One of, if not the most important and I think the least spoken about topics in bonsai is where and how your trees live within your dedicated space. This may take the shape of a formal garden, a backyard or even a commercial setup. No matter the type, they all have to accommodate the core needs of our trees.

Each environment is unique and it is up to us as caretakers of these trees to know every square inch of it in order to best utilise it for our bonsai.

To what degree does this aspect of bonsai occupy my headspace as a bonsai professional you may ask?

A lot!

Nearly every decision I make is in accordance with the space they occupy. Just how far do I take this? There are a few trees I’ll move to and from a location every day at a specific time of year…

Okay, ready for a quick fire questionnaire?

– Cool let’s do it!

1. What orientation is your space? ie North/ South facing etc.
2. Do you have an exposed face/s to your space? ie where wind is a major factor.
3. Do you have micro climates within your dedicated space? ie underneath a large tree.
4. Which area gets the morning sun?
5. Which area gets the afternoon sun?
6. Do the same species of trees within your collection live in the same dedicated area of your space?
7. Have you allocated species of trees to areas that prefer a level of sun? ie shade/ part or full.
8. Do you move species around in your garden depending on the season? ie deciduous trees into more shade over summer.

How did you fare? Were you able to answer them all without too much thought?

If one of your first thoughts after reading the above is; I have limited space and too many trees to give them exactly what they need. Firstly understand, no space is perfect and each will have their inherent strengths and weaknesses however being aware of these and acting accordingly to mitigate any potential issues as best as possible is a massive leap forward.

If it has raised the question in your mind regarding the species you have and maybe the incompatibility of these within your space, this may be a prompt to consider evaluating your type of trees within your collection. Growing a pine in full shade is always going to be a non starter.

If the thought, ‘oh I should probably downscale my collection so I can concentrate on giving a select few the best conditions possible to grow the highest quality tree?’, popped into your mind. Well you won’t be the first nor the last to have done this. Only you can make that call and it comes down to your own bonsai goals because not everyone’s is the same.

Knowing your environment and playing to its strengths will greatly assist your collection in remaining healthy and strong and give you the foundation to build high quality trees.

Now if you are about to race out into the garden and move things around, good on you, but be aware, trees need acclimation to their new exposure, please do not go from shade to full sun, the tree will suffer. Acclimation is a tricky subject but when in doubt give the tree more time to adapt.

Let us know how you did in the questionnaire and if this helped guide you into making some decisions before the growing season.