Bonsai Soil

Soil is important for several reasons, including the storage of nutrients, drainage, aeration and retaining water. Bonsai soil is often a mix of several ingredients, including Akadama, potting compost and fine gravel. You can choose to buy premixed Bonsai soils at specialized stores or you can make your own mix. First let's have a look at the ingredients that I just mentioned. Akadama is a hard baked clay from Japan. It falls apart after about two years, so when you use Akadama make sure to repot at least every two years. Akadama is good for drainage and aeration of the soil. Potting compost is organic soil which retains water and nutrients. Finally, fine gravel provides aeration and structure to soil. It doesn't absorb water or nutrients, so it is only useful when mixed with other soil components. With these ingredients you can mix soils for different uses. Different tree species, need different soil mixtures. To start with, I would recommend two different mixes. For deciduous trees mix together two parts Akadama with one part organic potting compost and 1 part grit. For coniferous or pine trees, mix in an additional part Akadama, which means three parts Akadama, one part organic potting compost and one part grit. You can adept these two mixes to your circumstances. For example, in a dry climate you want to have a soil mixture that retains more water. Try experimenting with mixtures that work for you, good luck!