Grandpa Came Across This Plant While Hiking, Took It Home and Turned It Into a Bonsai, and the Neighbors Were All Envious

Spring is here, and it is once again the annual travel season. At this time of year the flowers bloom in the warmth, and many people head out to the mountains or the countryside. I remember that last year Aiai went hiking with friends at exactly this time and happened to come across a Japanese podocarp (Podocarpus macrophyllus) seedling, so they took it home and turned it into a bonsai. It has been growing ever since, and it really has become another kind of scenery in the home. The neighbors were all envious when they saw it. What exactly happened? Let's take a look!

This is the photo Grandpa took of this Japanese podocarp seedling at the time. It really did look full of life, so Grandpa took it home and started growing it. Grandpa also explained to me that the Japanese podocarp is a very ancient gymnosperm, with a history dating back about 155 million years, so people vividly call it a living fossil. These days this kind of Japanese podocarp is generally cultivated in the south of our country.

Growing a Japanese podocarp as a bonsai is actually very simple. You just need to get the factors like temperature, light and soil right. Generally speaking, the Japanese podocarp grows best between 18°C and 26°C. Because its ability to resist cold is relatively weak, you need to protect it well in winter, otherwise it is very easily affected by frost damage. The Japanese podocarp is also a tree species with fairly good shade tolerance, so if it grows in direct sunlight, the sunlight will scorch its leaves. Finally, the Japanese podocarp has very strict soil requirements. Generally, deep, loose, moist, humus-rich, acidic sandy loam to light clay soil is more suitable for its growth.

That Grandpa can now grow the Japanese podocarp so beautifully is really something no one would have expected. I wonder whether you like this kind of Japanese podocarp bonsai. If you do, you can also try growing one as a potted plant at home!