How do you care for a miniature bonsai? Master these 5 care methods

1. Handling the branches

For a miniature tree crown, fewer branches should be kept so as to reveal as much of the elegance of the trunk as possible, and the retained branches should be properly shortened so that their proportions match the trunk.

2. Preventing leaves from turning yellow and falling off

Because miniature bonsai have small pots and little soil, water is often in short supply in summer, so leaves are prone to scorching yellow and falling off. To avoid yellowing and leaf drop, in addition to leaving a rim when potting and paying constant attention to watering and misting in the hot summer, you can place a brick in a large or small basin or a shallow water pool, add water until it just covers the brick surface, and then place the small bonsai on the brick to grow.

3. Timely prevention and control of pests and diseases

When damage from various leaf spot diseases, aphids, red spider mites, scale insects and other pests and diseases is found, they should be removed by hand immediately or controlled by spraying.

4. Give appropriate light

Miniature bonsai are often displayed indoors, and being unable to see sunlight for a long time easily leads to poor growth and development. Therefore, during the spring and summer growing seasons, the time placed indoors and outdoors should generally not exceed one week; at other times, they should be kept outdoors in a semi-shaded environment.

5. Water and fertilizer should be moderate

A lack of water in miniature bonsai easily causes the leaves to scorch yellow, but too much watering easily causes root rot, so watering should be moderate. If fertilizer is applied excessively, it will cause the small branches to grow leggy and the tree shape to be ruined, but a severe lack of fertilizer leaves the leaves poor, pale and lusterless, so you must "apply light fertilizer frequently" and pay attention to moderation.