How To Get A Bonsai For Free

Buying a bonsai is one of the quickest and easiest ways to get some new trees into your collection.

However, If you don’t want to pay, or can’t afford to buy any new trees, there is a number of ways you can get a tree for free. They might not be a finished bonsai, but you can still get some great material to work with.

Some of the techniques might also be a bit slower than buying one, but there is nothing stopping you from starting some free trees today while you save up to buy another one in the future.

Yamadori

Realistically the quickest way to find a free tree that can quickly become a bonsai is to go out and find a yamadori, also know as collecting your own. 

You can go out into the wild and find a tree and dig it up and take it home. (Please ask the land owner for permission first!!! If you don’t, you’re just stealing)

Usually trees collected in this way still have a lot work needed done to them, but within a few short years you should have a great bonsai. 

If the thought of going into the wilderness seems a bit much, you may be able to find trees closer to home.

Your own garden may have trees that are worth digging up.

Garden bushes and hedgerows can often be transformed into some of the most stunning bonsai.

You should also been on the lookout for any one clearing their garden. If they are digging out a hedge or a bush they may let you have it, rather then it getting dumped. Just ask them and you could end up with a free tree that you can turn into a bonsai.

Air Layers

If the tree isn’t suitable for being dug up, you might be able to air layer a branch off.

Air layering is a technique used to remove branches, but instead of just cutting it off, roots are firstly grown at the desired spot on the branch where you want to remove it.

This means that when the branch is removed, it has its own roots. So you are basically cutting off a mini tree that can be potted up.

The process can take a few months, but once it’s complete you can very quickly have some good material to start bonsai work on.  

(You can read more about – What Is Air Layering?)

Cuttings

A similar technique to air layering is taking cuttings from trees.

This is the process of cutting small twigs off a tree and planting them in soil, where they will eventually root and become new trees.

This only works with certain species, but it can be a very effective way of getting free trees.

This process can also take a while and cuttings are usually smaller than air layers, but with patience they will grow to the size you need then you can start your bonsai work.

As cuttings are quite small, it is common to start a large number of them. This means your collection can grow significantly really quickly.

Seeds

Seeds are definitely the slowest method of getting a bonsai and it they can be a lot of work before you even have something to work with.

However, you can find all sorts of seeds for free and they can be a lot of fun to grow and develop over the years.  

You can go to local parks or woodlands in autumn and collect all sorts of seeds that have fallen on the ground. The best part about these is that you know they will happily grow in your climate.

Just try not to take too many, you need to remember that these are often used as food by the local animals, but I’m sure they won’t miss a couple.

You can also have a look in your kitchen to see if you have any food that has seeds. Apple and pomegranates are very easy to grow from seed and can make excellent bonsai.

(You can read more about – Starting A Bonsai From Seed)

A Gift

This is probably not an option you can control, but it is still a way people get new trees.

Hopefully you have some good people around you and they can see your passion for trees and they get you something nice.

I think we should maybe look at how you can gift trees and share the love forward.

If you have any trees that are easily propagated, especially from cuttings. You should try and root some and then pass them on to anyone you know who is also interested in trees.  

This is especially good if the tree is unusual or interesting. People love getting new trees and if its is a species they do not already own it can be an excellent gift.  

Legacy Trees

This is maybe a bit of a sad topic, but unfortunately it will happen. It’s pretty likely our trees will outlive us, so when our day comes we will need to make sure we have arrangements for what should happen to our trees.

If you are friends with other bonsai growers, or a member of a club, it is possible that you could one day be given a tree when someone passes away. As nice as this is, I don’t want to focus on the receiving and I instead want to look at the giving.

I want you to think about what you want to happen to your trees and who you would give them to. I would start doing this now and I would start telling people around you as you never know what might happen.

This way, your wishes will be met. You’d hate for whoever is left behind to do the wrong thing. Maybe you want to give them to certain people or maybe you would rather they sell them off. It doesn’t really matter what you want, just tell someone.

(This shouldn’t be confused with a Memorial Bonsai Tree)

Conclusion

You’re very unlikely to get a finished bonsai for free, but as you can see there are plenty of ways you can get other types of trees for free, which with time, will be perfect for bonsai.

These techniques may take time, but there is a great satisfaction in developing a tree from free, humble material.