ANACARDIUM OCCIDENTALE bonsai?

[runbonsai]

Hi again!

i'd like to know if there are people who have made bonsai with anacardium occidentale? i have seeds and i'd like to try, but i don't find any information about this tree in bonsai.

let me know please.

thanks.

deedee

[saint]

Dee Dee,

one of the things you are probably going to find out is that when you are doing tropical bonsai, very often you have to feel your way with regard to indigenous trees.

There are many trees in the tropics that people in the outside world have never heard of that make fantastic bonsai.

Here in Barbados we have Clerodendrum Aculeatum, and a range of others. Finding a local bonsai person will cut alot of time off the learning curve, but otherwise many times you may just have to go for it on your own.

General guidelines to look for are

1. Small leaves,

2. Short Internodes,

3. Does it grow from a cutting? (Not essential but it will give you an indication of how touchy it will be about transplantation. )


Another good thing to look for is to see what plants tend to be used in hedges, often the same characteristics that make a good hedge are beneficial for bonsai.

Hey look at it as a chance for experimentation. Maybe you might discover some completely unknown species!

:)