subject: The Basics About Growing Bonsai Trees [print this page] Many people all over the world look at growing Bonsai trees. There are many reasons for why people do this. There are of course a number of things that you should be aware of when you are growing a Bonsai.
Having a little understanding of the history of bonsai trees may be a good starting point. The bonsai started in China and from there Japan became interested in them. It is in the 17th century when literature starts to mention these trees more often. It should also be noted that the oldest surviving bonsai is from this century and housed in the Tokyo Imperial Palace as a National Treasure of Japan.
As all plants come from seeds many people will wonder what kind you need to grow a bonsai. In fact there are no bonsai seeds that you have to specially buy as any tree can be transformed into a bonsai. All that you need to do is decide which tree you want to use and get the seeds for that one. Once this is done you simply plant them and follow the usual bonsai process.
Of course when growing bonsai trees it should be noted that many people will not grow them from a seed. Propagating is the usual process people will use. This process uses a cutting from the plant you to grow. The cutting should be placed in a medium that will allow it to start growing roots. The best cuts would be young and thin cuttings.
Growing a bonsai will entail a great many things and you should be aware of them. One thing to know is leaf trimming. This is a technique people use to shape their trees by the removal of leaves from the branches. This is done so that the tree becomes aesthetically pleasing to the eye. When shaping their trees people will remove the leaves from the underside of a branch and leave only bunches in the top. Additionally the removal of all the leaves from a branch will cause the branch to have a deadwood feel.
You will have to do some pruning to get the tree to the smaller size. This is actually the very first step when you are molding your tree. In order to make the tree more compact growers will remove the top of the tree trunk. There are branches that can be pruned to keep to the design you have for the tree. Of course pruning of the roots should also be thought about. When you are pruning it is important that you are careful. If pruning is done incorrectly you may weaken or kill the tree.
You should also take a lot of time when looking at the care of the tree. The small size of the pots these trees are in can cause problem with watering. If the trees are not watered properly then they will go into drought. Unfortunately too much water will also cause problems like fungal growth and root rot. You should repot your bonsai at regular intervals. The time between repotting will rely heavily on the trees age and vigor. You should note that mature trees do not need to be repotted as often as growing ones.
The growing of bonsai trees is something that a lot of people do. However there are many things that you have to know to do when growing trees.
