plantation in Rolleystone. It was my lucky day. I stumbled
over an area that was mowed over the years by the
plantation owner. So I ended up with quite a number of this
tiny but old little trees. This is one of them. The first picture
shows the tree after about 2 years. The second picture was
taken last year. It is only 9.5cm tall. There are many types
of wild olive trees. The ones with tiny leave are the best for
bonsai. Olive trees are drought tolerant. A few years ago
when I was on a bonsai tour of Japan, three of my bonsai
dried up. They looked dead. One of them is an azalea, another
a melaleuca and the last an olive bonsai. I applied some of
the tricks I knew in an effort to revive them. Of the three,
only the wild olive bonsai came back. The wild olive tree
with small leave is highly recommended for bonsai. They
are hardy, grow very well in the climate of Perth and
tolerate bare-rooting. The are very greedy and if well fed
will grow fast.
