What Stage Of Development Is Your Bonsai Tree At?

You will often hear people say their trees are in development, but it can be unclear what this actually means so I will go through all the different stages of development of a bonsai, so that you can have a better understanding of what people are talking about and more importantly be able to work out what stage your own tree is at.

Why Does It Matter What Stage Your Tree Is At?

It’s important to know where you tree is in its development as the work you perform on it can vary greatly.

Doing the wrong type of work at the wrong time can really set you back and slow you down. You have to see growing a bonsai like building a house. You have to first focus on creating a strong foundation and slowly building up from there. Once your house is nearly done you can focus on the more aesthetically pleasing parts such as deciding what colour to paint it.

Bonsai is the same, you need to get the health and foundational structure of the tree right before moving on and worrying about how it looks aesthetically.  

Raw Material (Starter Material)

Raw material is basically any tree that has had no bonsai work done to it. It’s usually a tree you see some potential in, but it wouldn’t look like a bonsai at this point.

This type of material is extremely popular as it can be very cheap and even free at times

It can also be like a blank canvas. You can often do whatever you want with these trees; it is up to you to decide their fate and what direction you want to take them in going forward.

This is something you would not do with a very refined bonsai, where you would only want to keep the already established shape and would not stray from this.

A lot of raw material will need some time to get strong and healthy so that you can actually start bonsai work on it.

The three main types of raw material are Seedlings, Nursery Stock and Yamadori, Lets look at these in a little more detail:

Seedlings

You can have full control of a seedling, but the main problem is that you cannot work with them right away. They need time to grow and while you can do little bits along the way, the reality is that it can take a very long time for a seedling to really be ready for proper bonsai training.

I enjoy growing from seed, it’s very rewarding, but it’s very slow. So long as you are prepared for that, it can make really good bonsai material … when it’s ready.

Nursery Stock

Nursery stock is one of the best types of raw material as it’s cheap and easy to find and can usually be worked on straight away.

You can find some great potential at your local plant nursery, you just need to know what to look for. However, there will always be a compromise with this type of material. These trees will have been grown for the landscape, so you may find there are some aspects that are not ideal for bonsai, but this part of the fun.

You have to work with what the tree has to offer, such a great trunk and work around its problems, which as usually a crazy root structure that you will need to fix and get under control.

 (You can read more about – How To Pick A Tree For Bonsai, From Nursery Stock)

Yamadori

Yamadori is also great sources of raw material and can be similar to nursery stock in a way. These types of tree will usually have a lot of great aspects, but maybe a few issues that will need addressed.

I’m sure you have seen the videos on youtube of the extremely old and impressive yamadori, trees like this will need to be nursed for a while after they are collected. Taking a really old tree like that from the wild can be very stressful, so you will need to leave it recover and gain some vigour before working on it, but the wait can certainly be worth it.

If you are digging younger trees up, from your garden for example, they can usually be worked on a lot quicker and will not need as long to recover, so you can begin working on them pretty quickly.

Development Stage (Training)

The development stage can look very different from tree to tree, but basically this is the point where you try and take what you have got and start to steer it in the direction of a bonsai.

You will be trying to build the main structure and make whatever you are starting with better. Since the raw material can look very different, it can be hard to say how long this can take. It really depends on the individual tree and what you are trying to achieve.

You will be starting some bonsai techniques at this point and really as you progress through this stage your tree should “develop” it will go from raw material and slowly start looking like a bonsai.

Some of the common work that is done in the development stage is:

• Thicken the truck, growing branches where you want them or just generally getting vigour into the tree.

• You may also find you do a lot of hard pruning in this stage and you may even yo-yo between growing the tree out and cutting back very aggressively. This is all of course in an attempt to build the structure.

• You might also start wiring aspects of your tree, to set the main structure into place.

• You will also start working on the roots and will be trying to reduce them down in size as well as make them look more aesthetically pleasing.

Pre-Bonsai

You may hear trees being referred to as “pre-bonsai” this is a pretty grey term as it can mean slightly different things depending on who you talk to.

Some people will class raw material as “pre-bonsai” which makes sense, these tree have not had any bonsai work done on, so they are pre-bonsai in that sense.

However, some people refer to trees in the development stage as “pre-bonsai” this is usually as the tree may just look a mess, but it is on route to being a bonsai. If someone is growing a tree out to 8 feet tall, then it may not look like a bonsai, but of course their plan is to chop it back hard and have a cool trunk. As this tree is in training, it’s not a bonsai yet, but it is in the pre-stages of the process and will eventually end up in the refinement stage.

I guess both definitions are correct. Basically if you have a tree you have consciously decided to work on as a bonsai, then it is a pre-bonsai, regardless if that work has happened or not yet. 

Refinement Stage

Once you develop your tree for long enough you will start to see the bonsai within appear and the structure you have built is now starting to look like something decent.

It’s at this point where you will change tactics and start trying to refine what you have created and focusing more on the aesthetics, rather than the basic structure.    

You could almost describe it as polishing up your work. A lot of the work may seem similar as before, but there will be small differences in what you are doing.

You will still be developing the branches, but you will now be focused on getting lots of fine ramification and smaller leaves and building out the branch pads. You may still be wiring at this stage, but it will be more about placing the branches tips in a better position for aesthetic reasons.

In general the growth management of your bonsai is more important at the stage, you will want to keep your tree healthy, but you will also not want to get it out of control, so you may find you are pruning lot more to maintain the shape and to develop the fine branching.

How you plant the tree in the pot will also become more important, such as its placement and angle in the pot as well as what you are displaying as the front of tree.

You can also start to put your tree into an actual bonsai pot at this point and start playing around with how the aesthetics of the pot complements the tree.

(You can read more about – How Do You Build Ramification On A Bonsai?)

Bonsai Trees Are Never Finished

I think it is also very important to note that your bonsai tree will never be finished. They are always growing and changing so you will kind of be stuck in the refinement stage indefinitely.

Your tree will of course get better and better and be more refined, but it is never going to be “finished”.

You can also take a step back and go from the refinement stage back into the development stage. You may lose some of your refinement work if you do this, but the idea is that you are going back to fix the structure that you are not really happy with so it can be worth the sacrifice.

The Stages Can Overlap

It takes time to grow a bonsai and it can be very slow at times. You may find that that your tree slowly enters one stage from the next; it will not be a sudden overnight thing.

Usually you will see your tree change a lot during a growing season and when it comes to a end you can assess what has grown and decide if you have reached your goals.

You may find that some areas you are happy with and others you may feel need more work. This may mean you start doing some refinement techniques while also still doing some development at the same time. There can be some overlap.

It is usually not much, but don’t be surprised if you are finding some slight overlap for a while. It will really depend on the individual tree and how well certain parts are developed compared to others but it can happen.

Take a yamadori for example, they usually have very well established structures, but their roots may still be crazy and long. You may find you are refining the foliage and branches while still trying to get the roots to under control and small enough to fit into a smaller pot.

Just keep working on things, you will get there.

(You can read more about – What Is The Right Size Pot For Your Bonsai?)

Conclusion

You can now see there are a number of different stages of development that a bonsai tree can go through in its life.

You can now look at your own trees and see exactly where they are in this process, which will help you work out what you should be focusing on and what your next steps will be.

Bonsai is slow, but if you take it one step at a time you can turn any raw material into a refined tree.   

(You can read more about – How Long Does It Take For A Bonsai Tree To Grow?)