What Watering Tools Can You Use For Your Bonsai?

Watering your bonsai properly is extremely important and we need some tools to help us with this. We need watering tools to helps us get the water to our pots and I will go through some of the most popular tools below.

You can use any combination of these and deciding which tool is the best really comes down to you. All these watering tools will give your tree enough water to keep them healthy, so it is down to you to decide what one you like using and what suits your lifestyle.

Use A Watering Can

Probably the most traditional way to water a bonsai is with a watering can. You can get all sorts of different shapes and sizes, but they all pretty much do the same thing. They allow you to carry water to your tree and then water it from above as if it was being rained on.

I am a big fan of watering cans, they can really allow you to just go around and inspect your trees and water as needed.

You can also add fertiliser into the watering can and then give it to the trees as needed.

Use A Hose

The hose is the modern watering can and it does make life easy. You just need to turn it on and start spraying everything.

You can easily water a lot of trees very quickly, with very little effort. Watering cans can get heavy and a hose totally removes this from the equation. You also do not need to refill anything, you just turn the tap on and water will just keep coming.

I do most of my watering using a hose as it really makes everything so simple and efficient. 

Select A Good Rose Head

When it comes to using either a watering can or a hose, you need to use a good rose head. This is just the bit at the end where the water comes out.

You can get all sorts of different shapes, but really you want something that has a lot of small holes. This is going to allow the water to come in a very fine fashion.

The holes on a standard gardening water can may be too big, and the water may come out too aggressively. You can of course pour it in a way that reduces this, but really the finer the rose you get, the better. 

For my hose I have a gun attachment that you can change the nozzle to get different rates of water flow. The fine sprayer is by far the best, it is just perfect for bonsai.

The reason we need a fine spray of water is so that the soil does not get disturbed. Bonsai soil is light and loose and a hard stream of water hitting it can easily knock it out of the pot and basically wash it away, which is not what we want to happen.

A fine mist just allows everything to get wet while also keeping everything in place. 

You Can Get Bonsai Watering Wands

If you ever watch videos from Japan, or from any professional, they always have this cool looking hose extension. This is called a watering wand, and they are perfect for bonsai.

It’s just like any other hose attachment, but it looks very aesthetically pleasing and the long handle can help you get at all the different angles you may need when watering your trees.  

They can be a little tricky to find and are maybe a little over priced, but they look cool and they do the job perfectly so they can be worth it.

You Can Use A Bottle Top Rose

If you have any indoor trees then you really need a bottle top rose. This little device has been a real game changer for me. I used to have to dunk my trees in the sink before I got one these, which used to take me forever to water.

The bottle top rose is simply a little watering rose that can fit on any bottle. All you need to do is get an empty bottle and fill it with water and add the rose. It just screws on like any bottle top.

These are extremely cheap and easily bought online. If you haven’t got one, do it. Even if you only have outdoor trees you can find a use for it. I use mine to fertilse my outdoor trees. I can make sure no water is wasted, which can happen when I use a watering can.

(You can read more about – Is Watering Indoor Bonsai The Same As Watering Outdoors)

You Can Use An Automatic Watering System For Your Bonsai

Some people like to set up a watering system that can come on automatically to water their bonsai.

These are usually built by the person to suit their exact needs and are usually made up of all sorts of pipes and hoses that cover their bonsai and are controlled by a timer. These are very common with people who like to travel a lot, or who live in hot places and need to water very frequently.

Most people will not need to set up a watering system like this, but the option is always there if you need it.

(You can read more about – Should You Use A Watering System To Water A Bonsai?)

The Rain Will Water Your Bonsai

I don’t really think the rain counts as a “tool” but it is going to water your trees and you can certainly use this to your advantage.

If you know a rain shower is on its way, you can basically skip watering and let nature do it for you. This can take a lot of pressure off you and allow you to have a break from it, but of course how much rain you get and how much actually goes into your pot is something you are going to have to check.

After a while you will start to know if the rain will have watered enough or if you will need to top things up.   

(You can read more about – What Kind Of Water Should You Use For Your Bonsai?)

Conclusion

As you can see there are quite a few different watering tools and you probably have a lot of them already if you are growing bonsai.

They all have their pros and cons and really which one you think is best depends on your individual preferences. I prefer to use a hose for my outside trees and a water bottle for my indoor. I of course get a lot of help from the rain, which I appreciate and I will occasionally use a watering can too.

So long as you tree is getting all the water it needs, then it doesn’t really matter what tool you use to get the job done.

(You can read more about – Frequently Asked Questions About – Watering Bonsai)