Fruiting bonsai

[quodlibet_ens]

A friend and I were discussing the different trees we have at the moment and what we plan to do with them when we came to the subject of the types of trees we wanted. We concluded that above all we want to have some species of fruiting tree as bonsai.

On talking more we were left wondering as to what species are best suited to bonsai and does the fruit grow to full size?

I was thinking of something self pollinating like peach, nectarine or apricot, though my friend was hoping for apple or pear. We have a pretty decent pick from the fruit trees at work, or can order in different cultivars if we want, so any info to help us out would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers,
Nathan

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[tgward]

fruit for aesthetics or food?

[quodlibet_ens]

fruit for aesthetics or food?

Mainly for aesthetics, but if I pop a piece of fruit in my mouth like a bit of candy, that would be impressive.

But I think the main idea would be aesthetics.

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[tgward]

I think fruit tends to be normal size unless the tree is under stress--a shohin with three full size apples could look a little weird.
pyracantha, cotoneaster, hawthorn,firethorn, crabapple ,cumquat,figs and others ,all have tiny fruit more suited to scale although not all edible

[shibui]

Fruit normally matures closer to full size so normal fruiting trees are not so good for bonsai because you'll end up with a few large fruit on a tiny tree.
Some really great fruiting bonsai:
Plums, especially the small fruit types - cherry plum, sloe. Also very hardy and easy to grow.
Crab apple - beautiful flowers followed by small apples that look good on a bonsai.
Cotoneaster and Pyracantha - not known as edible fruits but the small, colourful fruit are the right size for a bonsai.
What others have I missed oh yes Tgward - hawthorn, another really hardy on but they can take quite a while to mature and start to flower.

[Watto]

Oh my goodness, this is right up my ally. Of course the number one fruiting bonsai is PLUM.
Number two is PLUM and after that there are all the ones Shibui mentioned.
My advice always to everyone is - get a PLUM. There is nothing like a quick trip to the bonsai garden to get a fresh plum right off the tree and the tree is only 700 mm tall - fantastic. (A warning, some taste a little sour, but it is still fantastic) They also are an all season bonsai, deciduous for the winter, flowering for the spring, fruit in the summer and leaf colour in the autumn - perfect.
Trust me!

[Rory]

haha, ur funny watto. But when it comes to fruits....

I call your plum, and raise you a native....

Lilly pilly - absolutely beautiful when covered in the pink fruits, up to 1.5 cm
Green island fig - the little figs are so cute, less than 1cm
Sandpaper fig - little round figs, about 1 cm

[quodlibet_ens]

Looks like we'll be on the look out for some plum trees! I do like the sound of those fig trees Rory mentioned.

Thanks Shibui, Watto and Rory for the suggestions!

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[ben17487]

I've been wanting to get a plum for ages, does anyone know if any of the Melbourne nurseries grow any stock?

[Hackimoto]

In my opinion, you can't beat Pyracantha . Flower and fruit early, great to style, hardy. have a look on the net for Pyracantha Bonsai images.

[GavinG]

Prunus cerasifera (cherry plum) grows easily from cuttings, so you avoid the Nasty Graft Syndrome. It grows like mad, ground-grows well, fruits easily, flowers everywhere and drives you mad trying to ramify it. You just have to go with what it does. Best large/medium.

Small fruited citrus like Fortunella hindsii (Cumquat family) are popular among Chinese growers. Like camellia, it's hard to get a "good" form, but that's not why you grow them. Also good to ground-grow. There are a whole family of Australian citrus (Citrus australatica is one) that should be good, but I haven't seen them mature yet.

Still in natives, the Austromyrtus family have some interesting small-leaved berry plants that have a history as bush tucker.

Also Tasmannia lanceolata (mountain pepper berry) should have potential.

Plenty to choose from. Natives you'll probably only find as tube stock - takes longer, but the best way to go in my opinion if you're under 80. You get to make the design.

Oh, and PLUMS!!!!!!!

Gavin

[shibui]

I've been wanting to get a plum for ages, does anyone know if any of the Melbourne nurseries grow any stock?

You don't buy plums Ben
They grow wild on the sides of the road and in most vacant blocks and in paddocks. You just need to keep your eyes open while travelling then dig one up. Come to think of it that's probably why the nurseries don't grow them
I do have a couple of prunus 'Elvins' that came out of the grow beds in winter. They will be available in a month or 2.

[quodlibet_ens]

Plenty to choose from.

You're not wrong, such a great list. I used to have Mountain Pepper in my front garden, so I'd be keen to see how this would go.


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[ben17487]

I've been wanting to get a plum for ages, does anyone know if any of the Melbourne nurseries grow any stock?

You don't buy plums Ben
They grow wild on the sides of the road and in most vacant blocks and in paddocks. You just need to keep your eyes open while travelling then dig one up. Come to think of it that's probably why the nurseries don't grow them
I do have a couple of prunus 'Elvins' that came out of the grow beds in winter. They will be available in a month or 2.

Oh right, thanks for the info!
I wasn't aware they were so common like that, there are in fact a lot in the streets of the suburb I live in, they look like the same species that watto recently posted in flower... Can't collect those unfortunately
Do the propagate easily?

[Kevin]

Hello,

My
My photo doesn't do it justice - one of my all time favorite bonsai photos thanks to Dan Barton's book - The Bonsai Book.

Nagasaki crab apple.

_DSC5539.jpg

Kevin