Melaleuca linariifolia

Successfully growing Australian native bonsai

“There is a question that continually crops up in bonsai talks…. Can you bonsai Australian natives?

The answer is a big, fat YES. Aussie natives make fantastic, rewarding bonsai as long as they are treated the way Aussie natives like to be treated”. Lee has been successfully growing Australian native bonsai for many years and spoke at a recent SCBC meeting. The featured image above, a Coastal Tea Tree (Leptospermum laevigatum)is one of Lee’s Australian native bonsai.

Yes, they grow in a sunburned country but a lot of them like a LOT of water and it is often necessary to keep some species in water trays, especially in the summer. Yes, you can go to a nursery and see a native that is in very dry soil and growing. But the question is:-how well is it growing and how well do you want it to grow? If you want the tree to put out a lot of foliage to give you styling options and develop ramification it is preferable to treat it well and that treatment includes very moist soil for a lot of the varieties.

Coastal tee tree, Leptospermum laevigatum
Coastal tee tree, Leptospermum laevigatum

Melaleucas, banksias, callistemon, leptospermum, water gums (Tristaniopsis laurina), baeckea, casuarinas, ficus, and kunzea all like moist soil. Most grow their roots down to the water table and while the area they grow in may appear dry they aren’t.

I keep my melaleucas, baeckea, banksia and water gums in water trays 24/7, only taking them out in periods of heavy rain. The water trays are low so the water just comes above the base of the pot. This has never been detrimental to these species. It can cause moss to develop on the trunk and this has to be removed – which can be a problem in paperbark or heavily fissured bark. It is a delicate balancing act to keep the water up and the moss down but natives as bonsai are worth the effort.

Styling, well Japanese styling is pretty much out for natives. Happily the bonsai world is moving to a more natural styling rather than the seriously stylized shapes that have been popular. It is important to see how the tree grows in its natural habitat and refine the growth so it is artistically realistic. Creating a bonsai ‘a la naturelle’ is not on as our trees tend to have a raggedy growth pattern. Judicious branch selection and pruning can bring that into line with bonsai ideals and the tree’s growth preferences.

It is important to keep in mind when styling that a lot of Australia species have a very fine growth style with open spaces and a sparsity of foliage due to the nature of their environment. When trees are being developed to benching status a more open foliage canopy is the way to go rather than having tightly packed foliage.

Melaleuca linariifolia "Snow in Summer"
Melaleuca linariifolia “Snow in Summer”

Speaking personally, it is very easy to get a solid crown on melaleucas, baeckeas, banksias and leptospermums but lightening and opening up the crown brings a greater feeling of the Australian bush to the tree.

Check out the SCBC July 2014 newsletter for more information on how to care for Australian Native bonsai as well as some common pests and diseases.

5 Comments Add yours
  1. Hi very interesting, I m living in France and after few fails I managed to grow from seeds 4 kunzeas since 2 years. They are healthy but I would like to know if and how I I can fertilize them. Can I make big cuts like Clip an Grow ? What ‘s specific about this species? Here in France nobody knows about it ….Thanks Max

  2. I don’t know your climatic conditions in France in detail. Kunzeas like full sun, they are hardy. I water mine well and often in summer several times a day. I no longer keep my trees in water trays the way I used to but my Kunzea peduncularis has a shallow, wide surfaced freeform pot and that is necessary to have a small water tray. But excess water will evaporate by 1 pm in the summer and that is enough moisture to keep it happy.
    Aussie natives react badly to Phosphorus. We have specialist fertilisers for natives where the phosphorus content is very low. Always a natural fertiliser, never a chemical one.
    You can clip and grow and many natives grow very well indeed. I have two kunzeas, Kunzea ambiguia and Kunzea peduncularis. Both grow exceptionally well with cut backs but they are not great for shooting back on old wood. At least the ones I have don’t and several I have seen haven’t. I would style to work with this feature.

    My newest kunzea ambigua is ugly and needs a lot of development and I am leaving excess wood and some foliage on it to see if it will develop the lower immature branchlets. If it doesn’t it might be going on sale or into the rubbish bin. It was a gamble. Cutting back hard in well developed areas isn’t a problem but I would never cut to bare wood with this species. You have to work around what you have.

    I suggest you go to a local nursery and see if you can get a natural fertiliser VERY low in phosphorus. One of my standard native fertilisers is 6.9% phosphorus as against 23% nitrogen.

    When you root prune don’t do more than 50%. Once you know the tree and how it reacts you can do more. I have pulled my favourite kunzea out of its cascade pot and lost 3/4ths of the roots. In a month the pot was full again. BUT that is in my conditions. Sun, humidity, lots of water. The ambigua grows foliage wildly and is always wanting a trim and the peduncularis is not far behind. But neither have developed shoots on old wood.

    Hope this helps. You can also try the Victorian Native Bonsai Club… very good and very helpful and google Kunzea bonsai and their care. Uncle Google knows everything… almost.
    Good luck. Aussie natives make stunning bonsai. Go to the Victorian Native Bonsai Club’s website vicnativebonsai.com.au and look at the photos from their 2018 National exhibition.
    Cheers,
    Lee – Sydney City Bonsai Club – Australia

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