Succulents- are they bonsai?

amcoffeegirl · May 12, 2016

I know some are used for bonsai but are they bonsai? Can they be?
Does anyone have any growing as bonsai? Or accent?
They are a hot trend in decorating right now in the Midwest and at weddings- go figure. My boss wants me to grow some for our lobby area at work. These pics are from FB.
Not my plants.

JoeR · May 12, 2016

I think pork bush are definently bonsai. Idk about those, but they are awesome! Look like some sort of alien dr. Suess creation.

What is the first one??

aml1014 · May 12, 2016

One of my favorite succulent "bonsai" I have, adenium obesum.

And the bloom

I've also got tons of varieties of sedum growing as accent and ground cover.
Aaron

Eric Group · May 12, 2016

Maples- are they Bonsai?
Pines- are they Bonsai?
Juniper?
Quince?...

The answer is yes, IF someone makes them into a Bonsai. I don't see why succulents are much different...

Those are really cool little plants @amcoffeegirl whether you call them a bonsai a companion plant or just a succulent!
Thanks for posting!

Nwaite · May 12, 2016

I think all of those looks really nice but if I walked in to a shop I would definitely not say to my self ooohhh look at those bonsai's.

But I do think they are beautiful.

GroveKeeper · May 12, 2016

The answer is yes, unless you decide to arbitrarily say no. Do azaleas count as bonsai? Quince? What about the hundreds of dwarf cultivars of trees that will never grow larger than a large bush?

Not every bonsai has be imitating a tree from the japanese wilderness. Seriously, there are some bizarre plants out there,

Saizan · May 12, 2016

First picture is one of the best pairing pot-plant I've ever seen!

Maybe they are not bonsai, but very close related to the bonsai culture.

AlainK · May 13, 2016

It depends where you live.

To me, bonsai should evoke a natural tree or landscape, so I doubt that a Larch would look natural in Brazil, just like most succulents here can only be cultivated as accents. Take Crassulacea for instance: we can see outstandind Portulacaria from South africa, or in warm climates of the US, like Florida. Here, they just grow very slowly and become leggy because of the lack of light.

A crassulacea I've just bought and put in a small pot (no label, but I suppose it's a dwarf form of Crassula):

A Crassula ovata in an "Erin Pottery" container:

sorce · May 13, 2016

That's all I get in the Craftsy Emails...

"Design a beautiful succulent display"
Blah blah...

That and Colin Lewis Bonsai stuff.

A succulent person would say they are succulents.

Sorce

M. Frary · May 13, 2016

AlainK said:
I doubt that a Larch would look natural in Brazil

But it would still look like a tree. Made out of wood.
Way more convincing than some floppy,rubbery jade plant.

LanceMac10 · May 13, 2016

In the right climate....well....not floppy or rubbery.......just sayin'....

Mine blows up in summer, comes inside and drops nearly every leaf. These are at Bonsai West.

M. Frary · May 13, 2016

LanceMac10 said:
floppy or rubbery

Flubbery!

LanceMac10 · May 13, 2016

M. Frary said:
Flubbery!

That's what my knees became when I saw the prices!!! Ouch!!

But I will say they are "bonsai"

AlainK · May 13, 2016

Think of those who can't afford a greenhouse.

LanceMac10 said:
But I will say they are "bonsai"

Yes, they are, enfoiré

M. Frary · May 13, 2016

AlainK said:
Think of those who can't afford a greenhouse

Like me? No greenhouse is needed to keep proper trees.

fredman · May 13, 2016

The way I see it... if you manipulate roots and branches in order to keep it small, its a bonsai.

ColinFraser · May 13, 2016

The way most of the public sees it, any old houseplant in an Asian-ish pot is a bonsai. Great; they also think "nother" is a word . . . that doesn't make it true. You can make the same kinds of arguments about bonsai that people use to excuse poor English (living language, common usage, etc.); whether you accept that line of reasoning or not is up to you.

This earlier thread addresses some of the same issues:
Sooo..... are Jade trees really trees?

GrimLore · May 13, 2016

@thumblessprimate1 has a real nice desert rose in a thread here.

Grimmy

thumblessprimate1 · May 13, 2016

Thanks, Grimmy! I just repotted mine to a larger non-bonsai terra cotta pot last fall so it's moving along a bit slowly. The caudex grew so tight into the pot. Just the other day, it looks like it's starting to pick up.

amcoffeegirl · May 13, 2016

I don't know what any of these are called but I do like them.

Succulents- are they bonsai?

Masterpiece

Masterpiece

Masterpiece

Masterpiece

Chumono

Shohin

Yamadori

Imperial Masterpiece

Nonsense Rascal

Bonsai Godzilla

Imperial Masterpiece

Bonsai Godzilla

Imperial Masterpiece

Imperial Masterpiece

Bonsai Godzilla

Masterpiece

Masterpiece

Bonsai Nut alumnus... we miss you

Masterpiece

Masterpiece

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