Bonsai Trees Cheap http://bestbonzai.info Sat, 22 Nov 2008 12:43:21 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6.2 en Bonsai Seeds http://bestbonzai.info/bonsai-seeds/bonsai-seeds/ http://bestbonzai.info/bonsai-seeds/bonsai-seeds/#comments Wed, 06 Aug 2008 10:25:27 +0000 admin http://bestbonzai.info/?p=18 Indoor bonsai

Indoor bonsai are bonsai which have been cultivated for the indoor environment. Traditionally, bonsai are shaped from temperate climate trees grown in containers but kept outdoors as they require full sunlight and a winter dormancy period at near-freezing temperatures. Kept in the artificial environment of a home, these trees will become weakened and die. However, some of the most outstanding plants used for bonsai, members of the genus Ficus, are frost-sensitive and hence not capable of being grown all year outside in cold climates.

For indoor gardens bonsai-growing techniques have been applied to tropical plants that do not require dormant periods. Because bonsai are rooted in small pots, drought-resistant houseplants are best suited for indoor bonsai cultivation.

Collecting

Bonsai may be developed from material obtained at gardening centers, or from material collected from the wild or urban landscape. Some regions have plant material that is known for its suitability in form - for example the California Juniper and Sierra Juniper found in the Sierra Mountains and the Bald Cypress found in the swamps of the Everglades.

]]> http://bestbonzai.info/bonsai-seeds/bonsai-seeds/feed/ Trident Maple Bonsai http://bestbonzai.info/trident-maple-bonsai/trident-maple-bonsai/ http://bestbonzai.info/trident-maple-bonsai/trident-maple-bonsai/#comments Sun, 03 Aug 2008 14:54:09 +0000 admin http://bestbonzai.info/?p=17 Acer buergerianum (Trident Maple; Chinese: 三角枫 san jiao feng) is a species of maple native to eastern China (from Shandong west to southeastern Gansu, south to Guangdong and southwest to Sichuan) and Taiwan.
It is a small to medium-sized deciduous tree reaching a height of 5-20 m with a trunk up to 50 cm diameter. The leaves are in opposite pairs, 2.5-8 cm long (excluding the 2-5 cm petiole) and 3.5–6.5 cm broad, hard, glossy dark green above, paler below, usually with three lobes; on mature trees the lobes forward-pointing and with smooth margins, on young trees with more spreading lobes and serrated margins. The flowers are produced in spring, yellow-green, in pendulous corymbs; they are small, with five greenish sepals and five yellow-white petals about 2 mm long, and eight stamens. The fruit is a samara with two winged seeds, each seed 4-7 mm diameter, with a 15 mm wing; the wings are forward-pointing and often overlapping each other

It is widely grown in temperate regions as an ornamental tree. It was introduced very early to Japan, where its name translates as "China maple". More recently, it was introduced to Europe and North America in 1896, and is now occasionally grown in parks and large gardens there. Mature examples may be seen at Westonbirt Arboretum in England, the Esveld Aceretum in Boskoop, Netherlands, Arnold Arboretum in Boston, Massachusetts and many other locations.

Trident Maple is a popular choice for the art of bonsai and responds well to techniques that create leaf reduction and ramification
Several interesting cultivars have been developed, many of these bear Japanese names. Notable cultivars include 'Goshiki Kaede' (striking pink and green variegation), 'Kifu Nishiki' (roundish, almost un-lobed leaves), 'Mino Yatsubusa' (dwarf with long, narrow leaves) 'Mitsubato Kaede' (distinctive cork-like trunk) and 'Naruto' (strongly incurved leaf surface).

]]> http://bestbonzai.info/trident-maple-bonsai/trident-maple-bonsai/feed/ Wisteria Tree Bonsai http://bestbonzai.info/wisteria-tree-bonsai/wisteria-tree-bonsai/ http://bestbonzai.info/wisteria-tree-bonsai/wisteria-tree-bonsai/#comments Sun, 03 Aug 2008 14:51:16 +0000 admin http://bestbonzai.info/?p=16 Wisteria is a genus of about ten species of woody climbing vines native to the eastern United States and the East Asian states of China, Korea, and Japan. Aquarists refer to the species Hygrophila difformis, in the genus Hygrophila, as water Wisteria.

Wisteria vines climb by twining their stems either clockwise or counter-clockwise round any available support. They can climb as high as 20 m above ground and spread out 10 m laterally. The world's largest known Wisteria vine is located in Sierra Madre, California, measuring more than an acre in size and weighing 250 tons.


The leaves are alternate, 15 to 35 cm long, pinnate, with 9 to 19 leaflets. The flowers are produced in pendulous racemes 10 to 80 cm long, similar to those of the genus Laburnum, but are purple, violet, pink or white, not yellow. Flowering is in the spring (just before or as the leaves open) in some Asian species, and in mid to late summer in the American species and W. japonica. The flowers of some species are fragrant, most notably Chinese Wisteria. The seeds are produced in pods similar to those of laburnum, and, like that genus, are poisonous.

The genus was named after Dr. Caspar Wistar (1761 - 1818), a professor of anatomy at the University of Pennsylvania. As a consequence, the name is sometimes given as "Wistaria", but the spelling Wisteria is conserved under the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature.

Wisteria species are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species including brown-tail. It is also an extremely popular ornament in China and Japan.

]]> http://bestbonzai.info/wisteria-tree-bonsai/wisteria-tree-bonsai/feed/ White Tea Tree Bonsai http://bestbonzai.info/white-tea-tree-bonsai/white-tea-tree-bonsai/ http://bestbonzai.info/white-tea-tree-bonsai/white-tea-tree-bonsai/#comments Sun, 03 Aug 2008 14:48:26 +0000 admin http://bestbonzai.info/?p=15 Leptospermum scoparium (Manuka or Tea tree or just Leptospermum) is a shrub or small tree native to New Zealand and southeast Australia. It is found throughout New Zealand but is particularly common on the drier east coasts of the North Island and the South Island, and in Australia in Tasmania, Victoria and New South Wales. Manuka (from Māori 'mānuka') is the name used in New Zealand, and 'tea tree' is a common name in Australia and to a lesser extent also in New Zealand. This name arose because Captain Cook used the leaves to make a 'tea' drink. The common name "Tea Tree" is also shared with the related Melaleuca tree of Australia suggesting that both were used to make tea by Captain Cook.

It is a prolific scrub-type tree and is often one of the first species to regenerate on cleared land. It is typically a shrub growing to 2-5 m tall, but can grow into a moderately sized tree, up to 15 m or so in height. It is evergreen, with dense branching and small leaves 7-20 mm long and 2-6 mm broad, with a short spine tip. The flowers are white, occasionally pink, 8-15 mm (rarely up to 25 mm) diameter, with five petals. This species is often confused with the closely related species Kānuka - the easiest way to tell the difference between the two species in the field is to feel their foliage - Manuka leaves are prickly while Kanuka leaves are soft. The wood is tough and hard, and was often used for tool handles. Manuka sawdust imparts a delicious flavour when used for smoking meats and fish.

]]> http://bestbonzai.info/white-tea-tree-bonsai/white-tea-tree-bonsai/feed/ Baby Bamboo Bonsai http://bestbonzai.info/baby-bamboo-bonsai/baby-bamboo-bonsai/ http://bestbonzai.info/baby-bamboo-bonsai/baby-bamboo-bonsai/#comments Sun, 03 Aug 2008 14:46:52 +0000 admin http://bestbonzai.info/?p=14 Bamboo is a group of woody perennial evergreen plants in the true grass family Poaceae, subfamily Bambusoideae, tribe Bambuseae. Some of its members are giant bamboo, forming by far the largest members of the grass family. Bamboo is the fastest growing woody plant in the world. Their accelerated growth rate (up to 3-4 feet/day (1.5-2.0 inches/hr)) is due to a unique rhizome system and is dependent on local soil and climate conditions.

They are of economic and high cultural significance in East Asia and South East Asia where they are used extensively in gardens, as a building material, and as a food source. In Filipino, they are known as kawayan, Chamorro as piao, in Chinese as zhu (Chinese: 竹; pinyin: zhú), in Japanese as take (Kanji: 竹; Hiragana: たけ, take?), in Korean as dae (대) or daenamu (대나무), in Myanmar as wa, in Vietnamese as Tre /tʃe/, in Hindi as baans (बाँस) or vanoo (वेणु), in Persian as nei (نی) and in Indonesian as bambu.

There are 91 genera and about 1,000 species of bamboo. They are found in diverse climates, from cold mountains to hot tropical regions. They occur across East Asia, from 50°N latitude in Sakhalin through to northern Australia, and west to India and the Himalaya. They also occur in sub-Saharan Africa, and in the Americas from the southeast of the United States south to Argentina and Chile, there reaching their furthest south anywhere, at 47°S latitude. Major areas with no native bamboos include Europe, north Africa, western Asia, Canada, most of Australia, and Antarctica.

]]> http://bestbonzai.info/baby-bamboo-bonsai/baby-bamboo-bonsai/feed/ Bonsai Starter Kit http://bestbonzai.info/bonsai-starter-kit/bonsai-starter-kit/ http://bestbonzai.info/bonsai-starter-kit/bonsai-starter-kit/#comments Wed, 02 Jul 2008 05:50:23 +0000 admin http://bestbonzai.info/?p=11 Bonsai are not genetically dwarfed plants. They can be created from nearly any tree or shrub species and remain small through pot confinement with crown and root pruning. Some specific species are more sought after for use as bonsai material, because they have characteristics that make them appropriate for the smaller design arrangements of bonsai.

The small size of the tree and the dwarfing of foliage result from pruning of both the leaves and the roots. Most trees require a dormancy period and do not grow roots or leaves at that time. Improper pruning can weaken or kill trees.

Copper or aluminium wire wrapped around branches and trunks holds the branches in place until they lignify (convert into wood), usually 6-9 months or one growing season. Some species do not lignify strongly, or are already too stiff/brittle to be shaped and are not conducive to wiring, in which case shaping is accomplished primarily through pruning.

Cultivators use Deadwood Bonsai Techniques called jin and shari to simulate age and maturity in a bonsai. Jin is the term used when the bark from an entire branch is removed to create the impression of a snag of deadwood. Shari denotes stripping bark from areas of the trunk to simulate natural scarring from a broken limb or lightning strike.

]]> http://bestbonzai.info/bonsai-starter-kit/bonsai-starter-kit/feed/ Chinese Elm Bonsai http://bestbonzai.info/chinese-elm-bonsai/chinese-elm-bonsai/ http://bestbonzai.info/chinese-elm-bonsai/chinese-elm-bonsai/#comments Tue, 01 Jul 2008 03:36:20 +0000 admin http://bestbonzai.info/?p=10 Ulmus parvifolia Jacq., the Chinese Elm, is a species of elm native to China, Japan, North Korea and Vietnam.It is a small to medium-sized deciduous, semi-deciduous (rarely semi-evergreen) tree growing to 10-18 m tall with a slender trunk and crown. The leathery, lustrous green single-toothed leaves are small, 2-5 cm long by 1-3 cm broad, and often retained as late as December or even January in Europe and North America. The flowers are produced in early autumn, small and inconspicuous, with the seed maturing rapidly and dispersing by late autumn. The trunk has a handsome, flaking bark of mottled greys with tans and reds, giving rise to its other common name, the Lacebark Elm, although scarring from major branch loss can lead to large canker-like wounds. One of the tree's major distinctions is its resistance to insect attack. It was adjudged as having the best pest resistance of about 200 taxa evaluated in elm trials at the Sunshine Nursery, Oklahoma. Moreover, U. parvifolia is one of the cold-hardiest of the Chinese species. In artificial freezing tests at the Morton Arboretum. the LT50 (temp. at which 50% of tissues die) was found to be - 34 °C.

The tree is arguably the most ubiquitous of the elms, now found in all the continents except Antarctica. Of considerable horticultural merit, it was described by Hilliers as "one of the most splendid elms, having the poise of a graceful Nothofagus". It was introduced to Europe at the end of the 18th century as an ornamental, and is found in many botanical gardens and arboreta. In the United States, it appeared in the middle of the 19th century, and has proved very popular in recent years as a replacement for American Elms killed by Dutch elm disease. The Chinese Elm is a tough landscape tree, hardy enough for use in harsh planting situations such as parking lots, in small planters along streets and in plazas or patios. In New Zealand, it was found to be particularly suitable for windswept locations along the coast. Chinese Elms are frequently used in bonsai; they are considered a good choice for beginners owing to their high tolerance of pruning.

]]> http://bestbonzai.info/chinese-elm-bonsai/chinese-elm-bonsai/feed/ Juniper Bonsai http://bestbonzai.info/juniper-bonsai/juniper-bonsai/ http://bestbonzai.info/juniper-bonsai/juniper-bonsai/#comments Tue, 01 Jul 2008 03:27:13 +0000 admin http://bestbonzai.info/?p=9 Junipers are coniferous plants in the genus Juniperus of the cypress family Cupressaceae. Depending on taxonomic viewpoint, there are between 50-67 species of juniper, widely distributed throughout the northern hemisphere, from the Arctic, south to tropical Africa in the Old World, and to the mountains of Central America.

Junipers vary in size and shape from tall trees, 20-40 m tall, to columnar or low spreading shrubs with long trailing branches. They are evergreen with needle-like and/or scale-like leaves. They can be either monoecious or dioecious. The female seed cones are very distinctive, with fleshy, fruit-like coalescing scales which fuse together to form a "berry"-like structure, 4-27 mm long, with 1-12 unwinged, hard-shelled seeds. In some species these "berries" are red-brown or orange but in most they are blue; they are often aromatic (for their use as a spice, see juniper berry). The seed maturation time varies between species from 6-18 months after pollination. The male cones are similar to those of other Cupressaceae, with 6-20 scales; most shed their pollen in early spring, but some species pollinate in the autumn.

Many junipers (e.g. J. chinensis, J. virginiana) have two types of leaves: seedlings and some twigs of older trees have needle-like leaves 5-25 mm long; and the leaves on mature plants are (mostly) tiny (2-4 mm long), overlapping and scale-like. When juvenile foliage occurs on mature plants, it is most often found on shaded shoots, with adult foliage in full sunlight. Leaves on fast-growing 'whip' shoots are often intermediate between juvenile and adult.

In some species (e.g. J. communis, J. squamata), all the foliage is of the juvenile needle-like type, with no scale leaves. In some of these (e.g. J. communis), the needles are jointed at the base, in others (e.g. J. squamata), the needles merge smoothly with the stem, not jointed.

The needle-leaves of junipers are hard and sharp, making the juvenile foliage very prickly to handle. This can be a valuable identification feature in seedlings, as the otherwise very similar juvenile foliage of cypresses (Cupressus, Chamaecyparis) and other related genera is soft and not prickly.

Juniper is the exclusive food plant of the larvae of some Lepidoptera species including Bucculatrix inusitata and Juniper Carpet and is also eaten by the larvae of other Lepidoptera species such as Chionodes electella, Chionodes viduella, Juniper Pug and Pine Beauty.

]]> http://bestbonzai.info/juniper-bonsai/juniper-bonsai/feed/ Japanese Black Pine Bonsai http://bestbonzai.info/japanese-black-pine-bonsai/japanese-black-pine-bonsai/ http://bestbonzai.info/japanese-black-pine-bonsai/japanese-black-pine-bonsai/#comments Fri, 27 Jun 2008 04:59:37 +0000 admin http://bestbonzai.info/?p=7 Bonsai Black pine grafting

The Japanese Black Pine (Pinus thunbergii) is a pine native to coastal areas of Japan (Kyūshū, Shikoku and Honshū, but not Hokkaidō) and South Korea. It can reach the height of 40 m, but rarely achieves this size outside its natural range. The needles are paired, about 7-12 cm long, and the cones are 4-7 cm in length.

Because of its resistance to pollution and salt, it is a popular horticultural tree. It is one of the classic bonsai subjects, requiring great patience over many years to train properly. In North America this tree is subject to widespread mortality by the native American Pinewood Nematode Bursaphelenchus xylophilus, spread by means of beetle vectors. Subsequently, blue stain fungus invades the plant, leading to a rapid decline and death. This nematode has also been introduced to Japan accidentally, leading to the species becoming endangered in its native area.

The Japanese Black Pine is also known as the Japanese Pine, Black Pine, and (in Japanese) Kuromatsu (黒松). Some texts also list it under the superfluous scientific name Pinus thunbergiana.

]]> http://bestbonzai.info/japanese-black-pine-bonsai/japanese-black-pine-bonsai/feed/ Fukien Tea Bonsai http://bestbonzai.info/fukien-tea-bonsai/fukien-tea-bonsai/ http://bestbonzai.info/fukien-tea-bonsai/fukien-tea-bonsai/#comments Fri, 27 Jun 2008 04:58:42 +0000 admin http://bestbonzai.info/?p=6 Carmona is one of the genera in Boraginaceae. Its common name is Scorpionbush.

Among bonsai enthusiasts, Carmona microphylla (or "C. macrophylla") is frequently referred to as Fukien Tea Tree; it is also known as Ehretia buxifolia or Ehretia microphylla. Favored because of the ability to develop a thick and interesting trunk, it has small white flowers almost year round that then become tiny round green, red, or black fruit. The lobed leaves are shiny dark green and maintain their small size.