We end our series on bonsai with Bougainvillea Bonsai.
The Bougainvillea is an evergreen shrub, little tree, or thorny vine with little trumpet-shaped flowers that grow in clusters of three and come with three pretty bright papery bracts, most often magenta or purple colored.
Bougainvillea Bonsai
The desert rose bonsai (Adenium obesum) is known for its bright, colorful blooms in the springtime. They do have dark green glossy leaves and do look very good when not in bloom.
Adenium Obesum Bonsai
A particularly popular bonsai tree is the Sageretia bonsai, which is also known as Chinese Sweet Plum bonsai or Bird Plum bonsai. This type of bonsai tree is native to Southern China and is part of the flowering shrub family; Rhamnacae. It has a bright green foliage.
Bird Plum Bonsai
The Dwarf Jade Bonsai is a fast and easy-to-grow bonsai with small rounded leaves. Bonsai in general symbolizes peace, harmony, order of thoughts, and balance. The Jade tree makes the perfect gift; symbolizing luck and prosperity.
Dwarf Jade Bonsai
The Hawthorn is a plant that grows like a shrub in most cases and it takes many years to develop thick trunks. For Bonsai it has some good characteristics: small leaves, white flowers, red berries, and a nice bark on old trees.
Hawthorn Bonsai
Privet Bonsai is a great bonsai tree with a big fat trunk. Privet is a genus of deciduous and evergreen shrubs and small trees that are native to Europe, Asia, and North Africa. They are widely cultivated for ornamental purposes and are known for their attractive glossy leaves and small white or creamy white flowers that bloom in the summer.
Privet Bonsai
Procumbens Juniper shrub is native to the southern parts of Japan. Commonly known as the garden juniper, it is a fantastic species for bonsai. In Japan, they are not very common as bonsai as they are thought to be too easy to grow.
Procumbens Juniper Bonsai
The juniper genus is made up of about 50 to 70 different species within the cypress family. They are evergreen coniferous trees or shrubs, which are very popular for Bonsai.
Juniper Tree Bonsai
This is a large fruiting Pyracantha. It is an Asian evergreen with small, bright green leaves and clusters of brilliant red berries that are bitter when raw but can be cooked into delicious jams, jellies, and marmalades. The Pyracantha blooms in April with starry-white flowers and berries from September through December. These Bonsai love sunlight.
Pyracantha Bonsai
We continue to post some images from our July 6, 2024 visit to The Triangle Bonsai Society which displayed an amazing array of bonsai carefully pruned plants in the Doris Duke Center at Sarah P. Duke Gardens, Durham, North Carolina.
Although Bonsai is a Japanese word, the art of growing these miniature trees originates in China, called “Penjing” or “Penzai”. Penjing are miniature landscapes, displaying a combination of rocks, trees, and figures – though increasingly single plants are shown in China these days.
Penjing Forest Bonsai
Hinoki Cypress is a very unique and rewarding species grown as Bonsai. Its dense growth habit and fern-like tight foliage make this a unique tree with a special character. Hinoki Cypress, also commonly known as a false cypress or Japanese Cypress because they do not belong to the cypress family of trees, is a renowned variety for Bonsai.
Hinoki Cypress Bonsai
With a nice and round crown, this deciduous Chinese elm variety has smaller height and leaves. It retains the unique bark of a Chinese elm, and produces small reddish flowers in the late summer before changing color in the fall. Like other Chinese elm’s, it is resistant to disease. A Seiju Elm makes a wonderful indoor bonsai with enough lighting.
Seiju Elm
Japanese black pine bonsai also known as the king of bonsai and the most iconic conifer in bonsai practice. Japanese black pine’s aesthetic speaks to its longevity and durability. This conifer is a very powerful, aggressive, masculine approach to bonsai because of specific features, including thick trunk, thick bark, angular nature, dark green color, and sharp needles.
Japanese Black Pine
The majestic Japanese Maple is considered the king of Bonsai trees. Japanese maples are popular for bonsai due to their many benefits. Not only are Japanese maples beautiful to look at, including their unique leaf shape, but they are also relatively easy to maintain. They are drought and pest-resistant, and require minimal pruning.
Japanese Maple
The rule of three in a bonsai tree is that the first branch should be left (or right), second branch right (or left), and the third branch should be back branch.
The trunk of a Bonsai deserves specific attention, as it is one of the most eye-catching features of a tree.
Triple Growth in Bonsai Tree
Hinoki cypress is a luxurious, emerald green tree with compact, soft needles. It is often used in much of the beautiful architecture and woodwork of traditional Japanese structures. In bonsai, the hinoki cypress is capable of representing a multitude of forms and shapes. It has phenomenal bark and a soft presentation.
Hinoki Cypress
Multiple Hinoki Cypress Bonsai Trees
The word “Bon-sai” (often misspelled as bonzai or banzai) is a Japanese term which, literally translated, means “planted in a container”. It has been around for well over a thousand years. The ultimate goal of growing a Bonsai is to create a miniaturized but realistic representation of nature in the form of a tree. Bonsai are not genetically dwarfed plants, in fact, any tree species can be used to grow one.
The Triangle Bonsai Society displayed an amazing array of bonsai carefully pruned plants in the Doris Duke Center at Sarah P. Duke Gardens, Durham, North Carolina. The 2-day exhibit included more than 40 bonsai created in multiple styles from a wide range of plant species, including maple, azalea, pine, elm, juniper, bald cypress, crabapple, ficus and more. We will post some images from our visit there on July 6, 2024.
A Bonsai Tree