Choosing Pots For Bonsai Trees
The word Bonsai is actually a combination of two words 'Bon' and 'Sai' derived from Japanese language. The word 'Bon' means 'Pot' and 'Sai' stands for 'cultivating' or 'planting'. Therefore, putting the two words together gives the translation of 'pot cultivating' or 'pot planting'. When you say the word, "Bonsai" people usually think that it's some type of a tree. Technically speaking in actual terms this is an art form or a method of growing many different species of plants and trees in a pot, ultimately it necessitates the need to choose best pot for Bonsai trees.All the trees have varying needs of water, air and soil depending upon the species of tree. Consequently style and type of pot matters a lot because different pots dry out at varying rates, so each pot has varying features and provides different environment to each plant. There are approximately four different types of pots for Bonsai trees, and these are; ceramic bonsai pots, glazed or unglazed bonsai pots, plastic bonsai pots and mica bonsai pots respectively. Now we will briefly analyze the pros and cons of all the above mentioned types one by one:
Ceramic Bonsai pots uses such material that allows your plant to absorb and eliminate water because ceramic is porous in nature. Ceramic pot is an ideal choice as it helps eliminate the growth of fungi. Since composition of ceramic pottery is similar to soil so it avoids any chemical interference and keeps the soil good and dry. Ceramic pots are environmental friendly, as they can also be recycled. They are available in variety of styles and colors or shape like; rectangular, oval, square, lotus as well as according to "water and land" presentation.
Pots can be both glazed and unglazed. There are different opinions on whether you should go for a glazed or unglazed pot. There are few things to be considered before opting for one of these; like if you have a classic bonsai and want to convey a sense of age, then you may have an un-glazed pot. For a flowering bonsai a glazed pot may be more appropriate. A word of caution that should be kept in mind is that never buy a pot that is glazed from the inside as this could damage your plant's roots.
Mica bonsai pots would be a good selection if you are planning to keep your bonsai plant outdoors, for this you need to make sure that your pot can withstand all the elements like freezing cold to heat waves. Mica bonsai pots are particularly good for this because its composition is 85% mica, 10% polythene as a binder and 5% graphite for color. If you are a little clumsy, mica pots are strong enough to withstand the impact of being dropped. Mica pots come in a variety of shapes but may disappoint you in lack of colors.
Last but not least plastic bonsai pots also known as 'humidity trays', because when the plant is watered the plastic pot holds the water for longer time thus creating humidity around the plant. These can be found in the market at very cheap rates and are sometimes also referred to as 'training pots'.