ibuybonsai.com

This tree was given to me by my brother inlaw for Christmas . It is known as a Spekboom or Elephants food tree. The amazing part about this tree is that is gives off a huge amount of O2. One hectare of these trees can consume over 4 tons of carbon in a year making it very sought after by industrial companies to plant around the site.

Occurs widespread in the Eastern Cape as well as in the eastern regions of the Western Cape (South Africa).  It is indigenous and flourishes in drier regions, but is very adaptable in areas with more rain. The Spekboom is evergreen and reaches a height of about 2.5m.  The bright green fleshy leaves have an egg like shape.  As the tree ages the colour turn yellowish. The English name, Elephant Food, originates from the habit of elephants to eat the top shoots of the “trees”, causing the plants to grow and spread horizontally.

Uses for the plant:

Animal Feed, Extremely drought resistant – good standby for farmers – it is a nourishing plant with a high moisture content, Backbone to the goat industry, Valuable source of paper pulp,

The leaves are edible and have a sour or tart flavour, put a leaf under your tongue when you are thirsty.

I am going to make this beautiful plant into a bonsai. All the cuttings I will use to grow more tree’s so I can plant them in my garden. Will keep everyone updated on this wonderful tree’s progress.

When staring your bonsai hobby it is important to like all things start with a good base, and in this case the base would be the potting soil. The main objective you want to reach when making your potting soil, is to make the soil retains enough moisture (but not saturated) and there is good drainage. This will prevent the tree from getting root rot and ultimately dying. now i bet none of you would like your prize bonsai dying due to damp soil.

A good way to start is to put a piece of mesh or chicken wire over the drainage holes at the bottom of the pot. Secondly put a layer of course stones/ crushed bricks or pool filter sand over the mesh, this is known as inorganic filter. After that add a small layer of finer inorganic filters, like course sand, finally add a thick layer of organic soil, now you can make your own soil or you can buy good potting soil from your local nursery.

To make your own soil go to your garden and collect the amount that you require for your pot, now you can’t  just go and throw that soil into the pot, it has to be sterilized first. The reason why you should sterilize it is that there are many kinds of parasites, weeds and other pests lurking in your normal garden soil. Take a good baking tray and fill it with the garden soil, cover the tray with foil, put a thermometer in the middle. Now bake the soil in the oven till it reaches 180 degrees Celsius or 356 F and bake for 30 min. there might not be a very pleasant smell from the soil baking but it will soon fade.

After baking the soil let it cool down,  add pieces of bark and moss to the soil, this is organic material and will help feed your plant and retain moisture in the soil. It is advised that you not only rely on the organic material to feed your plant but to mix some plant feeder into water then watering your plant, take care some feeders can be harsh on certain types of plants and can burn your tree. And lastly you can decorate the top with various kinds of round river pebbles or just a layer of wood chips.

Many people have over time worked out there own winning recipe’s when it comes to potting soil, like all things it takes time and patients to achieve the perfect balance.

I hope that you have found this helpful and i trust that with this little bit of information your Bonsai will flourish.

Bonsai’s are a wonderful hobby for those of us who have green finger or don’t have alot of room for a garden. Bonsai trees have been around for over a 1000 years. The first people to start the art were from china, back then it was known as ”Pun-Sai” Today the art has spread all over the world.

Here we will help you get started with your bonsai and later help with the care of your tree.

Step 1: Choosing the right tree

One can classify bonsai’s into two groups, Indoor and outdoor. Outdoor Bonsai’s should never be kept indoors for more than a couple days, as the lack of sunlight could lead to deterioration of the tree and ultimately cause your tree to die. Indoor Bonsai’s can grow indoor’s as they can survive with much less sunshine, but ultimately they will thrive better outside. If you have a very sunny room in your house or office, then you should be able to grow one without any problems.

2: Tools required

There are a few items or tools that you will need to get started. You will need a pot, Shears (sharp), root rake and Bonsai potting soil. there are many other tools on the market that you can buy, they are not needed at the moment, but can make certain tasks easier in the future

3: Choosing a pot

When starting your bonsai tree choosing a pot is important, knowing what kind of tree you want will also help with your decision. If you want a tree with a thick trunk, a shallow and wide pot will help promote growth of the trunk, if you are looking for a cascading tree a deeper pot will work. In the first few stages of growth most people use plastic pots where they will nurse there tree till they are ready to choose a pot.

4: Soil

It is important to have the right type of soil for your plant. the soil must have enough nutrients for the tree, as well as enough drainage, so the roots will not rot. Thus the right mixture and ratio will apply to your tree that you have chosen, A 50-50 ratio of moisture retaining soil and nutritional soil will work for most plants. Speak to your local Nursery when choosing your plant.

5: Potting your plant

When potting start by covering the holes in the bottom of the pot to stop soil from coming out, you can use some wire mesh for this. Using the rake, rake the roots to separate them, this should also get rid of any compact soil and help loosen the roots. When placing the plant in the pot try to look at the natural flow of the plant, this will help determain where you want to put the plant in the pot, example a cascading plant should be more towards the sides as the plant will grow over the sides of the pot.  Place the soil in the pot and twist the tree clockwise and anti clockwise to get as much soil between the roots as possible. Once potted avoid moving the bonsai too much as the roots will need time to heal and grow.

6: Final comments

When you are done potting your tree read up a few things on your tree so that you can give it the best possible care. Once you have read up on your tree, you can start learning on how to fashion your tree.

Good luck.