Top five flowering bonsai underdogs

[@matefarkas5604]

3:08 I mean, you can eat the fruit of yew, if you do not swallow theseed. In fact, the fruit flesh if the only edible part of the plant, quite tasty as well. But generally it is not advised to eat it, because it does not worth the risk.

[@GrowingBonsai]

Exactly!

[@mcbabs7495]

Très intéressant , merci pour la vidéo!

[@GrowingBonsai]

you're very welcome!

[@CarlBridge58]

That's a great video, very unique. I do grow a few Bougainvillea here in Tuscany. I like them a lot. I will definitely try to get some specimens of the other varieties you showed. A town near here, Pistoia, has a large number of nurseries, I mean huge. It's quite "dangerous" when I go visit in Spring. Hope to see you again at the Trophy next year. You did a great job presenting the demos this year. Cheers... Carlos.

[@GrowingBonsai]

Hey Carlos, thank you so much! I will be on stage again this trophy so if you are there, yes you will! I normally do not take a bankcard when I go to a nursery and only the budget I am willing to part with

[@CarlBridge58]

@@GrowingBonsai Fantastic, yes I will be there, so I'll come over and say hi. The last time, when you were talking to Andres Bicocca, I was the one in the front row trying to help you with translation of the difficult words (I'm also from Argentina) See you in February!

[@FrostBiteBonsai]

Bougainvillea are one of my favorites.

[@GrowingBonsai]

They ARE great. Bit tricky as smaller bonsai!

[@maxsiatfarm4455]

Nice😍👍👍

[@GrowingBonsai]

Thx!

[@joycefleming4986]

I've never seen a plectranthus grown as a bonsai. It looks beautiful. I have one growing in my garden, so I'm off to take cuttings!

[@GrowingBonsai]

Go for it!

[@drfreddave9020]

Lilac!! Don't often hear of it being used but has beautiful flowers and scent. Bit prone to mildew in UK but agree with you is much under rated and easy to look after

[@Andimia55]

@@drfreddave9020 dwarf korean lilac have tiny leaves and can make interesting bonsai

[@GrowingBonsai]

Yes! If you prune half of the flowercluster it even scales well!

[@Chris-oq6kn]

Great list . Love flowering trees. My boug died from winter even in the shed over here in the US. The bougs flower i believe is not the pink but the flower is actually the tiny white part. 2 on my list which i havnt seen bonsai at all i think would be the eastern redbud which has the most electric purple flowers ive ever seen and any kind of dogwood tree which also has amazing flowers but never really seen them as bonsai too much if at all.

[@GrowingBonsai]

Yeah, bougies are not frost-hardy; Mine lives in the living room in winter. I would love a redbud; Never seen them in europe!

[@Rollan000]

I just got some Blackthorn cuttings I'm excited to watch grow.

[@GrowingBonsai]

Love blackthorn, all covered in white flowers in spring!

[@Hollylivengood]

Wow, those were beautiful. Never thought of bougainvillea as a bonsai but now I gotta try! Good to know about the cutting, because that's how I'm likely to get it.

[@GrowingBonsai]

They are great! The trunk I show was grown and rooted as a cutting, at that size! I only developed the branching.

[@andreasweber1533]

Another one with inconspicuous flowers but flamboyant fruit would be the European spindle (again toxic). Not really an underdog, but seen less than other similar plants (I think), is Prunus cerasifera, the cherry plum - my favourite. All my yews are air layers and cuttings from a known female; love the little red accents on them!

[@GrowingBonsai]

Yes! I have a spindle (eonymous europea) which now has great pink fruits. Good one. I never understand why cerasifera is not used more, true!

[@nerinat8371]

Great plants and info, cheers Jelle

[@GrowingBonsai]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@johnholloway691]

30 years ago, as reward for helping an old mentor remove an immense overgrown bougainvillea, he gave me a cutting and suggested I try rooting it. I was skeptical because it didn't seem plausible that a 18 centimeter/7 inch diameter cutting would root. But he knew what he was talking about because it quickly budded profusely. Mine stays outdoors here in coastal Southern California, and it's now one of my best specimens.

[@GrowingBonsai]

They are marvellous in rooting indeed. I was surprised when I learned how well they take!

[@-Shockwave-]

I just bought a little lilac a couple of day's ago at the gardencenter after seeing it on another youtube video about bonsai, lets see how it gets trough winter.

[@GrowingBonsai]

It should be fine. Here they are landscape trees, and we normally get -10C winters, spiking down every few years.

[@generalteemo9675]

I love your videos so relaxing

[@GrowingBonsai]

Ohw.. They are meant to put you to work and grow more ambitious trees! ;)

[@generalteemo9675]

@@GrowingBonsai Im pretty new to bonsai, got my first trees 2 weeks ago. i dont even know if im doing it right. But its fun i think thats what matters, have a great day and thx for the informative videos!

[@nicoc357]

Hello from Berlin, Funny you should make this video, I just planted some Buddleja airlayers a couple of days ago. It’s just an experiment, I‘m new to bonsai and I wanted to try out your airlayer technic. Thank you very much for all the work and the Knowledge you are Sharing!

[@GrowingBonsai]

:) Hehehe

[@nicoc357]

@@GrowingBonsai why? Stupid idea? :)

[@jaiprakashpathak8974]

How informative !

[@GrowingBonsai]

Now go out and find yourself some flowering species! ;)

[@scheers100]

I love my bougainvillea, although it is not yet styled like a bonsai. My air layer from last year died this spring(that was my touch atleast), now it starts to send out new shoots. Hopefully I get it true winter and start next spring with some good growth. The lilac seems a very nice flowering option. Thanks for the great video once more!

[@GrowingBonsai]

Glad you liked it! If kept warm and watered the Bougainvill can over winter send out long growth too, really boosting health. Check for whoolly aphids and scale though!

[@oachkatzlsmum]

Gorgeous 🤩 How about adding Rosemary to your list? 😄😘 Mostly available in everybody’s garden with already matured bark. Easy to treat and forgiving in case of wrong pruning decisions. 😄 Love my little rosemary forest 🥰 Enjoy your day 😘 Cheers 🙋‍♀️ Martina

[@GrowingBonsai]

Great idea! How do they handle rootwork though?

[@oachkatzlsmum]

@@GrowingBonsai They seem to have natural fine and no thick roots - perfect for small pots 👍 And they like to be repotted in summer like Olives. Watch out Holger from „My Bonsai and Koi“ 😘

[@laddieokelley6095]

A big thumbs up for the focus of this video. Of particular interest to me is Vitex--not the variety called Arabian Lilac, but the one called Chaste Tree here in the American Southwest. The bloom spikes (pink, purple or white) are rather long in the landscape, but I am working with one with short nub-like blooms. Another interest is Jujube Zizyphus (Chinese Date); the blooms are insignificant, but the fruits are small enough to look somewhat proportional on a bonsai. Glad I found your channel, Mr. Jelle (Jell, Jell-a, or Jelly?) 😊

[@GrowingBonsai]

Cool trees! I do not recall seeing any of these before as a bonsai! Welcome to my little hobby corner! Nearest is Jella ;).

[@XaviersBonsaiRetreat]

Another really interesting video to watch Jelle. Great stuff as usual :)

[@GrowingBonsai]

Glad you enjoyed it! Good to see you on the channel. I thought you might have gotten tired of hearing my voice!

[@XaviersBonsaiRetreat]

@@GrowingBonsai After losing my voice during your visit because I spoke too much - not likely :)

[@GrowingBonsai]

@@XaviersBonsaiRetreat hahaha you did not loose your voice. Did you?

[@BylliPierce]

Yew berries when ripe are actually fine to eat as long as you don’t eat the seed

[@pansepot1490]

Yeah, I have always heard berries are the only not poisonous part of yews. Never tasted them though.

[@GrowingBonsai]

True. Will the neighbours kids listen to do-not-swallow-the-seeds though?

[@deepanjanbanerjee3491]

Bougainvillea!! Easiest to grow in the tropics.

[@GrowingBonsai]

And FAST growing there too! Compared they are sick little plants here!

[@brucedeacon28]

👍👌🙂

[@GrowingBonsai]

Thaaanks!

[@snejinka_in]

Great video once again ! How do you care for your bougainville in winter ?

[@GrowingBonsai]

It moves inside into the living room, and sits in a southfacing window. I water every week.

[@snejinka_in]

@@GrowingBonsai thank you ! 🙏

[@WolfgangKeim1]

Actually the fruits of yews are non toxic. The seeds inside the fruits are. But still wouldn’t try. Almost the whole plant except the fruits containing the toxic seeds can be deadly. Thank you for your video. You always provide top notch content!!!!!

[@GrowingBonsai]

:) Fair enough. But do not go tell your kids that it is fine to eat the berry as long as they do not eat the seed! Thank you so much!

[@WolfgangKeim1]

@@GrowingBonsai sure. I’ve been told you can make jam out of the fruits. Wouldn’t want to try it neither.

[@jang.1185]

What about the cotoneaster? I started growing some of them, then changed my mind and wanted to stop with this species. However, they seem to survive anything and still can be shaped and grown into a really nice bonsai. So I continue with them in the end.

[@GrowingBonsai]

Fair enough. I guess I see them often and do not really think of them as ignored species?

[@jang.1185]

@@GrowingBonsai Oh, true! ☺ My mistake. I kinda ignored that the video was about ignored species.

[@michaelsmith5852]

Master Jelle! Please tell me how old that Plectranthus is. Also, is the same as Coleus, right? Where I live in Maryland, US, we use these as color in flower beds because of the vibrant variations in leaf color, but we snip the flowers as soon as they start to grow because the leaves start to fade at that point. My wife bought a small one this spring in a small pot. It's now about 30cm tall. I've been watering it lately as she hasn't and I now plan to bring it indoors before winter to continue growing it! I had no idea these were potential bonsai material!

[@GrowingBonsai]

Hey Michael, it is actually not the same as Coleus! The Plectrantus swells the trunk naturally and fast. This plant is maybe 6 years old!

[@bjornnorberg8996]

Everything on the yew is toxic except the fruit!! But the seed is very toxic!

[@GrowingBonsai]

Exactly. Which is why I avoid eating the fruit too!

[@ajm661023]

​@@GrowingBonsai"Anything that you eat from these can get you severe problems". That's why a lot of people are correcting what you said.

[@rtregear]

What about roses? I have some in development. Early days yet, but old rose bushes get big gnarly trunks. I have high hopes.

[@GrowingBonsai]

Interesting idea. I recall having seen one or two, indeed.

[@Vaasth]

taxus fruit is actually non-toxic, the rest of the plant including the seeds is

[@GrowingBonsai]

100% correct. But.. How to explain that to the kids!?

[@annanym5947]

actually the only thing that is non toxic on a yew is the red flesh of the fruit. (the seeds inside are toxic) i know several people who eat the fruits and spit out the seeds without any problems. its allegedly sweet and quite tasty but i havent tried myself and wouldnt recommend to anyone but its a nice little fun fact

[@GrowingBonsai]

Exactly!

[@Matt6644]

Wisteria

[@GrowingBonsai]

Gorgeous tree.

[@timmywood9677]

What about camellia they are great bonsai trees

[@GrowingBonsai]

Nice addition!

[@deepanjanbanerjee3491]

Serissa, pomegranate, wisteria and crape myrtle

[@GrowingBonsai]

How does serissa do for you? Here it is known as a tricky one to keep

[@deepanjanbanerjee3491]

@@GrowingBonsai Quite well, surprisingly well in Zone 8B, North Carolina, USA. Plenty of sun, heat. fertilizer and water. The only trick is to ensure the roots do not sit in water. Regular bonsai soil with some organic material seems to be doing the trick. Blooming profusely.

[@deepanjanbanerjee3491]

@@GrowingBonsai In our hot humid weather in North Carolina, USA they are fairly easy to maintain. Lots of sun and water but no water logging.

[@humr2346]

I did not know that bougainvilleas are not so common. I bought one this july. It is also growing pritty fast (about 20 cm long new branches in one month). Only problem i have with it that i got only one "blossom" from it. Usually when i see this plant, its is full of them. It is growing on east side balcony in seramis:peat 2:1 soil, fertilised every 2 weaks and watered when the soil gets dry.

[@GrowingBonsai]

when fertilized, there grow. If you reduce water and fertilizer, it reduces growth and will flower

[@BonsaiSenpai]

On hew the fruit can be eaten but not the seed.

[@GrowingBonsai]

True! (But.. How to explain that to your kids!?)

[@BonsaiSenpai]

@@GrowingBonsai For the most part of your audience, I think we are not kids. For kids you just say: Don't touch this tree. Thanks for the video.

[@shuancook9005]

Crab apples not crap apples 🪴😄😄😄😄😄

[@GrowingBonsai]

?