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Bonsai Essentials

Bonsai Care Guides

Species-by-species care references for trees that live outdoors, all year round. Watering, soil, repotting windows, winter protection and how each species responds to pruning — the same schedules Luca follows in the nursery, written down so you can look them up when it matters.

Acer palmatum (Japanese maple) bonsai branch with palmate five-lobed leaves
The reference guide

Japanese Maple Bonsai Care (Acer palmatum)

The species we grow most and know best. Watering rhythm, leaf protection, repotting and seasonal work for every palmatum cultivar in the collection — the guide every maple owner should bookmark.

Conifers

Pines, junipers, spruces and the deciduous conifers. Slower to show problems and slower to forgive them — with conifers, the care calendar matters more than daily attention: candle work on pines, foliage windows on junipers, and watering that never lets the roots sit wet.

Juniperus chinensis 'Itoigawa' bonsai branch with fine green scale foliage

Juniperus chinensis 'Itoigawa'

Itoigawa shimpaku juniper

Pinus sylvestris (Scots pine) bonsai branch with blue-green needles in pairs

Pinus sylvestris

Scots pine

Pinus mugo (mugo pine) bonsai branch with paired needles and candle buds

Pinus mugo

Mugo pine

Picea abies (Norway spruce) bonsai branch with short radial needles

Picea abies

Norway spruce

Larix decidua (European larch) bonsai branch with needle rosettes on short spurs

Larix decidua

European larch

Taxodium distichum (bald cypress) bonsai with feathery light-green foliage

Taxodium distichum

Bald cypress

Metasequoia glyptostroboides (dawn redwood) bonsai branch with flat needle sprays

Metasequoia glyptostroboides

Dawn redwood

Deciduous & Flowering Species

Maples, elms and the flowering species. Faster feedback than conifers — leaves tell you within days when something is wrong — but they ask more of you in growing season: more water, more pruning response to manage, and leaf protection through summer heat.

Acer buergerianum (trident maple) bonsai canopy with three-lobed leaves

Acer buergerianum

Trident maple

Ulmus minor (field elm) bonsai branch with small serrated leaves on fine twigs

Ulmus minor

Field elm

Crataegus monogyna (hawthorn) bonsai branch in white spring blossom

Crataegus monogyna

Hawthorn

Chaenomeles (flowering quince) bonsai branch with scarlet flowers

Chaenomeles japonica

Japanese flowering quince

Lagerstroemia indica (crape myrtle) bonsai with pink flower clusters

Lagerstroemia indica

Crape myrtle

Ligustrum vulgare (privet) bonsai with dense glossy foliage

Ligustrum vulgare

Common privet

Looking for your next species?

Most of the trees in these guides grow in Luca’s nursery right now — field-grown outdoor Young Pre-Bonsai from €8, shipped across Europe with our Healthy Arrival Guarantee.

A species we don't stock — or a tree that's struggling?

Book a 1-to-1 with Luca and get care answers specific to your tree and your balcony.

New to bonsai?
Bonsai for Beginners

Start here: species, pots, repotting and first structure.

Ready for real work?
Bonsai Techniques

Pruning, grafting and air layering — shown on real nursery trees.