Bonsai Indoors

Growing bonsai indoors does not have to be a difficult task for most people. If you provide enough lighting and a warm atmosphere, then virtually any type of Bonsai can be grown indoors successfully. You should find a perfect location for your Bonsai.If you can locate a window in your home that maintains the correct temperature for your Bonsai, then placing your Bonsai near the window will help ensure a healthier plant.


Bonsai Indoors

Once a location has been established, you should then purchase a growing lamp to ensure that your Bonsai gets adequate lighting.The growing lamp should be turned on during the day, for the same length of time that your particular Bonsai requires of direct sunlight.The growing lamp should be turned off during the night, so that your Bonsai’s environment is as close to your outdoor environment as possible.


Bonsai Indoors

If you are new to bonsai, don’t fret if at first you fail. All bonsai masters failed too before perfecting their craft.

Wiring of a Bonsai

Bonsai trees presents:Wiring of a Bonsai

Wiring of a bonsai is not done to keep the plant small, but rather is a temporary measure used to hold branches in a desired position.When wiring, try to imitate the natural curves of trees in nature.There are two types of bonsai wire available - copper wire and aluminium wire.


Wiring of a Bonsai

The size of wire used depends on the size of branch you want to train and in most part should be chosen yourself.You should purchase wire in a variety of different lengths and test it out on pruned branches from around the garden.
The safest method to use when wiring is by clenching the branch with both hands and applying the wire by slowly following it around the branch.


Wiring of a Bonsai

Wire the branch first, and then worry about bending the branch to achieve your desired shape.It is best to not water a day before wiring, and to keep the tree in shade for two weeks after wiring.

Repotting Bonsai trees

To prevent a tree from being pot-bound and ultimately starving to death, regular repotting is very important.It depends on the tree species, age and size of container how often a Bonsai needs to be repotted. Fast growing trees will have to be repotted every two years, while older, more mature trees need to be repotted every 3 to 5 years.


Repotting Bonsai trees

A Bonsai needs to be repotted when the roots circle around the root system, when the roots are still contained in soil wait another year before checking again.Repotting work needs to be done during the early spring; when the tree is still in dormancy.Choosing the right soil mixture is crucial for the health of your trees.


Repotting Bonsai trees

Step-by-step plan to repot:

-Carefully take the tree out of its pot, when it is stuck use a root-knife
-Inspect whether the tree needs to be repotted or not
-By using a root-hook or some chopsticks, carefully remove the soil
-Prune back long roots,also remove rotting or vertical growing roots
-Put plastic mesh on the drainage holes, attached with some copper wire, and cover the base of the pot with a layer of grit to create a good drainage
-Use the prepared soil mixture as the second layer and place the tree, slightly out of the middle of the pot, on top of it
-Fill the pot using the soil mixture up to about 1 cm below the rim
-Water the tree


Repotting Bonsai trees

Watering Bonsai trees

The most complicated part of taking care of your Bonsai is to water it properly.

Watering Bonsai trees

How often a tree needs to be watered depends on several factors (like tree species, size, size of pot, time of year, soil-mixture and climate), which means that it is impossible to say how often you should water Bonsai. However, understanding a few basic guidelines will help you to observe when a tree needs to be watered.


Watering Bonsai trees

As mentioned above, how often to water your Bonsai depends on too many factors for us to give an exact time schedule. Instead, you need to learn to observe your trees and know when they need to be watered. Using the following basic guidelines will help you to water right.
Water your trees when the soil gets slightly dry. This means you should not water your tree when the soil is still wet but only when it feels slightly dry; use your fingers to check the soil at around one centimeter (0.4’’) deep. Once you get more experienced you will be able to see (instead of feeling) when a tree needs watering.


Watering Bonsai trees

Never water on a routine. Keep observing your trees, one by one, instead of watering them on a daily basis.Use the right soil-mixture. The soil-mixture greatly influences how often trees need to be watered, for most Bonsai trees a mixture of akadama, fine gravel and potting compost mixed together in a ratio of ½ to ¼ to ¼ should be fine. However, use a mixture that retains more water (by using more potting compost) when you cannot water your trees that regularly.
It does not really matter at what time you water a Bonsai; however, try to avoid watering during the afternoon, when the soil has been warmed up by the sun and will cool down rapidly when using cold water.


Watering Bonsai trees

As explained, a tree should only be watered when the soil gets slightly dry. When the tree does require water though, it needs thorough soaking so the entire root system is wetted. To do so, keep watering until water runs out of the drainage holes, and repeat the process about ten minutes later.
Water a tree from above using a watering can with a fine nozzle; this will prevent the soil from being washed away. Using collected rain water is better (as it doesn’t contain added chemicals), but when this is not readily available there is no real problem in using normal tap water.


Watering Bonsai trees


Watering Bonsai trees

Bonsai styles

Every experienced bonsai enthusiast has his/her own personal idea of what bonsai is to them and what defining factors make them aesthetically appealing.
The two basic styles of bonsai are the classic (koten) and the informal or 'comic' (bunjin). In the former, the trunk of the tree is wider at the base and tapers off towards the top; it is just the opposite in the 'bunjin', a style more difficult to master.


Bonsai styles

The five basic bonsai styles are formal upright, informal upright, slanting (or windswept), semi-cascade and cascade. All have their own individual beauty and serenity.


Bonsai styles

A tree with a style such as formal upright occurs when it has grown in the open under perfect conditions. The most important requirement for this style is that the trunk should be perfectly straight, tapering naturally and evenly from base to apex.
In an informal upright bonsai the trunk should slightly bend to the right or left - but never towards the viewer.
Trees that slant naturally occur a result of buffeting winds or deep shade during early development. Whether curved or straight, the whole trunk leans at a definite angle.
The growing tip of a cascade bonsai reaches below the base of a container. The trunk has a natural taper and gives the impression of the forces of nature pulling against the forces of gravity.
The tip of a semi-cascade, like the cascade, projects over the rim of the container, but does not drop below its base. The style occurs in nature when trees grow on clifs or overhang water. The angle of the trunk in this bonsai is not precise, as long as the effect is strongly horizontal, even if the plant grows well below the level of the pot rim.


Bonsai styles


Bonsai styles

Bonsai trees introduction

In Japanese, bonsai can be literally translated as 'tray planting' but since originating in Asia, so many centuries ago - it has developed into a whole new form. To begin with, the tree and the pot form a single harmonious unit where the shape, texture and colour of one, compliments the other. Then the tree must be shaped.


It is the art of dwarfing trees or plants and developing them into an aesthetically appealing shape by growing, pruning and training them in containers according to prescribed techniques.
Overall, bonsai is a great interest, hobby or even profession to undertake. Although famous theologians have claimed that it is actually 90% art to a meager 10% of horticulture, it has to be said that a successful bonsai is most definitely a horticultural masterpiece. Every experienced bonsai enthusiast has his/her own personal idea of what bonsai is to them and what defining factors make them aesthetically appealing.If a beginner is unable to have the experience of being taught the important principles of bonsai by an expert, he must obtain as much material on bonsai as possible - whether this may be just pictures of trees, discussions on the different styling processes involved or lists of suitable species to use.
The two basic styles of bonsai are the classic (koten) and the informal or 'comic' (bunjin). In the former, the trunk of the tree is wider at the base and tapers off towards the top; it is just the opposite in the 'bunjin', a style more difficult to master.
If at the end of reading all the information provided you feel that this is all too difficult, you could always go for an artificial bonsai.