What is a Bonsai?

Well, so many people ask me what is a bonsai? How can you take a tree and put it in a pot? Will it have small fruit? Why are the leaves of your bonsai small? The list goes on..

Well making a bonsai is an art. It originated from the eastern cultures and the name bonsai in  Japanese means "bon =  flat dish or a tray+sai= a plant or plants. So bonsai literally means a plant grown in a shallow dish or a tray.

 A lot of people are scared to put the plant in a smaller pot so they simply cut out the top while keeping the pot larger. This is technically not a bonsai. This Juniper for example, has a great form but it needs some training before you can call it a bonsai.

The art of growing a proper bonsai involves careful decisions on pruning both the branches and the roots so that you give it the look of a tree from afar. This also involves careful choice of soil and watering/fertilizing techniques.
    Fertilizer: Since the plant is made to grow out in a small container, it doesn't get a lot of nutrients from the soil. It needs more fertilizers than a regular plant.
    Water: Since it is grown on a shallow dish which dries out fast, it must be watered more often than a regular potted plant.
  But like every plant/tree is different, every bonsai would need its own balance of soil, nutrients and water.

Leaf pinching: Another thing about bonsais is that they are forced to have smaller leaves by a process called pinching. Basically every shoot is pinched after 3-4 leaves which forces the tree to grow smaller leaves.

Fruiting: Since the tree is getting proper nutrients, it will grow normal sized fruit like a regular tree.

Root pruning: When a plant grows bigger, we try to keep it in a bigger container so it can grow more. With bonsais we do the opposite. We first let it get to a good size in a preferably shallow container. Once it seems to out grow this, we prune the older looking roots while keeping most of the white shoots and plant it back in the same container. We prune it just enough so that the plant continues to grow regularly, and does not get shocked.

Deciduous Vs Evergreen- Deciduos trees can only be pruned on certain times of the year, ever greens can be pruned at any time. More on this later.

What makes a plant a bonsai- Any plant or tree which is carefully grown out with a the looks of a well developed tree and tapering branches that thin out to the top and is in a shallow dish that is not bigger than 1/3rd of the plant size is a bonsai. The older the tree looks, the more your bonsai will cost you :-)
This is why there are so many different techniques out there on how to style a bonsai!

So there we have it. next time you buy a bonsai, make sure it looks like a proper tree and is pruned well at the branches and in a shallow pot. Make sure the trunk is grown out and has looks of a mature tree. Too many places just sell unfinished trees at a high price nowadays. Don't be fooled! Also make sure what you're buying is not a cutting but has well developed roots !

Next up- Different styles of bonsais. and/or what makes a good starting bonsai for a beginner