Mak… We use cookies to make wikiHow great. My solid green Elephant’s bush hangs & grows upright. It responds very well to pruning, and you should prune it regularly to … Pinch the tips weekly since small dwarf jade plants put on new growth quickly. Place the cutting in a moderately lit area where temperatures are at least 65 F (18 C). Don't cut the lower branches or clear leaves from the ground beneath: this hinders successful … Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered. Do not train your tree like a shrub, you have to see the branch structure by creating empty spaces. Remove all but two to four of the leaves near the top of the cutting. Does it need to be pruned? Easily explained. By using our site, you agree to our. How do I know when to repot my bonsai tree? To … Rinse well with clear water and dry. It grows equally well in a garden setting, although it may not flower as prolifically as in its natural habitat. Pruning: It’s really easy to prune your Spekboom when the stems get particularly long to keep it looking neat. The steps below will help you to understanding the process of trimming and shaping your bonsai into a beautiful work of art. Pruning a Ficus Bonsai Part 1: Bonsai maintenance pruning . By signing up you are agreeing to receive emails according to our privacy policy. For aesthetic reasons, you will want to remove any branches that will clutter and cloud the tree's artistic line. More bushy than tall and thin. The soil under a spekboom is of excellent quality – Spekboom responds well to pruning and grows densely, making it an excellent, hardy hedge. In order to grow spekboom successfully, the soil must be well-drained. The pruning techniques for bonsai not only reduce the size of the plant but strive to mimic the natural forms of the trees that grew in the mountainous, harsh regions where bonsai originated.. One of these popular forms is the cascade bonsai. Karen Carter spent three years as a technology specialist in the public school system and her writing has appeared in the "Willapa Harbor Herald" and the "Rogue College Byline." The practice used for pruning juniper bonsai trees is known as finger pinching. The above ground and underground portions of your bonsai tree will need to be kept in relative proportion. Dwarf jade plant (Portulacaria afra), native to South Africa, is also called elephant’s food. If every eight days is the amount you gave it in winter, it will need more in the spring/summer as the tree is more active. Recently took a cutting from a beautiful 3m x 3m x 3m Spekboom plant in the Karoo. Deep cuts leave unsightly scars and sometimes cause branch death. Am I missing something? Examine the dwarf jade plant and locate a branch at least 3 inches long and 2 inches wide that will not be noticed when missing. I'm kinda looking to do the same. If the plant is young, then a piece less than 2 inches wide will work. I didn't know that! Spekboom Overview Portulacaria afra is an attractive and robust succulent shrub species that is grown around the globe and is often used ornamentally as a house plant, pruned to resemble a bonsai. Just want to clarify that ''Spekboom'' is not used by the native africans and is actually an Afrikaans word . It seems the drier it is, the more it blooms. It is a resilient plant found predominantly in the … The art of bonsai lies primarily in the grower's ability to shape the tree in order to contain and direct its growth. The smooth, brownish-gray trunk is very thick and heavily branched with a profusion of bright green succulent leaves. References Considerably more so than normal plants do – in fact it is said that one hectare of Spekboom can capture four tons of carbon in a year. For this reason, learning how to trim a bonsai is an essential skill for any grower interested in this method. Pruning of new buds is done throughout the growing season. How to Propagate a Longan Fruit Tree in a Pot. Negative: On Jun 14, 2013, cactusmother from Scottsdale, AZ wrote: Help! Place the cut end of the branch halfway in a small container filled with 2 parts sand and 1 part potting soil. Spekboom can be propagated from cuttings, which must be kept dry to prevent rotting. When grown in containers, they stay much smaller. Do not water the dwarf jade before cutting, since the trunk, branches and leaves will fill with moisture and leak when sliced open. Take cuttings in spring or summer for best results. Spekboom also responds well to pruning and grows densely, making it an excellent, hardy hedge. Gather a 2- to 4-inch-long stem with healthy foliage at the tip and a sturdy stem. Do not dig into the trunk when taking the cutting. Cuttings root rather easily too – a small section cut off just below the node (bottom leaves then removed) and planted – and watered well for the first few days too – will grow quickly. wikiHow is a “wiki,” similar to Wikipedia, which means that many of our articles are co-written by multiple authors. wikiHow is where trusted research and expert knowledge come together. Juniper and ficus are 2 of the most popular types of trees for use in bonsai, but there are dozens more that can be adapted as well. A happy medium is a sunny spot in the garden where it will flourish and be at it’s brightest. Spekboom can be propagated from cuttings, which must be kept dry to prevent rotting. It’s water wise. Like most succulents, elephant bush is easy to reproduce from cuttings. In late winter and spring, this plant flowers bloom in beautiful pink. Major branches should be trimmed with pruners or sharp scissors, but very small growths can be pinched cleanly away with your fingers. Planted in the ground and allowed to grow to its full height, Portulacaria will tower up to 15 feet high. If you want to infuse the spekboom taste into the mix, pick some leaves and cut them in half before dropping into your glass. If a plant bleeds white, then the substance being released is latex. © Copyright 2020 Hearst Communications, Inc. Pruning is necessary when growing the dwarf jade plant as a bonsai. ", "Shows what I need to do with my tree. She has an Associate of Arts from Rogue Community College with a certificate in computer information systems. In order to grow spekboom successfully, the soil must be well-drained. The flowers are rich in nectar, bringing beautiful birds to your garden. Your site informed me that, "It does help. It's also known as elephant food, elephant plant, spekboom, and by its scientific name Portulacaria afra.The plant grows in the wild in Africa, where it serves as a food source for elephants. We know ads can be annoying, but they’re what allow us to make all of wikiHow available for free. – The soil it grows in can be used to grow other plants, thus making it a nurse plant. For structural reasons, you want to leave branches intact that will increase growth in weak areas. It has small round succulent leaves and red stems that can survive arid conditions. You did a great job taking pics to show it's progresion. Why does my bonsai bleed white when trimmed? Help! No time to water your garden? This technique is also called nipping. Spekboom is indigenous to South Africa. If you really can’t stand to see another ad again, then please consider supporting our work with a contribution to wikiHow. They may also root in water. If the trunk leans heavily in one direction, remove branches in that direction while preserving those in the opposite direction. Luckily, it’s a bonsai plant that has plenty of alternatives (elephant bush, porkbush, dwarf jade plant, and spekboom, in Afrikaans, just to name a few! The key is to prune the roots and the foliage to keep the plant looking dwarfed. If you want it to trail, start by prune … The Spekboom or Pork Bush (Portulacaria Afra) is a versatile, evergreen plant with numerous health benefits, especially to the environment. Ensure you plant plants with similar water requirements in the same beds – roses for example or other thirsty plants are not good companions of Spekboom. ", "It has given me the confidence to nurture a Bonsai tree.". Spekboom is a water-wise plant that’s ideal for low … Let the cutting dry out and callous for a couple of days and then plant the cutting in damp gritty soil in a small pot. 08/10/2020 at 7:43 pm. My golden gate tree has some yellow leaves. I water it once every eight to 10 days. I received a p. Afra from a older guy that passed. Last Updated: October 4, 2020 Research on the species of your Bonsai and see when it is safe to transplant it. Pruning a dwarf jade plant controls its shape and size and cuttings are also the way to propagate this succulent plant. I water my bonsai every two days. Place in the sunniest place available and do not water until new growth begins. I cut it back and now am working on branch structure. It varies from species to species. Give it a little water every few days, and you’ll soon have a new spekboom plant of your own to help the environment and climate change! Simply twist the stem to remove it from the main branch or cut it with a very sharp, sanitized blade. 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