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Succulent Bonsai

Penjing (in root-over-rock style) on display at the Chinese Penjing Collection of the National Bonsai and Penjing Museum in Washington, D.C. Very old, age unknown.

 The History of Bonsai & Penzai
The art of tray planting, or bonsai, is a Japanese art form whereby large trees can be grown in miniature. Diving in history, however, we can see that the art form actually originated in China, during the Tang dynasty, and was called penjing/penzai (盆景). Bonsai actually comes from Penzai! It wasn't until scholars from Japan visited the Chinese mainland and returned that bonsai began to spread to Japan.

Tang Dynasty (China) prince Zhang Huai dated AD 706 holding a tray of pebbles and miniature fruit trees

The most popular trees in China to make into penjing were fruit trees like peach, orange, and plum. In 1806, a dwarf tree from Canton (currently Guangzhou) was presented to Queen Charlotte of England. These tiny trees were not just for aesthetics, but were from spiritual traditions of Daoism (or Taoism) in China during the 1st century that tried to condense all of the properties of magical full-scale sites into the miniature. Buddism from India came in, used some Daoist teachings within its own, and the spread of Buddism marched on to Japan, where the Japanese adopted bonsai as a part of Zen. But Bonsai or Penzai, we love them all! (There's also the Vietnamese practice of Hòn Non Bộ and much much later in the 1950's, Fairy Gardens began in the Western World.) Read on to continue to celebrate in the tradition of appreciating nature and humankind's long history with trading new ideas, cultural art forms, and plants!

Succulent Bonsai?
Bonsai and succulents actually have pretty similar soil requirements (dry, rapid draining, possibly with some peat). Bonsai Jack, a bonsai company that sells bonsai soil, pots, and accessories, has even gotten into the succulent business and is now selling succulent and cactus mix. It's a match made in heaven, even companies are doing it!

Can Succulents Actually be Miniaturized?
I think the first thing we should establish here is if succulents can actually be bonsaified or if they are doomed to be "in disguise", that is, to be cut in such a way that it resembles a larger, older tree, but is literally just a succulent in a different shaped pot.


I have found that YES, some succulents like the Elephant Tree (Operculicarya decaryi) can be made miniature. Their trunks will grow thick and they will resemble old, tiny trees. I am not entirely versed in how to miniaturize leaf size of a succulent plant. For normal bonsai trees, you take off the leaf and it grows back a tiny one. I haven't been able to find any information about changing the size of succulent leaves, but some people recommended picking succulents that already have small leaves. For example, pick a dwarf jade instead of a normal jade. Pruning/shaping can also create the effect of a bonsai since it makes it look more tree-like and less like a bushy succulent.

Some succulents are doomed to be more bonsai-esque, such as an Echeveria cluster growing atop a long, bare "trunk." I wouldn't necessarily consider that a bonsai, but you be the judge. Here are some examples below of some successful succulent bonsais, and you can see for yourself what types of wonderful things can be done with these plants!

Classic Jade Plant (Crassula ovata)
A post shared by @insectsandplants on

Crassula ovata ("Gollum" Jade or "Trumpet" Jade)

A post shared by BONSAI YETI (@bonsaiyeti) on


Dwarf Jade (AKA Portulacaria afra or the Elephant bush)



Echeveria riga

Euphorbia disiamata
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Senecio mweroensis subs. leptophyllus
(Caption by @bonsaisv: Senecio mweroensis subs. leptophyllus in a beautiful daiso pot)

A post shared by Shajan Velaedan (@bonsaisv) on

Aeoniums
Aeonium Bonsai. Photo by Myha Lai.

 Easy Succulents to Bonsai for Beginners 
(view the complete list here)
Crassula ovata (Both Crosby's Compact and the Gollum variety aka Jade plant)
Mammillaria bocasana
Portulacaria afra (Elephant bush aka Dwarf Jade)

Learn & Get Ideas from the Masters:
Youtube Links

Instagram Links

 THANKS AGAIN
Thank you to all of my new instagram friends (and you too facebook buddy, Myha Lai!) who were willing to illustrate the walls of my blog with their beautiful succulent bonsais. Please check out their Instas for more succulent bonsai ideas!
Gilbert Cantu (@littlejadebonsai)
kitoi (@kitoi)
insectsandplants (@insectsandplants)
🌿Lizzinator's Jungle🌿 (@lizzinator_succs)
BONSAI YETI (@bonsaiyeti)
Shajan Velaedan (@bonsaisv)
House Of Blooms (@house.of.blooms)
References
https://www.bbg.org/gardening/article/succulent_bonsai
http://www.bonsaitreegardener.net/types/jade
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