Barbados Cherry Bonsai development all through the years

Barbadus cherry Bonsai development is explained all through the years.Barbados cherry ( malpighia emarginata )  plant is a sub-tropical small tree that gives small edible fruits, it is an evergreen tree that provides fruits two times a year. It can be made into a beautiful fruiting Bonsai. The leaves are very attractive and glossy.  Barbados cherry trees can be made into different styles with attractive fruits. 

          

Bright red fruits made me buy this Barbados cherry bonsai tree on May 28th, 2018. It was a small plant with only three branches and beautiful fruits hanging on. This is a branch air layered from the mother plant. This charming beauty of fruits attracted me to bring it home.

Brought it home and kept it in a Bonsai pot with fresh Bonsai soil with the thought of making it into a Bonsai tree. 

After one year that is 2019, the plant started growing nicely, it has given many branches and five petal pink colour flowers. then they became red berries and started hanging from the plant The delicate flowers hung beautifully from the branches, swaying in the gentle breeze.

          

In 2021 reporting was done to encourage new growth. The trunk line is given a new look by removing small branches on the trunkline and by keeping some selected primary branches the overall look of the plant is changed. 

In 2021 as the season unfolded, I encouraged the right branch to grow longer and longer. It has given a different look to the look to the plant. It is not a sacrificing branch. My idea for developing this branch is, to expect many flowers and hanging berries, It's a great transformation, with a unique style formation.

2023 there is more development and constant pruning,  keeping the basic shape of the Bonsai, After doing some pruning on primary branches, the plant has started developing secondary branches. On secondary branches, there are small third-generation tertiary branches that started growing. Still, the plant is in the developing stage of pads on branches.

 

Sometimes trimming keeps the plant in shape, actually trimming is cutting away over the growth of the Bonsai. 

Once the fruiting season is over, trim the branches and prepare the plant for the second season of fruits. Fruiting plants need fertilizers of phosphorus and potassium, which are the activators for producing fruits. 

I am sharing the Barbados cherry Bonsai growth over six years. It might have grown a thick trunk if I kept this Bonsai in a big pot for its fast development. 

I have limited space, so growing Bonsai in a large pot is not feasible for me. I believe if we have given proper care over many years, bonsai trees even flourish in tiny Bonsai pots.