New Zealand native trees for Bonsai

KiwiPlantGuy

KiwiPlantGuy

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USDA Zone
9a
Metrosideros umbellata

Metrosideros umbellata

Metrosideros umbellata

Metrosideros umbellata

Wired, multi troubled Southern Rata
Metrosideros umbellata

Metrosideros umbellata

Semi Cascade

Hi all,
I am creating a thread to place all my NZ native trees I am growing on for Bonsai. While none are in Bonsai pots I am pleased with the start that a couple have made so far, and may look to buying a pot or 2 soon.
I am unsure how many of these species have been cultivated elsewhere in the world, and I also thought it is nice to share etc. A lot of NZ natives are a little boring ( green and not many have showy flowers.
I plan on updating this thread with the progress of the trees I have chosen, and will add in more trees/shrubs if I like them :-) and do updates on them.
The first three photos are of Southern Rata ( bot. name with photo). I am unsure how old the older one is ( maybe 5-7 yrs) and I have attempted to wire it to get a wider and more open tree. This sub species mainly grows in NZ’s South Island and is frost hardy to -5deg C. The younger semi Cascade is developing well and I am learning when to prune/pinch this so I can get loads of flowers and keep it compact.

Metrosideros excelsa

Metrosideros excelsa

Northern Rata cuttings

These cuttings are not much to look at 9 months old, and their subspecies of Metrosideros is frost TENDER. They are very salt tolerant and are very common coastal tree and grow more abundantly in NZ’s North Island. Also they have a common name of NZ Christmas tree as they are usually in full bloom from Dec 1st onwards. These babies of mine will live under a table with a frost cloth blanket each winter.

Hope everyone enjoys the journey as much as I will enjoy showing all over the years ahead.
Charles
 
More trees

View media item 4253View media item 4254
Podocarpus totara

Podocarpus totara


The top tree is a cultivar off the common species Pittosporum.
Aphids love this variegated tree and I am have trouble getting any back budding. I might have to resort to more harsher pruning and force the issue. Trying not to kill it :-). The second photo is of the same Pittosporum with its trunks. This is not a favourite of mine and may end up being either a cloud tree or just planted in the garden etc.
The last photo here is of NZ Totara. Very slow growing, with little trunk thickening. To grow this as a commercial forest tree it has a 100-125 year wait for harvest. Pinus radiata (Monterey) has a harvest time here at 25 years.
I am looking forward to keeping this tree as a formal upright and might try the “let it go shaggy” for the year ( next season) and see if I get any trunk girth. They cope well with root work ( only tried 30% cut back) so I am wondering about putting him in the ground for a few years to see if it helps make him more trunky.

Podocarpus lawrence

Podocarpus lawrence


I think this is actually an Australian native but it gets a place in my collection as he was free. A ground cover usually I am trying to create so kind of tree. I am still very unsure if he is worth the time as no clear design has jumped at me. It has good ramification qualities so maybe just easier to whop off the upward trunk and concentrate on the lower part?
Opinions welcome as always. I am trying to be more objective and less upset with people’s opinions, as I know I am a the beginning of my journey.
Charles
 
KiwiPlantGuy said:
Hi all,
I am creating a thread to place all my NZ native trees I am growing on for Bonsai. While none are in Bonsai pots I am pleased with the start that a couple have made so far, and may look to buying a pot or 2 soon.
I am unsure how many of these species have been cultivated elsewhere in the world, and I also thought it is nice to share etc. A lot of NZ natives are a little boring ( green and not many have showy flowers.
I plan on updating this thread with the progress of the trees I have chosen, and will add in more trees/shrubs if I like them :) and do updates on them.
The first three photos are of Southern Rata ( bot. name with photo). I am unsure how old the older one is ( maybe 5-7 yrs) and I have attempted to wire it to get a wider and more open tree. This sub species mainly grows in NZ’s South Island and is frost hardy to -5deg C. The younger semi Cascade is developing well and I am learning when to prune/pinch this so I can get loads of flowers and keep it compact.


These cuttings are not much to look at 9 months old, and their subspecies of Metrosideros is frost TENDER. They are very salt tolerant and are very common coastal tree and grow more abundantly in NZ’s North Island. Also they have a common name of NZ Christmas tree as they are usually in full bloom from Dec 1st onwards. These babies of mine will live under a table with a frost cloth blanket each winter.

Hope everyone enjoys the journey as much as I will enjoy showing all over the years ahead.
Charles
Click to expand...

It's great to see this! This is a species I have been considering for some time.
 
petegreg said:
It's nice to see these plants that are little bit exotic to me, different podocarpus species too. Any corokia?
Click to expand...

Hi petegreg,
Plenty of Corokia out there yes. Not for me as they fall into the “boring shrub” lol for me. They are used a lot in the landscape market as native plantings, make nice hedges, and yes have really small leaves, but ...
Charles
 
milehigh_7 said:
It's great to see this! This is a species I have been considering for some time.
Click to expand...

Hi milehigh_7,
Thank you for your comments. Which species were you considering? I would be interested in knowing which one(s) and how easy is it to buy/get hold of ?
Charles
 
Sorry, Metrosideros excelsa. I have some sources for several Australian species and they also grow these. I have seen a few that are very interesting and I love the unusual species! Finding and trying new species is one of my favorite things about bonsai.
 
Starfox said:
I have a variagated Metrosideros excelsa, they are quite common here. My only note is it seems to be a slow grower. Nice little tree but.
Click to expand...
Hi Starfox,
Thank you for your reply. I am a bit naive as to how these trees make it around the world ( exported plants or seeds I guess). I also agree with the slow grower of the Metrosideros family, Nice trunk, nice flowers tho.
Charles
 
milehigh_7 said:
Sorry, Metrosideros excelsa. I have some sources for several Australian species and they also grow these. I have seen a few that are very interesting and I love the unusual species! Finding and trying new species is one of my favorite things about bonsai.
Click to expand...

Ok, great re sources etc. Another common name for Metrosideros excelsa is Pohutukawa (Maori name).
Unsure whether you can get plant material of this as unfortunately takes 10-15 years to flower from seed. Cuttings take 6-8 weeks to root from semi hard wood and flower within 3 years :).
They grow amazing aerial roots (don’t know why) and FWIW, the seedling stage has shiny green growth, and the adult stage has gray/green top side and hairy underside of leaf.
Charles
 
Last edited:
KiwiPlantGuy said:
Hi petegreg,
Plenty of Corokia out there yes. Not for me as they fall into the “boring shrub” lol for me. They are used a lot in the landscape market as native plantings, make nice hedges, and yes have really small leaves, but ...
Charles
Click to expand...
I've seen some pretty good attempts...
Corokia cotoneaster1.jpg corokia 1.jpg
 
KiwiPlantGuy said:
Hi Starfox,
Thank you for your reply. I am a bit naive as to how these trees make it around the world ( exported plants or seeds I guess). I also agree with the slow grower of the Metrosideros family, Nice trunk, nice flowers tho.
Charles
Click to expand...

I suppose they have been here for a while, Spain is heaving with Aussie natives which were brought over decades ago for timber production and ornamentals so Guess NZ natives slipped in too.

Most are considered invasive pests these days which is a shame because they chopped all their natives down a long time ago, it can be a bit bland in the landscape around here unless you like stone pines.

We can also get Coprosma, Leptos and Pittosporum in most garden places here although I am yet to find a usable Leptos that isn't trained to be a lolly pop. It's possible there are more but that is where my knowledge falls down.

I like to plant Aussie natives from seed over here. When family visit I order a few rarer species and get them to bring the packets over but it is hard to find something that is not already in Europe.
 
We also got some massive metrosideros and tottara here as landscape trees. The former are impressive with lots of aerial roots and are by far the most common tree on the streets around here.
 
Starfox said:
I suppose they have been here for a while, Spain is heaving with Aussie natives which were brought over decades ago for timber production and ornamentals so Guess NZ natives slipped in too.

Most are considered invasive pests these days which is a shame because they chopped all their natives down a long time ago, it can be a bit bland in the landscape around here unless you like stone pines.

We can also get Coprosma, Leptos and Pittosporum in most garden places here although I am yet to find a usable Leptos that isn't trained to be a lolly pop. It's possible there are more but that is where my knowledge falls down.

I like to plant Aussie natives from seed over here. When family visit I order a few rarer species and get them to bring the packets over but it is hard to find something that is not already in Europe.
Click to expand...

Hi Starfox,
Lol, it’s a bit like Pinus radiata here with the forestry.
I guess the climate here is not as dry as yours so we get a lot of variety, with native bush etc.
I have yet to try out Leptospermum, and I know what you mean about the lollipop look. I wonder if it is difficult to keep lower branches alive.
Anyway, thank you for highlighting that NZ/Aussie natives are grown all over the world :-)
Charles
 
Gustavo Martins said:
We also got some massive metrosideros and tottara here as landscape trees. The former are impressive with lots of aerial roots and are by far the most common tree on the streets around here.
Click to expand...

Hi Gustavo,
Wow, that is really cool news re the Metrosideros. I guess their salt tolerance makes them a useful tree in your part of the world.
Have you tried them as bonsai ?
Charles
 
image.jpeg image.jpeg image.jpeg

No not tried them yet.

A few pics from NZ/Aussies at the univerty garden
Melaleuca

Podocarpus totara

Metrosideros
 

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