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If you pin me down and ask for the bonsai tree I recommend for beginners, it would have to be the Chinese Elm bonsai tree.
Commonly found in almost any garden center, this is the tree I first started my bonsai hobby with.
That said, there can be a lot of dodgy fake imports out there, so what would my recommendation be?
My recommendation for a chinese lm bonsai tree has to be Bonsai Boys Chinese elm bonsai tree, which you can grab here (the link takes you to the bonsai boys website).
Why I recommend this tree
Now rather than just recommending you a tree and not giving you any reason, I wanted to go into more detail on why I recommended this tree:
Age
First up, this tree is 14 years old.
This means that as a beginner, without worrying about the painful first five years of trying to grow and maintain your bonsai from scratch, the chinese elm bonsai comes to set and ready to go to thrive in any indoor environment.
Size
Similar to the tree’s age, bonsai boys’ Chinese elms are around 14 inches tall.
This means they are the perfect medium-sized bonsai tree that works well for any indoor environment.
This will also mean that if you want to train the bonsai tree to a different style, it will be much easier than growing it from scratch.
The retailer
Another reason I recommend this chinese elm bonsai is because it comes directly from the Bonsai Boys website.
Unlike many other online Bonsai nurseries, bonsai boy has been a trusted retailer of Bonsai trees for decades, and the family business approach means that the utmost care is given to each of their Bonsai trees.
The design
While Chinese Elm bonsai trees are super beginner friendly, sometimes the design of a lot of these trees leaves a lot to be desired.
That is not the case with the bonsai boy whose chinese elm tree has a beautiful informal upright bend in the tree.
What to look out for when buying a Chinese Elm bonsai
So regardless of purchasing my recommendation for the best chinese elm bonsai trees or not, I’ve made many mistakes throughout my bonsai lobbying career.
As such, it’s essential that any chinese elm bonsai you do decide to opt for:
- Easy to care for – You want to ensure that regardless of any bonsai tree you buy, it needs to be easy to care for. There is no point investing money in a bonsai tree if it’s too complicated for you to work, making it much easier to forget about your tree.
- From a professional retailer – It can be very tempting to buy a bonsai tree from a cheap store; however, using reputable retailers will ensure peace of mind, not worrying about the tree dying right after you purchase it.
- Not the cheapest option – Similar to the above, you might be tempted to purchase the cheapest bonsai. While this will be your own choice. (depending on your available budget). Consider investing slightly more as, in my experience, premium bonsai will typically be much longer lasting and better quality than cheaper bonsai.
- Money-back guarantee – Ensure that whatever bonsai you purchase has a money-back guarantee to give you peace of mind.