How to make a bonsai from Chaenomeles (flowering quince)? Detailed method and steps

1. Choosing the pot and soil

When making a Chaenomeles bonsai, it is generally better to choose a purple clay (zisha) pottery pot, and the pot shape can be round, square, or rectangular. The pot color is best when it contrasts with the flower color. Chaenomeles likes fertilizer and also grows quickly, so the pot it is paired with should not be too small or too shallow. In addition, its requirements for soil and water are not particularly high, and it grows best in fertile, loose sandy loam.

2. Appropriate propagation

It can be propagated by grafting, division, root cuttings, or layering. For grafting, either branch grafting or bud grafting can generally be used; branch grafting is done in February to March, and bud grafting is done in August to September. Root cuttings are better done in February to March; select roots about 1 cm thick and 7 to 10 cm long and insert them into soil more than half their height deep, which gives a very high survival rate. Division and layering are also both suitable in spring, which also makes it easier to survive.

3. Shaping

When shaping it, it is generally more suitable to do so from leaf fall in winter to before bud break in spring. By the rainy season, the new branches have grown fairly mature, and the branches are also more elastic, making them more suitable for pruning and wiring. Seedlings 2 to 3 years old can begin to be worked on; at this time they are extremely malleable and also relatively easy to handle. It is generally better to use a mix of palm fiber and metal wire; the main trunks and large branches need to be shaped by coiling and bending. It is better to prune the branches and leaves a bit more naturally, and the coiling and bending should not be too regular. Common styles can be made as slanting trunk style, formal upright style, double trunk style, and so on.

3. Later care

After the bonsai is made, it generally needs to be placed in a spot with fairly ample sunlight and good ventilation. If there is not enough light, its growth will be poor and the flower color will not be bright enough; in summer there is also no need for much shading. It is also fairly cold hardy; in winter it can be placed outdoors together with its pot in a wind-sheltered, sunny spot, or it can also be kept indoors in a spot with good light to overwinter.