Customer Reviews

Chinese Elm Bonsai Tree - Medium by Bonsai Boy

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

First off, the bonsai looks pretty darn close to the photo - and when you consider they "train" more than one that's a welcome outcome. But considering I ordered through an Amazon partner I wasn't concerned. I've always been satisfied - even if minor adjustments are needed.

BonsaiBoy packaging was awesome! I was curious how it would arrive - particularly since it's a living thing and this is late December.

The bonsai is carefully wrapped at the base (pot) so the soil does not move at all. But it unwraps quickly - use a circular motion in the opposite direction of the packing. You'll see.

Packing peanuts surround the bonsai so the box can take the expected transit handling. Lifting the bonsai out of the box the peanuts fall away and the tree is unharmed. Easy.

A surprise was the chemical heat pack also included. I ordered for Christmas and live on the west coast so it had to travel quite a ways during very cold weather. Very impressed they took the time to add that little extra insurance. The pack didn't last the entire trip of course but it did ease the transition from where it was raised to the travel conditions via UPS.

Those of you that have them know bonsai are sensitive so, now that it has arrived, it's over to me to help it recover from the stress of the trip. Well, again to my surprise, the care sheet provided includes instructions for cold weather transition. This is not the little tag you get on some bonsai. This is a two-page well written sheet - broken down by categories. Again, impressive.

Particularly given the Amazon price and the BonsaiBoy workmanship this is definitely a worthwhile purchase.

I received my Medium Chinese Elm from Bonsaiboy (Unfortunately not using Amazon as a middleman) about 3 months ago. When it arrived, I noticed that the pot was shattered. Bonsaiboy had obviously taken every effort to ensure that the pot was safe (bubble-wrap, packing peanuts, etc), and were quite cooperative; they even offered to give me a discount on my next purchase to make up for it.

The next morning, when I had time to properly examine my new tree, I noticed a few very deep scars from poor wiring, holes in several leaves which indicated an insect problem, and and a lack of stability in the trunk which led me to believe the root structure was poor to none. I pointed these issues out to Bonsaiboy and told them I wanted to return the tree. In their response, they said there was nothing wrong with the tree and that it couldn't be shipped in the winter (2 days after I had received it). They told me to wait until at least March if I wanted to return it.

Since it looked like I was stuck with this tree, I had no choice but to care for it (Bonsaiboy certainly would not have accepted a dead tree or a tree that hadn't been taken care of for 3 months). I did some pruning and tried to disguise and heal the wiring wounds as best I could. About 1 month ago, I noticed what looked like insect larva on the surface of the soil. I went to a nearby bonsai nursery (where I should have gone in the first place) and picked up some insecticide and a new pot.

Not only were the "roots" infested with insect larvae, the tree was literally a stick in the mud! Had it not been for the depth of the pot, the tree would not have been able to support itself. I'm not at all surprised that this tree was air-layered from a larger tree as this is fairly common practice. I am, however, surprised that Bonsaiboy didn't allow it to develop proper roots before shipping it out. I'm even more surprised that they shipped a tree with an insect problem and severe wiring scars.

At this point, I've put too much time into keeping this tree alive to send it back. I've cleared out the insects, treated the base of the trunk with rooting hormone and potted it so as to encourage rooting, and corrected several issues with how the tree was wired and cut. At this point, this tree is going to be a lot of work, but I think it will be able to survive and, hopefully I can coax it into a decent bonsai.

This tree is the most troubled member of my collection. I will most certainly never purchase anything from Bonsaiboy again.

yes, it is not the one pictured in their advertisement, but the one i received is equally beautiful. everything is great about my bonsai, such as the texture of the tree bark, the beautifully shaped leaves, no complaints, high recommend bonsai boys. shipping was excellent, from new york to seattle, arrived in great condition. had it for a couple weeks so far, lots of new leaves, enjoy it every day!

This elm is very nice for the price. The way they packed it kept it very safe. However the leaves were not formed nearly as well as the one in the picture. It looked nothing like the picture actually.

Arrived quickly and safely. Looks just as pictured and is healthy and growing strong. Recommend that you purchase the plastic tray as there is not much room in the planter so water and dirt spills off when you water. Plastic tray does well to contain the spill over.

I bought this as a christmas gift for my brother who is a plant lover. I received it a couple of weeks before christmas and it was very nicely packaged and received undamaged. I was very concerned with keeping it in my house because I tend to kill plants and can't even keep bamboo alive! But surprisingly it made it until christmas with a little bit of water and next to one of only a few windows in my house. So once my brother got it, he also expressed his concern because he said he has never been able to keep one alive either! But I got to check on the tree recently (over 3 months after x-mas) and it is alive and well. This certainly is a hearty tree!

This is my first Bonsai tree so i may be a little new to the whole experience. The tree shipped fast and in great condition. It came in a box and when opened there was a ton of packing peanuts in it. The tree itself is suran wrapped to keep it from bouncing around during shipping. The tree arrived alive and healthy. It doesnt look just like the one in the picture (of course) but i am pleased with it. The Trunk of mine has a little more of an "S" shape to it but it was very leafy and is growing super fast. I have had it for a little over 2 months now and i have had to trim it twice. The pot it came in is not the same as the picture either. Mine came with a square pot that looked to be made out of Marble, it is beautifull. All in all i think this is an amazing, healthy tree. It is also one of the lowest costing trees i have found yet. I do not regret this purchase in anyway and i dont think you will either.

-Kalvin

I uploaded a photo to show the tree as it arrived in December 2010. It was well packed with packing peanuts and arrived healthy, green, and undamaged. The trunk of the tree was approximately 8 inches tall, maybe a little more. Including the ceramic pot it was about ten inches tall. The tree was not a pruned bonsai tree, but was ready for pruning. The box included a humidity tray and gravel in a plastic bag. The only reason I didn't give this a five star rating was because the tree was unpruned. Everything else met or exceeded my expectations.

This is my second Bonsai Tree (the first was a ficus); I ordered this one specifically for my dorm room window.

This seller really does a great job. A green, completely healthy tree arrived promptly (beating the earliest estimate) securely housed in copious packing peanuts. The tree looks quite a bit like the picture (same "S" curve that can be seen in the pictured tree) and plenty of healthy foliage. Was fairly well pruned and still moist when taken out of the box.

There was an initial problem about shipping because of my wonky school address, so I actually talked to these people on the phone a couple times and they were super friendly and took care of the problem.

It's been five months with the tree now and it is as healthy as ever. It's a cute little plant and very easy to care for - so far I'm loving the look of the Chinese Elm and several people have commented on it. I mist it 1-3 three times a day and water it every 3-4 days (depending on how dry the room is). Keep it in directly sunlight for several hours each day and you will have one healthy little tree.

***HIGHLY RECOMMENDED*** I will mostly likely buy from this seller again in the future.

This tree was dead on arrival. I did order it in December, but I thought it would be okay. I tried nursing it back to health, but to no avail. I was planning to give this item as a gift but it looks like I'm going to have to find something else.