bonsai_newbie
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New Bonsai! Red Green Leaves. Need HELP!

Hello Everyone, you're probably all inundated at the moment with 'I-got-a-christmas-present-bonsai-but-I-don't-know-what-bonsai-it-is' people.

Allow me to introduce myself as one of these people. :)

I'm after an ID on the beauty below. Thanks in advance for your wonderful wisdom and help!
2015-12-27 18.29.29.jpg
2015-12-27 18.29.36.jpg

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Gnome
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bonsai_newbie,

Hello and welcome. Sorry, I am not able to ID your plant, perhaps someone else will be able to help. In the meantime can you give us a little more info? Where are you located, generally. Do you know where this plant was purchased and under what conditions it was kept. This information may indicate a general strategy even without an exact ID.

imafan26
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Location: Hawaii, zone 12a 587 ft elev.

It reminds me of snowbush. It is usually a landscape shrub and the leaves are usually longer but I have not seen one that small. The leaf shape and color look right though.

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rainbowgardener
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I don't think so, imafan.

It was a good idea and leaf color is about right. But the snowbush leaves are more rounded AND they are arranged in pairs along the stem:

https://almostedenplants.com/shopping/pr ... Snow-Bush/

But that's not much help, since I don't know what it is either. It is not one of the common bonsai types.

My best guess might be nandina, heavenly bamboo:

Image
https://www.bonsai-als-hobby.de/fotos/nandina.jpg

https://www.bonsai-als-hobby.de/bonsais/ ... ntpflanze/

it is actually a German website, translated, but it was the best picture I found.

bonsai_newbie
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Hi Everyone, and thanks!

I Live in Australia, in Sydney, NSW. Not exactly a tropical climate, but quite temperate. It was bought at a local Garden Centre I'm told, and they didn't have a label as to what it was on it. Apparently it was sitting outside with all the other bonsais when it was bought.

That 'Nandina' looks very similar - low branches, lots of failed branches (not sure of the real terminology here!). When you say it's not a 'common type', does this mean it will be more difficult to maintain? As I said I'm new to Bonsais so I didn't want to rush into treating this one like you would any other bonsai!

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rainbowgardener
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No not necessarily more difficult. As a semi-tropical evergreen, it is a good choice for keeping indoors in the winter.

If I am right about nandina, it is a full sun plant. For indoors, it likes "strong but not direct sunlight, it is suggested that they enjoy good air circulation and dew to keep their foliage in peak condition. They are native to China, India and Japan. If kept indoors, misting twice a day is recommended ... Water frequently as these are moisture loving plants, but avoid letting them become water logged. Feed them low nitrogen fertilizer throughout the growing season. High nitrogen reportedly causes them to become leggy and the leaves to become large." https://www.columbusbonsai.org/content/a ... ?q=node/50

Otherwise just basic good bonsai care...

imafan26
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Location: Hawaii, zone 12a 587 ft elev.

It could be nandina. Most of the nandina I have seen did not have pink leaves probably because they were older plants and at a different time of the year. They are used for bonsai and the leaves do have the shape of nandina.
It is harder to bonsai small plants with big leaves. It takes a while for their proportions to look good.

Nandina is a shrub or a small tree here.

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rainbowgardener
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Your task right now, at least all through the winter is just to get familiar with your tree, with basic bonsai care and how to keep your tree alive and growing in its tiny pot. While you are doing all that you can be reading some about bonsai styling and technique and thinking about what you might want your tree to be aiming for.

Nandina is a shrub and it is very twiggy. Doesn't lend itself real well to classical bonsai styling. But there are some well done nandina bonsai. Here's one I found that I liked (this is just personal opinion now, not that I know much about bonsai styling):

Image
https://ibonsaiclub.forumotion.com/t1442 ... color-plus

Nandina is airy and delicate. I think you should capitalize on that. It is never going to give you the illusion of an ancient, massive tree in miniature that some trees will. But it could be elegant and if eventually it produces the red berries, that will be lovely.

example of classical juniper bonsai just to show what I am talking about, re ancient tree in miniature

Image

NOT what you can aim for with nandina! :)

imafan26
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Location: Hawaii, zone 12a 587 ft elev.

Nandina should do o.k. in Australia. My friend has a Nandina (very old tree) in her yard. Hawaii and Australia grow similar plants. It can be trained to a tree form but it is usually a shrub when it is young.

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rainbowgardener
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The leaf color is at least partly seasonal. I found a picture of the same bonsai I showed above, in a different season:

Image
https://ibonsaiclub.forumotion.com/t1366 ... nly-bamboo



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