2007 – Succulent Bonsai

Mike Hellmann shared his love of succulent bonsai plants through a slide show and brief demonstration at the April 2007 HSCSS meeting. The nursery manager said that a bonsai succulent inspired him to join the society in 1994. The succulent bonsai hobby parallels traditional bonsai, he said, but is appealing because it is a less formal art. He suggested starting with plants that naturally lend themselves to bonsai, then performing “plant torture” as needed to coax the plants toward your long-term bonsai vision. His basic tips: Match pots to plants, prune conservatively to basic form and then regularly to encourage small foliage, gently wire and anchor branches as needed … and be patient. The work of bonsai is never done.

Pictures by Mike Hellmann and David Wolfe