The blackthorn is an easy-to-care for bonsai plant that beginners will enjoy. The dark, slightly barky bark and the beautifully shaped leaves stand in attractive contrast to the bright white flowers and the black-blue berries.
How do I care for a blackthorn bonsai?
A sloe bonsai needs a full sun location, calcareous and coarse-grained substrate, regular watering without waterlogging, mineral or organic fertilizer and careful cutting and root pruning. Propagation occurs through root runners, cuttings or sowing stone fruits.
Grow a blackthorn bonsai yourself
Sloes are unfortunately rarely found in specialist bonsai shops. Since the slow-growing blackthorn tolerates pruning well and sprouts readily, you can easily grow this pretty bonsai yourself from a young plant. The blackthorn reproduces by means of root runners, so that corresponding young plants can be found in the wild and in many home gardens.
Alternatively, vegetative propagation through cuttings or sowing are possible. To sow, collect the stone fruits of a blackthorn in autumn and store them, freed from the pulp, in the refrigerator. You can sow the stones in early spring.
Location and substrate
Like its tall relatives in the wild, the blackthorn bonsai thrives best in full sun. The substrate should be calcareous and not too fine-grained. The hardy bonsai can be overwintered outdoors without a pot and with little protection.
You should exercise caution when cutting roots as sloes can react sensitively to it. First repot the blackthorn annually. Later, repotting every two years is sufficient. Once designed, the repotting interval can be further extended.
Bonsai Care
You should consider the following points when designing:
- cut the sparsely growing branches frequently in the first few years
- To stimulate growth, shorten to one or two pairs of leaves
- wiring the branches is difficult because of the thorns, so it's better to tie them down
- cut finished plants in spring after flowering before the leaves appear
Despite the fact that blackthorn tolerates drought well in the wild, the bonsai should be watered regularly. Avoid bale dryness and waterlogging. Tap water is the ideal irrigation water, as blackthorn prefers calcareous water. As a fruit-bearing bonsai plant, blackthorn requires regular fertilizer. Since the plant is not sensitive to s alt, you can use mineral (€9.00 on Amazon) or organic fertilizer.
Tips & Tricks
You can protect a blackthorn bonsai cultivated outdoors with a thick layer of loosely piled bark mulch. It keeps the soil moist, protects against frost and can be hoeed in as a natural fertilizer in spring.