The buxus bonsai is part of a family of over 70 species of evergreen shrub with its common name being box or boxwood as it is known in North America.
Buxus Bonsai a Perfect Bonsai Plant
It is a plant perfect for bonsai with its immaculate small green leaves and rough bark giving it a very natural ‘tree’ feel. This species of plant is common in many places but predominantly found in tropical to sub-tropical regions around the world with the most density of species in Cuba and China.
As mentioned above the buxus bonsai have small leaves ranging in length from 1.5-5cm, while the buxus plant itself can grow up to 12metres if left to its own devices.
An interesting fact is that the rich orange/red wood itself is used extensively to produce certain parts of musical instruments.
Buxus Bonsai Tree Care
The buxus bonsai flowers in Spring and does love sun or very light shade. If kept indoors be sure to keep near a source of natural light for best results.
While the plant is hardy and robust by nature is does not like extreme temperatures, so if it gets rather cold (below -5 degrees Celsius) then think about bringing indoors. The result of very chilly conditions can be yellowy/bronze coloured leaves.
To keep your bonsai healthy it needs a good amount of water. Also think about feeding every 2-3 weeks during Spring/Summer. Re-potting should be done at least every 2-3 years during Spring using a good soil, the result of which will be a robust period of growth.
Pruning is a continual process with the buxus bonsai and something which should be kept on top of as the plant does have a tendency to break out. The heavy pruning will also allow more back budding to take place on inner branches, overall a win-win situation.
The main pests to watch out for is the box blight, a fungal disease. Box Blight infects the leaves before moving to the trunk and can result in some pretty nasty damage to your bonsai or even see it’s demise. Keep an eye out for any spots or uncharacteristic defoliation of your buxus bonsai and you should be ok.
