How to care for a banyan tree bonsai
This article introduces how to care for a banyan tree bonsai and the precautions for its cultivation. Keep reading!
Banyan tree bonsais are popular for their ancient style, easy maintenance, small and dense leaves, and green and lustrous leaf color. However, many enthusiasts find that after buying a banyan tree bonsai with dense leaves, the leaves become large and sparse after a period of care at home, completely losing the initial compactness. Why is that? The main reasons for the leaves of banyan tree bonsais to become large are excessive watering and fertilizing and insufficient lighting for a long time. How to bring back the aesthetic peak of a banyan tree bonsai with large leaves? Several things need to be done.
1. Leaf removal and pruning
In normal growth conditions of the banyan tree bonsai, large leaves can be removed, and proper pruning can be done to improve the shape. Many enthusiasts cannot bear to remove the remove large leaves, but removing them allows smaller leaves to grow better. Otherwise, large leaves will absorb nutrients first, preventing new leaves from sprouting or growing properly. Therefore, large leaves must be removed.
2. Using chemicals to control excessive growth
After removing the large leaves of the banyan tree bonsai, when new buds sprout and the leaves unfold, a small amount of growth inhibitor can be sprayed to prevent excessive growth. The growth inhibitor effectively prevents excessive growth of branches and leaves, and can make stems thicker and leaves smaller and darker green. Don't worry about any adverse effects from using the growth inhibitor; as long as the dosage is appropriate, there are only benefits and no harm. In fact, many bonsai shapes use growth inhibitors.
3. Ensuring sufficient lighting
Banyan tree bonsais prefer sunlight, and it is necessary to ensure sufficient lighting after removing the excessively long leaves. The daily lighting time should not be less than six hours, otherwise, the new leaves may have the risk of becoming leggy. Lighting not only prevents leaves and branches from becoming leggy but also makes leaves thicker and the color darker and lustrous. It can also enhance the resistance of banyan trees, making them less susceptible to diseases and pests.
How to care for a banyan tree bonsai
4. Controlling watering and fertilizing
For a banyan tree bonsai to have small and dense leaves, it is necessary to control watering and fertilizing reasonably. During the growth period of new leaves, try not to apply nitrogen fertilizer, water less, and keep the potting soil slightly dry to avoid excessive water and nutrient supply, which could cause the leaves to grow too large and become thin. If the humidity is low, reduce watering the banyan tree bonsai and try to spray more on the leaves and around, so that the leaves will remain glossy and green. Otherwise, the leaf color will become dull and lose luster, affecting the appearance.
The above four points are for healthy banyan tree bonsais. If your banyan tree bonsai is not healthy, even though it has large leaves, but the old leaves are yellowing and falling off, and the new leaves are growing slowly, it is better not to rush to remove leaves or take other measures to promote new leaf growth. It is first necessary to solve the problem of yellowing and falling leaves before considering optimization. Otherwise, it could be like adding frost to snow for the banyan tree, and removing large leaves may prevent small leaves from growing, leading to a downturn or even death.
This article shares a detailed introduction on how to care for a banyan tree bonsai and precautions for its cultivation. Do you understand now?