A Complete Collection of Boxwood Bonsai Pictures for Appreciation

Chinese name: Pearl Boxwood

Alternative name: Fish-scale Boxwood

Latin scientific name: Buxus sinica var. parvifolia

Family and genus: Buxaceae, Buxus

Place of origin and distribution: Dabie Mountains and Huangshan in Anhui, Lushan in Jiangxi, and other areas

Pearl Boxwood, also called China's little old tree, fish-scale wood, is a top-grade material for making stump bonsai and is a rare, world-endangered tree species unique to our country. Its trunk is ancient, round and full, with the appearance of never aging for a hundred years; its branches bend three times in one cun, as if they have endured a lifetime of hardships and frost; its leaves are as fine as pearl scales, floating red and flowing green, with the clarity of jade and agate, and also the brightness of brilliant brocade scales. “This tree is cold-resistant and wind-resistant, green in three seasons, and turns red in winter, with a very graceful posture. When a small tree is transplanted into a pot, it shows even more the old branches coiling around and the fish-scale leaves spreading out, so beautiful that it is impossible to take in fully.

How to Make Pearl Boxwood Stump Bonsai | How to Care for Boxwood Bonsai

How to make boxwood bonsai? Boxwood bonsai pictures

How to make boxwood bonsai?

Boxwood, also called Everlasting Dwarf, has a small plant, dense branches and leaves, slow growth, long life, evergreen throughout the four seasons, tolerance to pruning, and easy shaping. Its tree vigor remains strong for a long time, making it an important bonsai tree species.

Boxwood branches and trunks are gray-white and smooth, and its leaves are small like broad bean petals, thick in texture and glossy, emerald green in all four seasons, and ornamental throughout the year. After being pruned and tied into cloud-flake forms, they are flat and thin as if shaved; or when dotted with landscape stones, they become even more natural and wonderful. When spring buds first open into leaves, the whole tree is tender green, and the ornamental effect is at its best.
In the Yuan Dynasty, Hua Youwu wrote in his poem "Boxwood": "Within a short distance stands the boxwood tree, with dancing branches in a thousand layers.
Leaves deep as garden jade, ancient as a crouching dragon. Long has it weathered wind and frost, often moistened by heavy rain and dew. It should not meet misfortune in a leap year, its firm substance compares to the cold pine." This depicts the beautiful posture of boxwood.
Tools/Materials
Boxwood, flower pot, flower scissors, organic soil, fertilizer, water, watering can
Steps/Methods
(1) Botanical Knowledge

Belongs to Buxaceae, Buxus. Evergreen shrub or small tree, with densely growing branches, small branches four-angled, branches and leaves clustered and rising upward. Leaves opposite, leathery, elliptical or obovate, apex rounded or slightly notched, base wedge-shaped, surface bright green, back yellow-green. Flowers clustered in leaf axils or at branch tips, opening in April, yellow-green. Capsule ovoid.
Main species and varieties 1. Spoon-leaf Boxwood (B. bodinieri Levl.)
, also called Sparrow-tongue Boxwood.
Evergreen dwarf shrub, branches densely clustered. Leaves opposite, leathery, spoon-shaped or oblanceolate, surface dark green, glossy.
2. Fish-scale Boxwood (B. sinica var. parvifolia M. Cheng), also called Pearl Boxwood.
Evergreen small shrub, branches and leaves densely growing, internodes short, leaves small, glossy. Tree posture graceful, a precious tree species for making bonsai.
Boxwood is produced in the central provinces of our country, with wild growth in mountain areas below 1300 m elevation.
It is mostly planted in courtyards or potted for ornament in areas along the Yangtze River basin and to the south.
It likes light, also tolerates slight shade, is relatively cold-resistant, and is suitable for growing in fertile, moist, loose places. It can adapt to acidic soil, neutral soil, or slightly alkaline soil. It grows slowly, has a relatively strong sprouting ability, and tolerates pruning.

Boxwood at all stages from seedling to ancient stump is suitable as bonsai material. The main trunk can be cut off 10-30 cm above the ground, and many new branches can sprout around and below the plant. With moderate pruning, it can become spherical, tower-shaped, or naturally layered. Boxwood with an ancient stump can be made into stump bonsai.

(2) Material Collection and Cultivation Measures

Seedlings propagated by sowing or cuttings can be transplanted into pots and processed after several years of cultivation. Old stumps can also be selected from mountainous wild areas. After digging them up, trim overly long roots and dense branches, first cultivate them in open ground for 1-2 years, then pot and process them.

Artificial propagation: usually by sowing or cuttings. For sowing, harvest mature fruits in July, spread them out to dry in the sun, thresh to obtain seeds, and store them in bags. Sow in winter or early spring. If sowing is later than March, few seedlings will emerge that year, and most will not sprout and emerge until the second year. Before sowing, first soak the seeds in 40°C warm water for one day and night (allowing to cool naturally), dry them, and then sow. The seedbed soil should be fertile, loose sandy loam. Drill sowing with row spacing 15-20 cm, sowing width 5 cm, sowing furrow depth 2 cm. After sowing, cover with 1 cm thick scorched mud, then cover with rice straw. After seedlings emerge, uncover the straw in time and build a shade shed. Strengthen management during the seedling stage, weed and loosen the soil, water frequently, keep the soil moist, and apply dilute cake fertilizer water.
In September, remove the shade shed and leave the plants in the bed for another year before dividing and replanting.
Cutting propagation is best carried out during the plum rain season. Select semi-lignified healthy branches as cuttings, 10-12 cm long, with a heel at the base, leaving 5-6 pairs of leaves at the upper part. Insert to a depth of 12-23, with plant and row spacing 6 x 10 cm. After inserting, press the soil firm, water thoroughly, build a shade shed, and spray water frequently to keep the soil moist. Especially during hot weather, water frequently.
From September to October, remove the shade shed and leave the plants in the bed for another year before dividing and replanting. Boxwood can also be propagated by thick-trunk cuttings. Cut relatively thick branches from clustered plants, leave several whorls of branches and leaves on top, bury the trunk part completely in yellow sand soil or vermiculite, expose the branches and leaves, water frequently to keep moist, and roots can form after half a year.
Collection from mountain wild areas: In subtropical mountain areas, boxwood is mostly scattered under mixed forests or beside ditches at forest edges. In barren areas with exposed rocks, boxwood grows short and small, with dense branches and leaves. After collection, potting, and shaping, it often becomes an excellent bonsai. Fish-scale Boxwood in the middle-upper parts of mountains at 1300-1800 m elevation in East China often grows in patches, forming evergreen thickets dominated by Fish-scale Boxwood. It also grows mostly in mountain rock crevices. Its trunk form is thick and short, branches dense, and leaves small, making it most suitable for making bonsai. However, Fish-scale Boxwood is a high-mountain tree species and requires a cool, moist climate and acidic sandy loam. Wild stumps or seedlings collected should be cultivated with plenty of mountain soil and original soil, and sprayed with water frequently. For topdressing, dilute cake fertilizer water mixed with a small amount of ferrous sulfate can be used. In summer, it should be placed in a shaded place or under tree shade. It is even better if the pot is placed on wet sand.

(3) Potting

1. Pot selection: Boxwood is oily green all year round, so purple clay pottery pots or glazed pottery pots are suitable, and pot colors of purple or light yellow are better. The pot shape for boxwood bonsai depends on the styling form, with medium-deep rectangular or elliptical shapes being most common. For cascade style, a deep tall cylinder pot is suitable; for slanting style or curved-trunk style, an elliptical or rectangular pot is used. Pot colors of purple or light yellow are better, to highlight the emerald green branches and leaves.

2. Soil: For bonsai soil, use aged garden soil or leaf mold mixed with an appropriate amount of chaff ash as the culture soil. It should be fertile and loose, and loam with good air permeability and water drainage is best. Old stumps should be potted with original soil. Boxwood likes fertile, loose loam, can adapt to slightly acidic soil or slightly alkaline soil, and can also grow in calcareous soil. For potting, aged garden soil or leaf mold mixed with an appropriate amount of chaff ash can be used.

3. Planting: Boxwood is relatively cold-resistant and can be planted before spring sprouting. When planting, trim overly long and overly dense roots, and never let the roots curl up in the pot. Newly planted boxwood should be placed in a semi-shaded place.

Boxwood has a strong sprouting ability. Before styling, the main trunk can be headed back to let new shoots sprout around or below the cut surface, and then according to the requirements of artistic styling, the branches and trunk can be trained and tied. In spring, tying with palm fiber is best. It can also be roughly tied and finely pruned to make cloud-flake shapes or steamed-bun shapes, or processed into a natural tree form. The main trunk follows its natural tendency and can be made into slanting-trunk style or lying style. If boxwood stump scenery is dotted with elegant stones, it becomes "Boxwood Bow." Boxwood is very tolerant of pruning and has a strong sprouting ability. To maintain a graceful tree shape, it must be processed and reshaped frequently.

Processing: Collected wild old boxwood stumps are generally cultivated for 1-2 years before processing begins, while seedlings cultivated from a young age must wait 3-4 years before processing can begin.

Styling is mainly by training and tying, and can also be rough tying with fine pruning. Boxwood branches and trunk are hard in texture and thin in bark, so metal wire should not be used for tying; palm fiber is best. The tying period is mostly in spring, while pruning can be done at any time.
Tree forms: Boxwood is suitable for slanting-trunk style, curved-trunk style, and cascade style, etc. In the traditional forms of "Yang-style" bonsai, boxwood branches and leaves are all made into "cloud-flake" shapes using the "fine tying and fine pruning method," while in "Su-style" bonsai, the "rough tying and fine pruning method" is used to create "steamed-bun" shapes, each with its own characteristics. Boxwood has a strong sprouting ability and is very tolerant of pruning, so it can also be processed into a natural large tree form by pruning. If boxwood bonsai is paired with elegant stones, it becomes "Boxwood Peak," making the old-looking, small tree grow beside the stone, and its posture becomes even more natural and wonderful.

(5) Maintenance and Management
Placement location: Boxwood should be placed in a semi-shaded place, and in summer special attention must be paid to shading. In winter, except in severely cold areas, it can generally overwinter outdoors by burying the pot in a wind-sheltered, sunny place, but after frost the leaf color often turns red.
Watering: Boxwood likes moisture, and the pot soil should be slightly on the moist side, but it should not become waterlogged.
In summer high temperatures, in addition to shading, it also needs watering morning and evening.
Fertilizing: Boxwood grows slowly and is not demanding about fertilizer. Generally, in spring apply
fertilizer 1-2 times, and in autumn apply one application of decomposed cake fertilizer water.

Pruning: Boxwood sprouts relatively quickly and should be pruned frequently. Generally, after each new shoot flush, cut off the first 1-2 nodes at the tip to prevent leggy growth and maintain the beauty of the tree shape.
After boxwood bears fruit, it should be removed in time to avoid consuming nutrients and affecting growth vigor.
Repotting: Carry out once every 2-3 years, preferably before spring sprouting or after autumn new shoots have matured.
When repotting, remove part of the old roots and remove 12 old soil, and change to a pot one size larger to benefit root development.

Pest and disease control: Boxwood has relatively few pests and diseases, mainly scale insects, which can cause sooty mold and leaf drop. Be sure to brush them off cleanly by hand, or spray with 80% dichlorvos 1500 times solution to kill them.
Usually it is best to spray water on the leaf surface frequently to wash off dust and promote good growth.

(6) Ornamental Appreciation
Boxwood branches and trunks are gray-white and smooth, and its leaves are small like broad bean petals, thick in texture and glossy, emerald green in all four seasons, and ornamental throughout the year. After being pruned and tied into cloud-flake forms, they are flat and thin as if shaved; or when dotted with landscape stones, they become even more natural and wonderful. When spring buds first open into leaves, the whole tree is tender green, and the ornamental effect is at its best.
In the Yuan Dynasty, Hua Youwu wrote in his poem "Boxwood": "Within a short distance stands the boxwood tree, with dancing branches in a thousand layers.
Leaves deep as garden jade, ancient as a crouching dragon. Long has it weathered wind and frost, often moistened by heavy rain and dew. It should not meet misfortune in a leap year, its firm substance compares to the cold pine." This depicts the beautiful posture of boxwood.
Precautions
Pest and disease control: Boxwood has relatively few pests and diseases, mainly scale insects, which can cause sooty mold and leaf drop. Be sure to brush them off cleanly by hand, or spray with 80% dichlorvos 1500 times solution to kill them.
Usually it is best to spray water on the leaf surface frequently to wash off dust and promote good growth

Maintenance and Management

(1) Watering: Boxwood likes moisture, and bonsai needs frequent watering to keep the pot soil moist, but it must not become waterlogged. During summer high temperatures, water morning and evening, and spray water on the leaf surface.

(2) Fertilizing: During the growth period from May to August, apply 2-3 applications of decomposed dilute cake fertilizer water. In winter, apply 1 basal fertilizer, using decomposed barnyard manure or dry cake fertilizer crumbs.

(3) Pruning: During the growth period, cut off leggy branches, overlapping branches, and excess branches affecting the tree shape at any time. Boxwood sprouts relatively quickly. Generally, after new shoots emerge, cut off the first 1-2 nodes at the tip to prevent leggy growth. After boxwood bears fruit, remove it in time to avoid consuming nutrients and affecting tree vigor growth.

(4) Repotting: Generally carry out once every 2-3 years, preferably before spring sprouting. Along with repotting, cut off some old roots and overly long or dense root systems, replace 1/2 of the old soil, and fill with fertile, loose culture soil to benefit root development.

(5) Pest and disease control: The main pests of boxwood are scale insects and boxwood geometrid moths. Scale insects can be killed by brushing and washing by hand, or sprayed with 80% dichlorvos 1500 times solution; boxwood geometrid moths can be sprayed with 80% trichlorfon wettable powder, or with 40% omethoate 1000-2000 times solution. The main disease is sooty mold, which can cause leaf drop. The key to control is to remove scale insects and frequently spray water on the leaf surface to wash off dust so that it grows well.
Ornamental Appreciation

Boxwood bonsai has a graceful tree posture, leaves small like broad bean petals, thick in texture and glossy, evergreen in all four seasons, and can be appreciated all year round. Yang-style boxwood wood carving appreciation: boxwood bonsai, with branches and leaves pruned and tied into "cloud-flake shape," flat and thin as if shaved, then dotted with landscape stones, elegant and beautiful like a painting. In spring, when boxwood tender leaves first emerge, the whole tree is tender green, very pleasing to the eye. The ancients wrote in a poem about boxwood: within a short distance stands the boxwood tree, with dancing branches in a thousand layers; leaves deep as garden jade, ancient as a crouching dragon. This depicts the grace of boxwood, and it is an excellent material for cultivating bonsai at home.

Boxwood occupies a very subtle and also very special position in classical furniture. Most boxwood works we see are craft ornaments, and there are basically no finished furniture pieces. In the use of classical furniture, it is mostly used as decoration. I remember once at Yuanhengli Classical Hardwood Furniture Co., Ltd., a gentleman, upon seeing a red sandalwood Nine Dragons Frolicking in the Sea screen inlaid with boxwood, praised the jade-like texture of boxwood without stopping, repeatedly saying that it would be great if it could be made into large furniture. In fact, many people have this question: why can't we see large boxwood furniture? So what kind of wood is boxwood?

In fact, in our country boxwood has a relatively wide growth range, with widespread distribution along the southeast coast, in the southwest, and in Taiwan. Its branches and leaves are luxuriant, it does not flower or fruit, and it is evergreen in all four seasons. It is a relatively common evergreen plant in both tropical and temperate zones. Boxwood carving, as a three-dimensional carved craft, also has not appeared separately for people to appreciate on their desks for a very short time. At present, the earliest surviving physical object that can be verified is a relic from the Yuan Dynasty. For example, the boxwood carved round sculpture figure "Li Tieguai" currently preserved in the Palace Museum in Beijing is a work from the second year of Zhizheng in the Yuan Dynasty (1342), already more than six hundred years old.

Boxwood is still a very interesting topic. Li Yu called it having the manner of a gentleman and compared it to "the gentleman among woods." In his Xianqing Ouji, he even recorded: "Boxwood grows one cun each year, without exceeding a hair, and in a leap year it instead shrinks one cun; this is a fate limited by heaven." In fact, this saying is also mentioned in some other books. For example, Su Shi wrote in a poem: "In the garden there are countless plants and trees in spring, only boxwood suffers in a leap year." Bówù Yàolùn even mentions that someone once did a test, saying that in a leap year boxwood does not shrink, it simply does not grow. In Youyang Zazu, there is also the following record about harvesting boxwood: "The world values boxwood because it has no fire. Test it with water: if it sinks, it has no fire. Whenever taking this wood, one must seek a dark night with not a single star; cutting it then will prevent splitting." These sayings more or less draped boxwood in a mysterious cloak and added much charm to boxwood works becoming beloved objects for people to fondle.

Because it grows slowly, boxwood's wood is extremely fine, and pores cannot be seen with the naked eye. However, also because boxwood grows slowly, it is difficult to obtain large material, and it is mostly used for inlay with high-grade rosewood or processed into extremely fine carving works. No large works have been seen. Precisely because of this, boxwood carving works are often mistaken by beginners for being made of ivory. It can be said that making large furniture from boxwood is extremely difficult, and if it appears, it is certainly a treasure.

Boxwood's fragrance is very light, very faint, elegant without being vulgar or gaudy. It is the kind of scent that can fully be described as delicate and fresh, and it can also repel mosquitoes. In addition, boxwood also has the effects of sterilization and anti-inflammatory hemostasis. Among the mountain people in areas where boxwood grows, there is the habit of collecting boxwood leaves for use as a hemostatic medicine and placing boxwood branches to repel mosquitoes and flies.

Appreciating boxwood art works should be done with the utmost care, fondling them carefully, and one will always gain something.

Boxwood bonsai pictures