Indoor Bonsai tree care for healthy trees and plants
Bonsai trees and shrubs are simply a reproduction of a natural tree grown in miniature. All of these small ornamental trees, plants and shrubs are grown in pots and are totally dependent on you for proper care.
In the summer months when the nightly temperature does not dip below 40 degrees, you really should place your indoor bonsai trees outside, on a patio, balcony or in a garden. Once outside, receive sufficient sunshine, morning sun and afternoon shade is best.
To help with your indoor bonsai tree care for plants grown or kept indoors, spray and mist your bonsai off regularly. This procedure will help to remove all dust and debris from the bottoms and tops of leaves, allowing your bonsai to breathe freely and to continue its photosynthetic processes.
Air circulation is very important for the health of a new bonsai tree and its care. Photosynthesis requires an unrestricted exchange of fresh air and stagnate conditions could compromise your bonsai’s ability to continue this process. More importantly, closed or confined spaces are a perfect environment for pests and disease. Air also prevents possible root rot conditions, from soil saturation, by assisting in water evaporation.
If you have your indoor bonsai displayed outdoors and temperature is starting to get close to 40 degrees its time to bring it in for the winter. This should be done gradually over several weeks. Bring it in for a few hours the first time, slowly increasing the time it spends indoors until it becomes acclimated to its new environment.
Apply water when the soil appears dry, never allow the trees soil to become completely dry. If your indoor bonsai is receiving full sun or its very dry in the home, it may be necessary to water once a day. When your bonsai shrub is inside, we recommend placing it in a shallow tray filled with a layer of gravel with water added. This provides extra moisture around a small ornamental tree, when the water evaporates and reduces the amount of moisture lost to your heating system. Water should be applied until it begins running out of the holes in the bottom of your pot. Since your indoor bonsai is growing in a small amount of soil its necessary for proper indoor bonsai tree care to replenish the supply of nutrients periodically with a liquid fertilizer.
Prune back the new growth to the farthest point, but never remove all of the new growth. A little should be left for the health of the tree. Tropical or sub-tropical trees used for bonsai will require periodic trimming throughout the year, because they normally grow faster.
Placing your indoor bonsai in a new pot should be done when the root system has filled the pot. This should be done when it is warmer in the home and outside (summer months). Don’t to cut or trim back more than one fourth of the tree’s root mass. The bonsai tree can be placed back in its original pot or if you wanted a more decorative chinese pot. The pot should have screen placed over the drainage holes. Then a thin layer of small gravel is placed in the bottom of the pot for drainage purposes. On top of this gravel is the the new bonsai soil, enough to elevate the tree to its previous height in the pot.
Insects and diseases can affect indoor plants and trees. With the proper indoor bonsai tree care techniques you should be able to keep most of these away. If not all bonsai can be treated with any other spray that you would use on any of your house plants. There is a section on plant pests and bugshere.
