How to Grow Bonsai From Seeds
grow bonsai from seed - If this is your first attempt as caring for a
bonsai, then buying a ready-made bonsai tree is a legitimate first step,
However, if you are an experienced bonsai grower, starting a bonsai
from seeds is a very good way to create natural designs right from the
start, which surprisingly, can be achieved after a few years. The
process of bonsai creation, rather than the end product is essentially
an art in itself. It is true that a great deal of patience is required,
but growing a bonsai plant from seed and caring for it over many years
brings a great deal of satisfaction and a remarkable sense of
achievement.
How you sow the seeds is the first technique you must master with this
process. The seeds should be obtained from a reputable seed man or, even
better, collected from the trees when they are ripe.... Acacias, Elms,
Stinkwoods, and Maples are good examples. Those seeds with a fleshy
coating (such as the Cotoneaster and Ligustrims) should be cleaned and
dried first before sowing. At the end of fall is a good time to do this
as it will ensure the seeds are fully developed.
Planting tree seeds in winter is obviously nature's way and plan, so it
is recommended that seeds be stratified by placing them in the
refrigerator for several days. Stratification is the process of
alternate thawing and freezing that occurs in nature and that eventually
breaks the dormancy of the seed. Maples will actually germinate if
placed on the top shelf of a refrigerator, the not-so-cold spot! A
number of tree seeds have hard protective coats, which make them
difficult to germinate. If you are working with these types of seeds,
they need to be soaked in water and placed in a plastic bag in the
refrigerator to stratify.
When ready to plant, place a good seed sowing medium, something like an
equal mix of part peat and part sand, in shallow seed flat trays.
Arranging the seeds is not that important at this point because they
will be transplanted into individual pots soon after they have
germinated. In planting, arrange the seeds in groups or 'families' with
spaces in between. This will give the impression of fields or meadows.
Each family must have a dominate tree. The overall design is important
in that it must conform again to a dominate group with each group
slightly smaller.
Place the trays out in an unheated greenhouse enclosure over the winter
or alternatively leave the trays outdoors, covered with a pane of glass.
In the spring, the seeds should germinate. Germination is only the
first step of the very long process of bonsai creation. The seedling
still have to be carefully nurtured until big and strong enough to be
shaped by wiring and pruning.
When the trees have reached the required height (not more than one and a
half of the length of the container), remove about one-third of the
bottom branches and also remove any branches that are growing inwards.
Shape each group as a single mini bonsai tree seedling or, if the scene
is thickly planted, treat the whole group as a single unit.
Now you are ready to make your first planting. This is really a simple
and very natural way to create effective bonsai seedling group planting.
It will do away with that contrived look. Place five to ten seedlings
in the palm of the hand with a little soil. Squeeze very gently
together, then plant as a family. The result is always natural. With
this way you can arrange or design your scene with much more ease. It's
good fun. Try it!
