drain holes in pots

[chimairachik07]

do all bonsai trees absolutely have to have a drain hole? I can not find bonsai pots ANYWHERE in stores. I'm unable to order things online. I found a lot of pots that are shallow enough to work and none of them have drain holes. Will this be okay? My trees at this point are tiny ... maybe 3 inches tall? They look happy and healthy... do you think this will be okay for a temporary transfer from the tiny pot they are in now?

[Zombiefreak]

Very simply use only pots with drainage holes. Heres why in nature roots of large trees do not sit in water they have moisture but are not continually saturated because of natural drainage. That being said root rot can occur if the trees roots continually are immersed in water, this will cause your tree to die. Drainage is a must. Find a friend with a credit or bank card to order you some bonsai planters online. Just a thought.

[Gnome]

chimairachick07,

Zombie is quite correct in pointing out the neccessity of proper drainage. But I would like to point out that "tiny 3 inch tall" trees are not really ready for bonsai pots. This practice is usually derided as sticks in pots. I understand you being anxious to have a nice looking composition but it really undermines the future of your trees.

Trees in development are usually planted out in the garden or in training pots until they have reached some degree of refinement, only then are they transferred to a proper bonsai pot.

That being said there are several classifications of bonsai that are small but not immature. My apologies if I have misinterpreted your situation.

Norm