Bonsai Trees For Sale Article

Caring for Your Bonsai Plant

Watering
This is the most important aspect of caring for bonsai, especially for bonsai that is kept indoors for too long. Two things to remember about providing water for bonsai are the type of soil and species. Different soils will absorb and retain water at different rates and different tree species have varying degrees of water need.

The Japanese have a saying: water three times, each one for the pot, the soil and the tree. About 75% percent of water is taken in through the root system, but don’t forget the leaves. Bonsai plants also acquire water through its stomata so make sure you wipe or wash away the dust and dirt regularly.

Use gentle water pressure when watering your bonsai. If you use a strong one, you might wash away the topsoil and expose the roots. Use a misting hose or a spray hose with an adjustable spray nozzle and mind the water temperature. Good tap water is fine, so take care that the water that comes out of the hose isn’t too cold or too warm.

Soil
Soil choice for your bonsai is critical for its health and long life. It really depends on the tree species of your bonsai, but generally, soil should be made of 30% humus and 70% grit for needled evergreen trees and 70% humus and 30% grit for deciduous trees. If you have a different bonsai species, make sure to look up which soil meets its special needs, since you might have to prepare a special soil mix yourself.

Pruning
Pruning involves leaves, branches and roots. Bonsai lovers know that what you do to the bottom, you do to the top. Remember that less foliage means less for the roots to support. But where to start and which to cut?

First, consider the style you've chosen for a particular bonsai. Draw an imaginary line over your bonsai and cut the branches that protrude, obstruct or deviate from that line. Second, prune to redirect growth in one area. If you prune the left side heavily, you will redirect growth to the right side.

Next, prune leaves or buds with care. Pruning buds will encourage back-budding and cutting leaves will 'discipline' the growth of the bonsai. It is also necessary to manage the nutrients that the roots draw up from the soil. Remember that you are trying to grow a tiny tree and letting it grow on its own will result to an uncontrolled size.

Caring for bonsai takes lots of patience, knowledge and learned skills. It involves continuous work, but the results are more than worth the effort.

E-books for Bonsai Selection and Care

www.tradebit.com
Probably one of the best bonsai care e-books you can find on the internet, 'Bonsai Essential Tips: Bonsai Care Secrets' has everything you want to know about bonsai, especially if you're serious about learning its nature. From landscape design to tree training and pruning, this book presents easy step-by-step instructions on bonsai care secrets that only the master bonsai growers know.

www.ebookexplorer.com
This site's bonsai care book is 'Bonsai Gardening Secrets' by Erik Olsen, a longtime bonsai grower and enthusiast. At over 95 pages long, this book presents hands-on bonsai care secrets to creating the most stunningly beautiful bonsai.

The book features easy-to-follow instructions from selecting the right types of trees and plants for bonsai growing and using the right kinds of techniques and styles to maximize your bonsai's potential. If you still think that you can shape bonsai anyway you liked without thought to its nature, think again. This bonsai care e-book will let you in on the secret why different plants are used for specific bonsai forms.

http://cgi.ebay.com
Get 'The Bonsai E-book' for only $4.99, which explains the basic principles of bonsai, styles, shaping and seasonal care. It also contains practical tips for collecting trees and shrubs in the wild, a great skill to have if you're planning to find and care for your bonsai yourself.

http://auctions.yahoo.com
How about bidding for a bonsai e-book? 'The Ultimate Guide to Growing Bonsai' presents the basic principles of choosing the best styles, including the very popular formal upright, slanting, cascade and semi-cascade. This e-book also contains useful tips for indoor bonsai growing, along with special seasonal bonsai care.

www.wsbonsai.com
Get a free e-book from one of the largest mail order websites for bonsai and bonsai accessories. The site offers a free bonsai e-book that contains basic styles, plant selection, shaping, container choice, seasonal care, propagating and displaying. You have to register as a member, though and click on the 'add to cart' button before you can download.

Or, you can just log on to their website and click on the menu for anything you want to know about bonsai – its origins, styles, information about pests, even a few essentials tips on choosing the correct pot for your plant.

www.e-bookdirectory.com
This is a site for e-book downloads of self-help and how-tos, some of which are free. Get Elizabeth Chute's 'Art of Bonsai', one of its freebies. This e-book has got your bonsai fever covered from the simple basics including caring and advanced bonsai techniques like wiring and training. A great bonsai care e-book for beginners.