. Cut off the very thriving (big) bud and the very weak (small) bud by shearing from the lowest part. Leave the moderate growing buds until they release their new leaves. Then cut it at the length we intend to. Two weeks later, there will come up the second bud from the trace of cutting. If it is needed, do the same to the second bud, so that we will get the third bud. The second and the third buds will create the short twigs and leaves. This theory is he same with bonsai tree that will have big leaves in the country but after making it bonsai planted on the pot by cutting its leaves several times, the leaves become small such as Sancang (Phemna Microphylla), Beringin Karet (Ficus Ratusa), etc.

3. When the leaves of the new bud have grown, do not cut off too many twigs when the leaves of the new buds has blossomed because in this phase, the trace of cutting will release much turpentine (sap) that will possibly kill the tree. The best time to shape and shear the twigs is when we start to see its old leaves (looks yellow and dull). This shows that this tree is stop growing temporarily and is saving energy before releasing its new buds. It’s the safest time to prune black pine by pulling out or shearing, and cutting the twigs too, because it’s the strongest period of the tree.

THE WAY OF REPOTTING / CHANGING THE SOIL OF BLACK PINE BONSAI

The process of repotting bonsai to be black pine can be done once in three or four years, because black pine’s root grows slowly. Do not repot before two years because its roots haven’t been old enough. If we repot after 4 years, the roots will be too dense in the pot, and this will retard its growth and fertilization.

Please repot this way. After pulling bonsai out of the pot, we may see the lump of root that has been converged with the soil. Throw 1/3 part around the lump by scraping the soil and shearing the roots that is too long. Then put it again into the pot with the medium described above, by scraping, so the tips of the old roots can directly penetrate into and converged with new medium. This will guarantee its life after repotting. Don’t even repot by cutting or sowing the lump of soil and root flat as if we’re slicing the cake and then plant it again. This way make the old root lump covered by the new medium, causing an undistributed heat in the lump and will finally make the root rotten.

According to my experience in planting black pine, we shouldn’t do pruning while repotting. Once my gardener didn’t follow my instructions. When I went out of town and didn’t supervise him, he was repotting and pruning at the same time. This caused some half-grown black pine trees died.

In Indonesia which has two seasons, the best time to repot black pine is between the end of dry season and the beginning of rainy season (around the beginning of September), but pay attention to black pine condition too. Repotting should be conducted when new bud has just come up before the leaves blossom. When the leaves have blossom, then the tree will be weak and the risk of repotting will be bigger.

Well, that’s my experience on treating black pine bonsai. Hope it’ll be useful for those who want to treat or collect black pine bonsai.

Tags: Black, Bonsai, Information, Pine, Pinus, Thumbergii, Tips, Tree

Bonsai Tree – Ficus Glomerata Variegata Information

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Hello Bonsai devotees, my name is Suhendra. I want to share my knowledge about Ficus Glomerata Variegata (Loa Varigata in Indonesian Language). I bought the bonsai in northern Bandung in 2004. I drove my own car accompanied by employees. When arrived, I see numerous small and raw bonsai. Some were good, but some were only raw bonsai. Then the owner invited us to see his farm, which had raw bonsai planted in soil and polybags. Some of them were planted from seeds, graftings, and natures.

In his farm I saw a Kaliandar Variegata whose flowers were red, like timber tree flowers and I wanted to buy it. Unfortunately, the owner didn’t sell because he said it will die if dug in dry season. I was quite confused, since the tree was 2 meter height and had so many saplings. Why didn’t he separate them and planted in pots or polybags to be sold. I think the tree was good, because it had yellow striped leaves that very contrast plus red flowers. I thought it will attract so many people to buy.

When we were talking, he mentioned about Ficus Glomerata Variegata whose fertile was not good. I was interested to know more because I was interested in collecting rare plants especially that could be created as bonsai. When I saw the plant, it was only planted in polybag using unhulled paddy (paddy plants /rice that are hulled and then separated from the stalks) as media. It was put in the middle of higher trees, so there was possibility watering process could not be completed. Sunshine was also not than one hour, and there were so many branches were not cut in the lower position that made the variegata lost. I think that were the factors.

After I bought and took it home, I did the repotting: 1 part soil + 2 part fertilizer + 1 part Malang sand (any sand taken from volcanoes). Before the substances mixed in pot, the bottom should be covered by filter to shut the hole. On the filter put rough sand (2-3 mm), then softer sand (1 mm), and goat manure (mixed with unhulled paddy) with comparison 1:1. Cut all the branches, leaves including the green and variegata from the stalk. After that, pull the tree from its polybag, clean the soil, and cut and the oversized roots. Finally, put the tree in the pot, do watering, and keep in shaded place. Put in a place with 2 hour morning sunshine when the tree grows new buds. After having many variegata leaves, full dry in the sun. When the tree grow green leaves, cut immediately.

The result after 6 months, the tree became so fertile and good. So I started to shape it with Slanting Style. After 2 years with good nursery, it became 80% qualified bonsai. I kept doing the intensive care for the purpose of joining National Bonsai Competition.

One day there was a bonsai lover outside Bandung city came to my place to see bonsai. When he saw the Ficus Glomerata Variegata, he was so impressed and eager to buy it. I understood his feeling, because I had ever the same experiences when I wanted to buy good and rare bonsai tree. After he did some very good offer, I sold the tree. Why? Because I had the saplings from prior graftings, so I still could have the same trees. I felt happy because there was a person who appreciated my work from the same hobby.

And that’s the whole story and experience about how to do repotting and plant bonsai with the substances made especially for the Ficus Glomerata Variegata. I hope my information could give positive input for you, the world bonsai devotees. Thank you.

Tags: Bonsai, Ficus, Glomerata, Information, Tree, Variegata

Bonsai Tree Care Information – From Watering to Pruning to Soil

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The practice of Bonsai began in China and Japan hundreds of years ago, and is simple the miniaturization of naturally occurring plants and trees. Bonsai trees are not “special small” trees, but rather trees that ave been slowly miniaturized from their full size.

The main areas of tree care are the following:

Watering your Tree

Bonsai Trees require more watering than most plants, as they are grown in less soil and the soil itself is free draining (meaning it doesn’t retain the water and lets it pass through). The type of tree, the sunlight it is exposed to all factor in to how much watering should be done. You can tell if your Bonsai Tree needs water by looking at it, feeling the soil and if you prefer; by using a moisture meter to be certain.

Fertilizing your Tree

Bonsai plants are grown in smaller amount of soil compared with other trees and plants, therefore fertilizing and feeding your tree is key. You will want to fertilize once in the Spring and once again in the Fall to ensure maximum health and growth. Your fertilizer should contain chelated iron, nitrogen, phosphoric acid and potash. Make sure before you fertilize, to water your tree and then apply less than the recommended amount.

Misting your Tree

Bonsai trees and plants in general thrive in a humid environment, something that is somewhat uncommon in most of the world. Some gardeners would recommend misting your plants, to recreate this humid environment. The issue with misting is that it’s only a short term benefit to your plant. We recommend placing a tray below your tree, which you fill with water and allow natural evaporation to do the work to create humidity. Make sure the plant is setup off the tray so the roots are not sitting in the water constantly.

Sunlight for your Tree

Bonsai trees thrive in a sunny location, and only with a few exceptions (repotting, extreme trimming) it should live permanently in a sunny spot. It’s a good idea to leave your plant within a foot of a direct source of ultraviolet light. Southern (east/west okay too) exposure is best, if you plan to grow in a northern exposure location you may need the assistance of grow lights. Do not use Incandescent light as it is much too hot and does not provide a complete spectrum of light. Choose your type of tree wisely as some do better in less light and some require lots of light.

Trimming & Pruning your Tree

One of the main attractions of Bonsai ownership is the possibility to shape and mold your tree to meet your vision and desire. However there are fundamental concerns you need to keep in mind whilst pruning your tree. Balance is very important, and keeping a nice even distribution of branches over the your roots below is key to keeping your tree healthy and complete. You begin shaping your tree when it’s very young, and continue to shape even as your tree ages year after year. Butterfly shears are used to remove leaves and branches as needed. Large branches should only be removed with a concave cutter. Maintaining your trees appearance while minimizing the appearance of pruning is essential.

Protecting your Tree (from disease and pests)

Similar to many other trees and plants, bonsai are vulnerable to attacks by diseases and various pests. If you keep your bonsai in excellent health, you can ward of insects who are attracted to dyeing and weak trees. A healthy amount of light, fresh air and clean soil will ensure your bonsai stays healthy and gives you years of enjoyment. Insecticide soap spray is an option, however you should re-apply on a regular interval to prevent attacks from coming back.

Training your Bonsai

Expanding on the training idea of pruning and trimming, bonsai can be further trained using copper wise or hemp rope. The copper wire is rooted at the base of the tree and than wrapped around the trunk and branches, which allows your to train the branches to grow in your desired direction and shape. The wire should be wrapped closely but not too tight and the bends created should not be too extreme as to damage the branch. Once the wire starts biting into the bark, it should be removed. Removal should be done by snipping the wire at each bend, do not un wrap the wire as it can damage the branches and bark.

Soil for your Tree

When discussing watering above we noted that Bonsai trees use free draining soil, which means that it passes the water through and does not retain like typical potting soil. The makeup of the soil allows the roots of your bonsai to breathe freely. Bonsai soil comes in two main types, conifer and tropical mixtures. When you repot your tree make sure to do so with dry soil.

Repotting your Tree

As your bonsai grows and matures it will need to move containers. However unlike most repotting we do not upgrade our pots to larger sizes. When the bonsai is repotted the roots should be trimmed to fit the previous container size. Average time between repotting is 5 years, however it should be checked annually to verify root ball size. When trimming the root ball, do not remove more than 1/5 of the root material. Finally when repotting keep the bonsai out of the sun/light for at least a week.

Tags: Bonsai, care, from, Information, Pruning, Soil, Tree, Watering

Bonsai Tree Information and Bonsai Tree Care

bonsai trees

Bonsai trees have often been thought to have originated from Japan. However, records of more than 2,000 years old show that bonsai trees have been growing in China, not only as part of landscapes, but also in shallow containers. Approximately 1,500 years ago, Bonsai trees were first grown individually after being collected from mountainous regions. Bonsai trees can be seen on many ancient Chinese line drawings. It was several centuries later that the Japanese began to grow and train the trees in pots. The Chinese and Japanese styles of Bonsai are very different. The Chinese styles are more freeform and mainly trained by pruning, and the Japanese styles are particularly groomed and shaped, making them appear more natural.

The translation of bonsai growing is “plant in a tray”. It is a satisfying hobby which combines both horticulture and art. Bonsai trees are typically described as “living sculptures”. As with any pot plant, it is essential that the plant is kept healthy and in excellent condition. It does require a certain amount of artistic imagination to prune and shape bonsai trees. The origin, species and general health are dependent upon the timescale to create an impressive bonsai. It will take longer to grow a bonsai tree from a seed or a cutting.

You can become to appreciate bonsai trees very quickly. They can become a very important part of your life. It is essential not to be afraid to experiment with pruning and shaping. Patience is something which is necessary by each individual when creating bonsai trees, as it is a process which should not be hurried. A good Bonsai can be trained in a very short time, providing that the suitable material is selected firstly.

Something which is fundamental to all plant life is watering. The tree will certainly die of thirst in as little as 48 hours, if it is left in a dry bonsai container. It is essential however, that the tree is not over watered. This is how many bonsai trees die, as newcomers to bonsai growing panic and over water the plant. It is important to water thoroughly, but only when a bonsai needs it. You can test as to whether the bonsai needs water by scratching the surface to expose the soil immediately below. If the soil just under the surface is wet, then do not water it. If the soil is only just damp, then you can water it. And if it is dry under the surface, then it should most certainly be watered.

Bonsai soil contains little or no nutritional value to a bonsai tree. Your bonsai depends entirely upon you for its nutritional requirements. There are a wide variety of plant foods available for your bonsai. However, it is essential that the plant food contains the three basic nutrients of Nitrogen (N), Phosphorus (P) and Potassium (K).

It is essential for the survival of the plant that it receives sufficient daylight or good artificial light. However, it is essential to understand the difference between sunshine and sunlight in order deliver the correct bonsai tree care. Direct sunlight can be harmful for many species of bonsai, especially through a glass window. It is also essential to remember that whether your bonsai tree is inside or out, it will benefit from a certain degree of shade from the hot summer sun.

Tags: Bonsai, care, Information, Tree