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by Andrew S.
(Ithaca, NY)

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So, I took your recent suggestion and am trying my hand at Crassula Bonsai.

Here are some pictures of the start. My wife is not very excited, she called me a “plant mutilator” and is pretty disappointed with me so far, so I hope this does work out 😉

I wasn’t sure if I should remove a few more leaves, or if this looks good so far. I figured I would probably remove the bottom three leaves as well and leave the ones on top, but I just thought I’d ask. I also wasn’t sure if I should try to take a knife or wire brush and scrape the sides a bit.

I’m going away on vacation soon but I hope to throw all of those leaves into a sandy/cactus mix soil before I go so I can begin growing another bunch of babies.

Drought Smart Plants reply:
Oh, Andrew – I’m so proud of you! I’ve had the same reaction to some of my experiments, don’t let it bother you – they’ll see the final result, and be amazed.

You’ve done great for the first stage. Allow the plant to recover, and start putting out some little branches, then you can decide which leaves you should remove next. This is a long term prospect, not something that is accomplished overnight.

I would wait for awhile to start brushing the stem, this is a technique to use once the plant is starting to achieve the proper form, and you want to enhance the rugged look.

You’ll get a ton of baby plants with that amount of leaves. I hope you have a lot of room!

Who knows, this could be your home based business eventually.

Happy Bonsai Growing!
Jacki