Growing Bonsai From Seeds

The Japanese name for cultivating a bonsai from a seed is Misho. Growing your bonsai tree from a seed does take more time and effort however the rewards are greater. One advantage is that you have complete control over the look of your tree from start to finish. The tree also becomes more personal as you have grown it yourself.

This is also the most cost effective way of having a bonsai. To start with you must chose the type of tree you wish to grow and collect seeds from those plants. Or alternatively you can buy them from a shop. There are lots of Bonsai shops online that sell seeds. Many of the seeds you want can be found out in the woods such as chestnuts or acorns. You can get conifer seeds from pinecones; you should store them in a ward place so that it is easier to get to the seeds within the pinecone.

You should start planting seeds in early spring You should keep the seeds in water overnight so that you can see which are the best to use. Seeds that sink to the bottom are the ones that will germinate and the ones that float are no good.

How to sow your seeds

1. Chose a container for your bonsai. This should be about 4 inches deep and have a hole for drainage.

2. You should line the bottom of the container (about one quarter of it) with a mixture of fine gravel and akadama (a special type of clay for bonsai, which you can obtain from most bonsai specialists). You should have half gravel and half akadama.

3. On top of the first layer you need more akadama, fine gravel and potting compost mixed together. This should come about 1 inch from the rim of your container. The mixture should be half akadama, one-quarter gravel and one quarter compost.

4. The seeds should be placed on top of the earth about 1 inch to 2 inches apart depending on how big your seeds are, larger seeds need to be placed further apart.

5. Next put on the final layer of compost and akadama in a mix of half and half.

6. Next water the container with a substantial amount of water. You should use a fine spray of water as to not disturb the earth too much. The pot should then be placed outside in a sunny spot but sheltered from the wind.

You should keep the seed bed damp but not wet; if it is too wet the seeds may rot. A good test for this is to put your finger in the earth. After a year you can re pot your seeds into different containers, you must use part of the original soil for the plant to transfer better.