How To Keep Bonsai Healthy

To see if your tree or a particular branch is still alive all we have to do is remove a small portion of the top brown bark to see if the next layer of the tree is green.

How to keep bonsai healthy. Start in an inconspicuous and scrape off a small portion of the bark with your fingernail. Green is the color of life. Begin by finding a warm brightly lit location out of direct. Different varieties of trees will succeed either indoors or outdoors.

Plants are always in search of water and nutrient rich material to grow in and when in their natural habitat roots may travel far from the plant stem in search of these nutrients. Bonsai means tray planting in the japanese language and is written as 盆栽 in kanji. Check for possible causes of disease such as root rot poor ventilation or over moist soil. There s no perfect ph for irrigation water as the optimal ph for a given nutrient is different from one nutrient to the next.

Ensure that you trim and prune each twig root and branch continuously to achieve a perfect shape of a bonsai tree. Sterilize all tools used in pruning the affected tree. Every plant that lives in a container will need some sort of root work in its lifetime if it is to stay in that container. Bonsai is a japanese art form that utilizes cultivation techniques to produce small trees in containers.

Municipal water is commonly basic ph above 7 0. Generally speaking bonsai prefer slightly acidic water ph below 7 0. Having said that if you re able to meet your bonsai s needs there s a reasonable chance you can keep it alive for years to come. Place the treated tree in a well ventilated area with proper lighting to prevent reinfection.

The higher the ph the harder it is to keep bonsai healthy. The environment is an essential key to a healthy bonsai. Water more frequently remove old flowers remove unnecessary growth only work on strong trees look out for pests and fungus. Using a pruner keep the branches pruned so that they will look pleasing to the eye.

Keeping your bonsai healthy with root pruning. Use any nitrogen rich fertilizer like n p k 10 6 6 in spring. Spray healthy foliage with a recommended fungicide. Let new bonsai trees be planted in new pots.

Take a look at the following tips. In order to keep the bonsai tree from being contaminated place any used pots in the sun so they can be sterilized. Use a balanced fertilizer with npk 6 6 6 or similar numbers like 10 10 10 or 20 20 20 in summer and a low nitrogen. If you have a pot with three legs the single foot of the pot should be directed toward the front.

When in doubt using a balanced fertilizer during the growing period while slowly.