best soil for bonsai

What kind of soil do you use for bonsai? The difference between flower soil and how to choose.

The soil used for bonsai is a small land. It has a role to grow a planted tree by storing a lot of nutrition and water. However, other than that, the makeup sand that is applied to establish the "bonsai" is also important. do you want to know how to make the best soil for bonsai?

 

There are countless types of trees that can be grown as bonsai. It is ideal to dig and use the peculiar soil such as the mountain where each grows as it is, but such a thing can not be done at all.

Not just scaffolding for plants

Put the soil in the flower pot or planter and plant the plant. Or dig in the garden or mountain soil and plant trees. The plant grows up big by rooting it rootlessly. It can be said that it plays the most important role as a foundation or scaffold, but plants cannot grow by itself.

It was a science lesson that plants grew by photosynthesis on green leaves. However, if the roots cannot suck up the moisture and the necessary nutrients that have penetrated into the soil, they cannot grow. Even the roots are sucking oxygen from the soil.

For bonsai growing in a limited space called a bonsai pot, if you make a mistake in choosing the soil, you will be immediately out! You can see that it is quite important.

What is good soil for plants

Highly versatile soils such as “flower plant culture soil” and “vegetable soil” are commercially available. It doesn't mean that you can plant what you want in any soil, but it says "I will plant it and plant it". Akatama soil, vermiculite, peat moss, Kanuma soil, mulch soil, etc. are mixed in different ratios.

Soil is a place where plants absorb nutrients and water that are indispensable to plants and supply them little by little and exchange gas. If the leaves are cut off from the tip, the drainage is bad and root rot is caused, so even if you can only see the above-ground part, it is possible that the soil is good or bad. Good soil can only be obtained if the growth on the ground and in the basement is balanced.

Bonsai takes longer to complete than other plants. Since the vegetation provided is different, it is not suitable for planting in culture soil.

Points for making bonsai soil

It is roughly divided into soil and sand. Drainability, water retention, and water retention are high, and you must use a clean product. If you dig in the soil in the field and put it in, there is a risk that you will not be able to understand its properties and you may have a disease that cannot be dealt with due to soil bacteria. You may get more nutrients from the soil obtained from nature, but there are also risks such as herbicides and pests.

Also, one type of soil is not enough. To enable the opposite properties of drainage and water retention, it is necessary to mix soil with different grain sizes. For types that require a lot of water, you can increase water retention by increasing the number of fine particles, and conversely, increase the size of the large-sized soil to adjust the drainage.

To support a large bonsai tree for a long time, use the relationship between horned gravel and roots. The roots hit the corners of the gravel to encourage branching. By branching and stretching the roots, the ability to support them will also increase.

What kind of bonsai soil is there?

Akadama soil, Kanuma soil, keto soil, sand, and black soil are typical types.

Akadama soil:

Akadama soil is most often used for bonsai. It is made by crushing volcanic ash soil into grains, and there are very small grains and small grains. The feature is that the ventilation, water retention, and drainage are in harmony.

Kanuma soil:

Kanuma soil is porous, has excellent water retention, and is acidic, so it is used for Satsuki. It is known as the soil of cuttings. It is soft and easy to collapse.

Keto soil:

Keto soil is a clay-like material that has high nutrients and water retention because fibers such as reeds have decayed and fibers remain. It is used when tailoring a bonsai with stones or covering it with moss.

Black soil:

Black soil with fine grain and soft texture is suitable for small bonsai. There are many types of sand such as Fuji and Kiryu, and they have excellent drainage properties and are used as makeup sand.

It is difficult to use various types of soil properly!

It is difficult to learn even just the type of soil, but it is more difficult to mix each type. But it's okay if you don't do it all. Basically, you only want to remember the ratio of Akadama 7: Mountain Sand 3. It seems a little easier if you remember the small grains of red Tama soil as the lower pot and the very small grains as the upper pot.

Let's buy soil mixed according to type

I would like to plant it in my own mixed soil, but there are limits to where it can be placed. For pine, red clay and river sand, and for maple, black soil, humus, and Kiryu sand, all of which are growing faster than they can be. In such a case, you can get a pin-point mix of soil such as "pine bonsai soil" through mail order. It is better to buy the soil made by specialists considering the characteristics of each bonsai, and it will result in the bonsai growing in good condition.

It is quite difficult for beginners to mix various media. You can buy a suitable soil for each tree species at the bonsai exhibition and mail order, and if you buy a mixed soil, it will be cleaner and grow better, saving you money and time. If you get various kinds of soil, it will not be used up in piles and will grow mold due to moisture. Sometimes it is bad for the growth of bonsai.

If you buy your own soil for the first time, we recommend Akadama soil and mountain sand. If you are a beginner, you can grow most trees by remembering the basics of bonsai soil: Akatamachi 7: Mountain sand 3. Here, we will introduce the characteristics of the main types used for bonsai from the many types of soil.

Red clay

 It is used not only for bonsai but also for growing most plants. It is also used as a basic soil for bonsai, and it has a variety of grain sizes, from large to extremely small and fine, and can be soft enough to be crushed with your fingers, or hard to be baked. It has a water retention capacity, and the harder the grains, the easier it is for air to pass through the gaps, so the roots can take in oxygen effectively. It is a weak acid and versatile red clay, but if it is stored, the particles will gradually break down and the breathability will decrease.

 

 

Kanuma soil

Cuttings often use this Kanuma soil, which has the characteristics of being porous and highly moisturizing. Used for trees that prefer acidic soil such as Satsuki. As it is crushable easily, it is easier to handle it by soaking it in water once and using it semi-dry or using a hard one.

River sand

Even if you take sand from a river somewhere because the character is sand of the river, it can not be substituted ...

Shogashi bonsai is mostly mixed with Akadama soil and has both drainage and breathability. The feature is that the grains are hard to break and are very hard, and the larger the grain, the higher the drainage. The fine granules can be used for seedbeds and sowing and can be reused by washing and drying.

Kiryu sand

Kiryu sand for branching roots. It is used to promote root branching due to its angular nature and is also used for potted soil due to its high drainage properties.

 

Black soil

It is a moist soil that is often used for delicate branches and leaves such as bonsai and mini bonsai. It feels similar to mulch but is more granular than mulch.

Mulch

Leaf soil has the same nutrients as fertilizer. If you look closely, you can see that the branches and leaves of the plant are mixed and it is not really "earth". Natural products may contain soil bacteria if they are not used in the sun before use. The mulch is mixed with the purpose of fertilizing the soil of the bonsai, but fertilization is necessary.

Keto soil

At first glance, keto soil, which does not look like soil, is also used for protection after harvesting trees and for preventing drying. It is a clay soil that is indispensable for making tree shapes with stones. May be used as a mixture with Kanuma soil for bonsai plants

Moss

It's obviously not soil, but it's a well-known planting material. The characteristic of water moss is that it has the three characteristics of breathability, water retention, and drainage. Put it in a plastic bag, pour water, and leave it for a day to return. This is also used for harvesting trees, and it is cut into small pieces and attached to the soil of the plant to prevent it from drying out immediately after replanting.

 There are other types of bonsai soil, but the basic principle is to prepare clean ones with no added nutrients. Think of Akadama soil as the standard soil, and if you want to improve the drainage, select the soil according to the characteristics of the bonsai tree species such as Kiryu sand, and if it is water retentive the black soil. We recommend that you decide on the tree species you want to plant and purchase a small-sized land suitable for nature.

No matter what you start with, it's troublesome that you often come up with difficult terms. At that time, write it down a little and read it later. This is a term related to growth of bonsai.