How to Prepare and Grow Bonsai Plant Seeds

At some point, you will want to buy a tree that is a gradual stage of development for your bonsai if you are a beginner. From there, you can learn on your tree and go from a novice to an advanced artist through pruning, wiring and more complex practices. You will eventually want to take a bonsai tree from its very beginning as a seedling.

You will need some tips to grow your first bonsai tree from a seedling.

Trees, after all, come from seeds. Many trees start as seedlings and then need to be pruned. Some trees will be the offshoots and pruning branches, but you have to have seeds to get the whole thing going. You will need your seeds to go through germination in order for your tree to start.

In the cold, wet soil of winter, the spring seedling will have its shell soften and start to grow. Soil bacteria will help the seed along with its growing. As long as you watch what works in Nature, you should be able to find similar success with your own bonsai.

If you plant your see in the soil during the autumn, you will see your seed grow slowly and naturally. If you artificially grow your seed, you will be doing something known as “cold stratification.” In essence, you will be able to prepare your seeds artificially and place them in a container in the fridge to simulate the natural conditions that the seedling would experience outside in Nature.

Whether you are preparing your seed naturally or artificially, you will need to break the seed’s dormancy and encourages its germination or growing. Sometimes, this can take a year or longer, depending on the seed. Some seeds will start to germinate in the spring and then be fully growing by the next fall, a year and a half later.

The time that it takes your seed to grow depends on your climate, species and sometimes even the seed itself. Each plant is a unique entity with its own timetable.

Give your seeds some help with the right fertilization, but be careful you don’t give too many nutrients. You will want to feed them once a month with a 10-10-10 NKP mixture when the soil begins to get warmer. If you keep the pot indoors, you can give it a heat lamp, but this requires careful monitoring.

Make sure that the soil is damp, but not too wet so you don’t drown the roots and encourage mildew. If your soil is too wet, it will kill the plant faster than if you don’t give it any water at all.

Find the right balance with your plant through experience and experimentation. Use a moisture gauge to track the soil and a thermometer to make sure the soil is the right temperature.

Make sure you have good soil for your seedling and monitor it regularly. You will want to plant it ½ to ¼ inch below the surface in a pot with good drainage.

         

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