Durban Bonsai Society

08/09/2026

𝐃𝐁𝐒 𝐢𝐧 𝐍𝐮𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐬!

How many trees do our members have?

52% 𝒐𝒇 𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒕𝒘𝒆𝒆𝒏 5 𝒂𝒏𝒅 20 𝒃𝒐𝒏𝒔𝒂𝒊 𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒆𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒓 𝒄𝒐𝒍𝒍𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏.

It turns out that's the sweet spot for many bonsai enthusiasts! A collection of this size gives you enough variety to enjoy different species and styles, while still having the time to give each tree the care and attention it deserves.

Of course, every collection starts with just one tree...

💬 Question: How many bonsai trees are currently in your collection, and which one is your favourite?

04/09/2026

🌱 𝐃𝐢𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰...

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐥𝐝𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐛𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐚𝐢 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝 𝐢𝐬 𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐞 𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝟏𝟎𝟎𝟎 𝐲𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐬 𝐨𝐥𝐝!

What is the oldest tree in your collection? Bonus points if you can share some pics – we’d love to see!

01/09/2026

𝐒𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐬 𝐨𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐧 𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐍𝐞𝐰 𝐘𝐞𝐚𝐫'𝐬 𝐃𝐚𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐁𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐚𝐢!

Happy Spring Day from everyone at the Durban Bonsai Society!

While January marks the start of a new calendar year, 1 September signals the start of a new growing season for many of our trees. Dormant buds begin to swell, roots become active, and trees channel their energy into fresh growth.

For bonsai enthusiasts, it's one of the most exciting times of the year - bringing opportunities for repotting, fertilising, wiring, pruning and, of course, watching those first vibrant leaves emerge.

Every new bud is a reminder that bonsai is a journey of patience, renewal and continual learning.

𝐒𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐐𝐮𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧:

What's the very first thing you'll be doing to your bonsai this spring?
Repotting?
Pruning?
Fertilising?
Buying "just one more" tree?

Let us know in the comments!

29/08/2026

🌱 𝐈𝐬 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐛𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐚𝐢 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐲 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐚 𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐡𝐨𝐦𝐞?

With spring arriving and many trees waking up from their winter rest, now is the perfect time to start thinking about repotting.

Repotting gives your bonsai fresh soil, improves drainage and encourages healthy root growth for the growing season ahead.

Before you reach for your root hook, ask yourself:

✔️ Has the soil become compacted?
✔️ Are roots circling the inside of the pot?
✔️ Is water draining more slowly than usual?
✔️ Is it the right time of year for this species?

Remember, not every bonsai needs repotting every year. Healthy trees are the goal, not simply freshly potted ones!

What's first on your repotting bench this spring? Tell us which species you'll be working on!

25/08/2026

🌱 𝐃𝐢𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰...

𝐁𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐚𝐢 𝐢𝐬𝐧'𝐭 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐲 𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐬.

NOPE! Bonsai is about creating the illusion of a full-sized tree… in miniature form.

We want to know: What was the biggest misconception you had before starting bonsai?

Drop your comments below.

20/08/2026

𝐃𝐁𝐒 𝐢𝐧 𝐍𝐮𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐬!

How long have our members been practising bonsai?

🌱 🌱 47% 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒆𝒏 𝒈𝒓𝒐𝒘𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒃𝒐𝒏𝒔𝒂𝒊 𝒇𝒐𝒓 1–5 𝒚𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒔.

That means almost half of our members are still in the early stages of their bonsai journey - and that's something to celebrate!

Whether you've just bought your very first tree or have decades of experience, there's always something new to learn. That's what makes the Durban Bonsai Society such a great community: beginners and experienced enthusiasts learning from one another.

💬 Question: How many years have you been practising bonsai, and what's the biggest lesson you've learnt so far?

16/08/2026

🌿 𝐁𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐚𝐢 𝐓𝐢𝐩: 𝐖𝐢𝐫𝐞 𝐑𝐞𝐦𝐨𝐯𝐚𝐥

One of the best habits you can develop is to inspect your wired trees regularly.

Rather than waiting for a set number of months, let the tree tell you when it's time.

What to look out for:
- Wire starting to bite into the bark
- Rapid spring growth
- Branches holding their new position

If the branch has set, carefully remove the wire by cutting it off section by section or carefully unwind the wire, being sure to hold the branch carefully (unwinding the wire can damage delicate branches so be sure to take care).

🌳 A few minutes of checking today can save years of waiting for scars to heal.

The below video shows a perfect example of removing wire where wire bite has occurred - if you don't like the look, then be sure to remove your wire timeously: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/SiijrVZgX6A

Want more tips? Pop into our next club meeting on Sunday 13 September from 08:30 - Muskateers aka The German Club, Westville. WhatsApp Voni for more info - 0715 885 850

Making Bonsai requires patience, time, consistency so that high art...

11/08/2026

🌱 𝐃𝐢𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰...

𝐀 𝐅𝐢𝐜𝐮𝐬 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐟𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝟐 𝐛𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐨𝐠𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞

That’s right! A Ficus is one of the rare species that allows fusing of 2 branches!

Let us know in the comments: have you ever intentionally fused branches? We’d love to see your pics!

09/08/2026

It’s a beautiful day at DBS! Come join us till 11:30. Farouk is leading our talk today - everything we need to know about Spring-readiness. It’s almost potting time… head over today for some not-to-be-missed tips

03/05/2026