How to grow a bonsai tree, with help from Northampton Garden Centre’s Lee Whitestone
MNCE - Northampton Garden Centre, Newport Pagnell Rd, Hardingstone. Dee Ellis (Horticultural Manager)r watering Bonsai Trees.
The word bonsai comes from the Japanese ‘bon’, meaning tray or shallow container and ‘sai’, meaning a plant or planting.
The technique originated in Asia and is the art of dwarfing plants or trees and training them into an aesthetically pleasing shape.
There is no such thing as a specific bonsai species as bonsai refers to the technique of creating a miniature tree or plant. Many varieties of tree and woody shrub can be used to create a bonsai, but it is best to choose a species with small leaves such as hawthorn or privet.
Young saplings tend to work well for beginners and when choosing a specimen you need to look for a small tree around one or two feet in height with a few branches.
When you have found a suitable plant, dig it out gently and plant it in a small pot with fresh compost.
It is important to select the right pot for your tree, if it is too small the plant may have problems growing healthily. The pot you choose shouldn’t be glazed on the inside and there should be at least one hole for drainage. It may also be necessary to use garden wire to secure your sapling to the pot.
The soil you choose should be fine in texture and clean, potting compost mixed with grit or coarse sand works well because you will want to provide good drainage, as frequent watering can cause the soil to become compacted. If you have taken your sapling from a garden you could use the soil it was growing in, however this may encourage weed growth.
Once potted, reduce the height of the stem by about half as this will encourage the tree to produce branches. It is important to keep the tree outside as this is where it was growing before. However, tropical species of tree such as fig and pomegranate are suitable for growing indoors.
Keep the tree well watered and do not allow the soil to dry out. However, it is important to make sure the compost doesn’t become waterlogged.
Unless you are growing an evergreen variety, the leaves will fall from the tree in autumn and it will become dormant. It may be tempting to bring the tree indoors during the colder months, but just place it in a sheltered spot such as a shed, porch or garage.
At the beginning of spring, take the tree out of the pot and clean most of the soil from the roots, they should be fine and fibrous. Trim about a third off of the root ball and replant into the pot with fresh compost. Towards the end of spring you will need to think about pruning your tree and it is best to try and train it into a shape that pleases you.
You also need to control the height of the tree to encourage branching, this can be done by pinching the growing tip. If you want to reduce the height even more you can clip it back using secateurs.
Allow branches to grow as wide as you like and then trim them back. Pruning will not kill your tree as long as there are plenty of buds for re-growth.
This process should be repeated every year for the first five or six years, after which it can be done every other year or as and when the tree requires it.
For more information on growing a bonsai tree, please call Northampton Garden Centre, which is located in Newport Pagnell Road, Hardingstone, on Northampton 765725 or visit www.northamptongardencentre.co.uk.
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