Page 62 - Tạp chí bonsai cây cảnh BCI 2017Q3

Artistic Licence

Creating a Better Black Olive Bonsai

By Budi Sulistyo, Indonesia

Top left and right; Here is the picture
of the front and back of the tree on
August 2015

Bottom; A picture on January 2016 after
the tree was placed in a large pot.

lack olive or Bucida spinosa, also called
Dwarf Geometry Tree, is a native of the
Caribbean and Florida. Some years ago, it
was brought to Indonesia where it grows
Bvery well. I like this kind of tree very much
due to its tiny shiny leaves that are suitable for bonsai.
More over it is quite easy to get good ramification on the
branches and twigs because of its natural growth habit.
In 2015, when I visited the nursery in Pluit, North
Jakarta, I saw this black olive pre-bonsai material. I
was quite surprised to see the plant, as Bucida spinosa
is relatively a new plant to Indonesia and generally not
easily found in a nursery. After negotiating I happily
took the plant home. The seller told me the shape of
the bonsai he intended to make. He planned to make
it a twin trunk design with a bit of adjustment on the
branches and with more ramification.
At home I moved the plant in to a larger pot to make
it grow quicker. My house is in West Jakarta where the
ground water is a bit saline, and because black olive
tolerates saline water, it grows rapidly in my garden.
You can see the progress of the growth within six
months from the time I got it from the Pluit nursery.

60 | BCI | July/August/September 2017