July 2017 Bonsai Tips

Cookie Tin Growing Containers

Growing continers for bonsai in training can be made from a variety of cookie tins. Such tins come in both round and rectangular shapes. Cookie tins make useful growing containers that can last up to five years before rusting away. The low profile of a cookie tin, a fairly shallow container for the volume, is ideal for an advanced training stage as a final step before putting the tree into an actual ceramic bonsai pot.

This Brazillian pepper tree is in a rectangular cookie tin container. Notice the bonded wooden feet and bonded wood strip
rim reinforcement. The whole assembly is spray painted with textured Rustoleum to resemble stone.

I acquired three round cookie tins that will make excellent small growing containers for training bonsai. The tin lids were discarded.

Drainage holes are punched or drilled in the bottom and then wooden feet are bonded on with epoxy and also held with screws. The
spray can of textured Rustoleum will be used later.

The wooden feet are important to help with drainage and also help keep your bonsai benches clean.

Wooden strips are bonded to the outside rim of rectangular containers. This not only stiffens the rim, but gives a convenient handhold for picking up the filled container. For the rim stiffeners, I don't use reinforcing screws, but that is a possibility for enhanced durability.

I bonded a rattan strips around the outside rims as stiffeners. This step is not strictly necessary, but makes the containers look
and feel more substantial.

Spray painting the containers makes them more attractive and slows down the rate at which they will rust away in the future.

The finished growing containers after two coats of textured Rustoleum. The three containers took two cans of spray paint.

Cardboard or newspaper can be used to put the containers on for painting, but I find using the screen frames makes them less likely to stick and create a mess. I hope this tip inspires you to find creative ways to make bonsai growing containers.

Email Richard dot J dot Wagner at gmail dot com