How to Grow Bonsai Without Killing It? A Full Guide to Care Techniques

Bonsai is a traditional ornamental art form, a landscape created from plants, rocks, soil, water and other materials through artistic design and horticultural cultivation, so how do you grow bonsai without killing it?

1. Basic Introduction to Bonsai

Bonsai originated in China and is made up of three elements: the landscape, the pot, and the stand (rack). It generally falls into two major categories, tree-stump bonsai and landscape bonsai, of which:

1. Tree-stump bonsai

Tree species with small, fine branches and leaves, that are easy to keep alive in pots, grow slowly, live long, and have unusual roots and trunks are mostly chosen. Besides artificial propagation, old trunk stumps left after years of cutting are often dug up from mountain forests and fields and then cultivated; about 160 species have been used as tree-stump bonsai trees.

2. Landscape bonsai

A theme must first be chosen, and stones are selected and worked according to that theme; alternatively, the design can be adapted to the stones at hand. Stone materials fall into two types: soft stone (soft in texture) and hard stone (hard in texture). At the same time, the principles of perspective are applied - near objects large and far objects small, low objects large and high objects small, near objects solid and far objects hazy - matched with plants, pavilions, bridges, birds, animals and figures of suitable size, all set off by a shallow pot.

2. How Do You Grow Bonsai Without Killing It?

Choose bonsai varieties suited to the local climate and temperature, for example, if the summer is too hot, it is best not to grow types of bonsai that cannot tolerate high temperatures. Then provide reasonable light, watering and fertilizing according to the bonsai's growth habits. Pest and disease control also needs attention.

When watering, follow these principles:

1. Look at the size, depth and shallowness of the pot: generally water large pots less and small pots more, deep pots less and shallow pots more;

2. Look at the soil conditions: water clay soil less and sandy soil more;

3. Look at the location: water more in sunny, exposed spots and less in shady spots with little sunlight; water more in high spots with strong wind and less in low spots with little wind; water more when dry wind blows and less when air humidity is high.

To tell whether a bonsai needs watering, tap the pot lightly with your finger: if it sounds hollow, water it; if the sound is dull, do not. Also, the water temperature should match the local air temperature; too hot will scald the roots, too cold will freeze them.

In spring and autumn the temperature difference is small and humidity is high, so water only when dry, at any time of day. In summer, when high temperatures make evaporation fast, water in the morning and evening. In winter, when plants are dormant, water at noon.