Centre for Continuing Education

Bonsai Course

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Horticulture and gardening. Open to everyone.

COVID-19 update: arrangement of our courses

We are now delivering courses online and in-person. Please check the delivery format of each class before enrolling.

Please note that course materials (excluding prescribed texts) are shared electronically within 48 hours of course commencement. Printing is not available.

Enjoy gardening on a smaller scale. Explore the fascinating world of bonsai.

Find out which varieties of plants are most suitable and how easy it is to create your own bonsai. Learn which containers, soil, materials and equipment to use and how to shape, prune, maintain, style and display your plants.

Outcomes

By the end of this course, you should be able to:

  • identify plants suitable for bonsai
  • recognise the defined styles of bonsai
  • select appropriate containers, soil and fertiliser for bonsai
  • prune and wire a plant to create a bonsai
  • repot a bonsai proficiently
  • maintain and cultivate a successful bonsai.

Content

This course covers the following topics:

  • history of bonsai
  • Chinese Penjing/Japanese bonsai
  • suitable specimens for bonsai: Australian, Exotic
  • styles of bonsai: informal upright, cascade, etc.
  • pots and containers: textures, shapes, sizes, colours
  • soil
  • equipment: tools for potting, wiring and pruning
  • wiring techniques
  • pruning techniques: branches, roots
  • re-potting
  • maintenance: light, water, fertiliser
  • pests and disease control

Intended audience

Suitable for anyone interested in creating and successfully maintaining a bonsai.

Delivery style

Delivered in an interactive classroom environment where the creation and maintenance of bonsai is discussed and demonstrated. Bonsai equipment is displayed and various forms of bonsai are presented.

Materials

Course notes are provided electronically.

Features

  • Expert trainers
  • Central locations
  • Course materials – yours to keep
  • CCE Statement of Completion

What others say.

  • Our Tutor was excellent and made it very enjoyable and easy to understand. The hands on exercise really helped. I recommend this course to anyone who is interested in Bonsai and doesn’t know where to start, or for those who have received a Bonsai tree as a gift and aren’t sure how to look after it.

  • Another excellent course. Very informative and well presented.

  • The course presentation was very informative with plenty of visual aids and real plant samples. The presenter was very good and knew her subject. I am very happy that I did this course.

  • This course was well organised and most enjoyable.

  • Just to say how instructive and fun the course was. The tutor was thorough and very approachable and very competent. I certainly went away fully satisfied and confident about the topic discussed.

  • The tutor of our bonsai course was fantastic. Their knowledge of plants was really impressive and they passed on to us in an engaging and fun way, which made the day very worthwhile. I loved it.

Bonsai Course

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2021-04-17 Sat 17 Apr 2021 - 2021-04-18 Sun 18 Apr 2021
2 sessions, 6 hours total
9:30am - 12:30pm (UTC+10:00)
Online via Zoom
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What others say.

  • Our Tutor was excellent and made it very enjoyable and easy to understand. The hands on exercise really helped. I recommend this course to anyone who is interested in Bonsai and doesn't know where to start, or for those who have received a Bonsai tree as a gift and aren't sure how to look after it.
  • This course was well organised and most enjoyable.
  • The tutor of our bonsai course was fantastic. Their knowledge of plants was really impressive and they passed on to us in an engaging and fun way, which made the day very worthwhile. I loved it.

Subjects

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