PODCAST · arts
Bonsai Stuff
by Bonsai Matsu - Scott Martin
A bonsai based podcast from Melbourne, Australia by Scott Martin from Bonsai Matsu. A diverse, informative and thorough podcast for everyone that loves bonsai! If you enjoy the podcast then become a podcast supporter, it's greatly appreciated. https://www.buzzsprout.com/263290/support
Episodes
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Season 8 Episode 40 - The Process of Discovering the Bonsai within
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu When you can't see the bonsai for the tree you need to have a process. Something simple and easy that puts you on the right path to making good decisions. One simple task, then another and another and suddenly the bonsai starts to appear. Having a focus and not...
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Season 8 Episode 39 - Australian Natives and Repotting
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu Our Australian natives can make excellent bonsai and here are so many varieties to navigate. Depending on the species, a task like repotting can be simple or quite complex. I chat about the timing for repotting, the various sensitivities different species may have…
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Season 8 Episode 38 - Busy Life + Bonsai, Observation Time
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu When you have bonsai you have a contractual obligation. You will play many roles including Custodian, Guardian, Caretaker as well as Supporter. And to be a better bonsai practitioner I believe that observation of your trees is crucial to your understanding of what…
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Season 8 Episode 37 - Sign up for a Bonsai Show
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu Exposing your bonsai (and yourself) at a bonsai show can be terrifying! But it can also be the best experience of your bonsai life. I strongly support working towards showing your bonsai and I'll run through the process I go through when getting ready for a…
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Season 8 Episode 36 - Early Spring Pruning
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu As a follow on from the Spring Pinching podcast episode, now is a great time to undertake seam early spring pruning before your bonsai starts to allocate resources to growth that is unnecessary for your design. As with most things bonsai the timing is important and...
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Season 8 Episode 35 - Spring Pinching
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu Spring is upon us and one of the techniques we can use to build the ramification on our deciduous bonsai is pinching. It is a really simply and efficient technique and to understand what the process achieves and how will better equip you to make the correct choice…
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Season 8 Episode 34 - The Bonsai Long Game
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu Spring fills me with excitement about the development opportunities for my bonsai and it is so important at this time of year as the work starts to increase that you focus on the 'long game'. Actions you take now have a ripple effect for many years to come. Having…
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Season 8 Episode 33 - Spring is Almost Upon us!
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu Well Spring is almost here again and it's time to get prepared. Knowing what and how you are going to manage the Spring growth will go a long way to achieving your development objectives. Plan review, fertilising, watering, pinching, candle breaking they're all on...
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Season 8 Episode 32 - The Theory Behind Repotting Timing
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu What is the most appropriate time for repotting your bonsai and why? I was always told when to repot but never why that was the right time. And honestly I think it was something that was just passed down the line without many understanding why. So let's break it…
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Season 8 Episode 31 - Not Going to Repot? You Sure?
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu Going to miss repotting that bonsai this year? You sure?? There is going to be an impact on your bonsai if it is overdue for a repot and you decide not to. Now I of all people can understand why you would like to leave it for just one more year but right now there…
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Season 8 Episode 30 - The Story of my Quince
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu I had a brave moment, finally. Only took approximately 10 years but I finally got there. Here's the story of a Chinese Quince that has been on quite the journey with me and recently it was given the full once over. Repot, angle change, rotation, major branch...
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Season 8 Episode 29 - Why Securing your Bonsai is so Important
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu It is such a small task in the overall scheme of bonsai management and care but it is so important. We repot every few years or maybe longer and the simple job of securing your bonsai at the time of repotting can make a massive difference to the health and ability…
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Season 8 Episode 28 - Let's Talk Root Rot
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu It's certainly not sexy but it's very important. What is root rot? How do you identify it and what are the common causes? And most significantly, how do we prevent it?? All such good questions when it comes to the health and wellbeing of your beloved bonsai.…
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Season 8 Episode 27 - Scared to Change Soil, Being Brave
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu Changing your soil mix can be terrifying! But it's something we all must go through at one point or another in our bonsai lifetime. There seems to be two steps in the process, a mid way change and then a complete change. I'll tell you my story when I needed to…
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Season 8 Episode 26 - Before Repotting Planning, Post Repotting Scenario
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu Repotting is one of the most important tasks that we will ever do with our bonsai and planning (of course) is key to being successful. Before removing the tree and working the root system you need to know what you are going to do and why. Working then thinking is...
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Season 8 Episode 25 - Good Housekeeping, Bonsai Balancing even for the Weak
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu We are meticulous with our bonsai and their design, we spend so long getting even the smallest detail perfect and we should also do this with everything associated with good bonsai. As we commence the repotting season, well I do, it's time to be mindful of the...
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Season 8 Episode 24 - Don't like it..Chop it, Pine Wrap up and Learnings
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu We have all had the experience of looking at a particular branch or section of a bonsai and thought, I don't like that and I should cut it off but you hesitate or just slide the bonsai back on the bench thinking 'I'll do it next time'. Me included! I have just had...
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Season 8 Episode 23 - Must Love Maintenance, Direction of your Work
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu You might start your bonsai journey loving the artistic side of the hobby but you must grow to love the maintenance side. This is where you will end up spending nearly 99% of your bonsai time. I also have a little tip for you too regarding the direction you work on...
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Season 8 Episode 22 - Macro and Micro, Confidence versus Overconfidence
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu In order to make or develop beautiful bonsai, you must be able to work at both a macro or big picture level as well as at the micro level which deals with the branch that you're looking at right now. It is easy to become distracted by the future and miss the...
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Eason 8 Episode 21 - The Concept of One of Everything
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu The concept (or mistake) of one of all species of bonsai in your collection can really make life difficult for you. Sometimes we need to curb our enthusiasm and make sound decisions. Easier said than done right?? I know it's a very difficult thing to walk out of a...
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Season 8 Episode 20 - How to Handle Structural Issues, Setting a 'Mode' when working
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu Winter is a great time to see your deciduous bonsai in their naked glory. It is also a time where their structural issues are more apparent than ever. So what should you do? Remove it? Hide it? Live with it? Yes, yes and yes. I will talk through the various options...
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Season 8 Episode 19 - Why we have time for our Pines, Late Autumn Alarms
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu Late Autumn around your bonsai collection will show you signs of potential issues that may be significant in Winter. So if you know what to look for you can make changes or take appropriate action to avoid these issue. This time of the year is a necessary time for...
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Season 8 Episode 18 - Considerations When Wiring and Styling your Bonsai
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu When I am working on any of my bonsai but especially my pines at this time of the year I ask myself a few simple questions for every branch that I work on. The integrity of the design I either have built or the design I am working towards rely on me making the...
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Season 8 Episode 17 - Practical Advice for Styling your Pines
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu Styling your pines (or any of your bonsai) requires a dedicated focus. So before working through your bonsai and wondering where it's going to end up I have a few areas for you to focus on. Building pad height and volume, avoiding flattened structure, length...
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Season 8 Episode 16 - What to Do wth Your Bonsa Now, Don't Over Complicate Issues
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu We are rounding the corner toward Winter and the last stretch of Autumn is a really important time. Understanding your bonsai and their needs right now will have a massive impact on their future development. There are jobs to be done around the yard too, debris...
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Season 8 Episode 15 - The Idea of Perfection, Technique Improvement
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu The idea of the perfect bonsai for each of us is a target we set for our trees, but is perfection the ideal target? Will it just lead to disappointment and dissatisfaction with our bonsai? No. Not if we breakdown the path to perfection into bite size achievable...
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Season 8 Episode 14 - Deciduous Autumn Maintenance
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu Autumn is a very important time for deciduous bonsai and our maintenance program will set them up for a successful Spring and beyond. Tasks like leaf removal, light pruning, gentle wiring and wound management are all on the menu. Positioning takes a high priority...
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Season 8 Episode 13 - Mid Autumn and Your Bonsai, Bonsai Events
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu Well we're mid way through the Autumn period and you need to be very careful with watering at this time. Different trees in your collection will be at different stages as we head towards a dormancy period so their water usage will start to vary as well.…
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Season 8 Episode 12 - Good Structure is Good Bonsai Part 3 The Wrap Up
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu The approach of Good Structure is Good Bonsai is a great fall back position when you ever get doubt about the next step to take. When you sit there scratching your head and are ready to just leave it until next time, don't leave the issue, don't ignore it, take...
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Season 8 Episode 11 - Good Structure is Good Bonsai Part 2
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu Good structure does not mean rigidity in design. Breaking or bending the rules can be one of the most enjoyable components when designing your bonsai. In this episode I want to offer some good structural advice or guidelines (not rules!). Things like good branch...
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Season 8 Episode 10 - Good Structure is Good Bonsai Part 1
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu One of the most important areas of bonsai for me is the structure of our trees, and good structure matters! I talked about this very early on in the podcast back in season one and it's well overdue for a freshen up and some deeper thought. In this podcast I'll talk...
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Season 8 Episode 9 - What to do with Whips, Autumn Fertilising Refresher
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu I could almost guarantee that everyone that has been involved with bonsai for more than a couple of years has gone down the path of taking cuttings, planting seeds or purchasing young tube stock. It's built into our DNA! But once it takes what do you do with it?…
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Season 8 Episode 8 - When Less is More - Thin Trunk Bonsai
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu Thin trunk bonsai can be extremely elegant! And there is often a push on how to thicken trunks where bigger is seen as better. I thoroughly believe thin trunk bonsai can be magnificent when they are designed and managed correctly. There needs to be balance between...
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Season 8 Episode 7 - Is Bonsai Age all it's Cracked up to be?
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu How old is that bonsai? Ever been asked that question and wondered why it has been asked? Does it really matter how old it is? We work so hard on the perception of age through the application of styling techniques that I just wonder if the age of a bonsai should...
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Season 8 Episode 6 - Work Planning for Autumn, Start Again Advice
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu I am a planner, I like to be prepared and I always want to achieve as much as I possibly can with my bonsai. So with Autumn just days away I am breaking this season into segments and looking at the species and work that will be needed at each particular time.…
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Season 8 Episode 5 - Leave Your Pines in Peace, Skill of Waiting
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu It's late Summer and your pines are starting to look a little shaggy after decandling or candle cutting so what should you do?? Absolutely nothing! There are some great reasons for leaving them in peace for now and all of your hard work (and the bonsai) may be…
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Season 8 Episode 4 - Importance of Pad Separation, Compaction and Pre-Autumn
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu Beautiful bonsai for me have well balanced and positioned foliage pads. While it is easy initially to create larger pads, longer term this can be to the detriment of the structure of your bonsai. There is a process I use to create and separate pads. Another thought...
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Season 8 Episode 3 - Summer Extremes, Where Do I Start?
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu We are now two thirds of the way through Summer and it has been brutal! Weather extremes, floods to bushfires, prolonged heat, strong winds. Welcome to Australia! For me now if the best time to start doing a review of your bonsai environment and start making a list...
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Season 8 Episode 2 - Why I Love Junipers and How to Care for Them
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu Junipers make excellent bonsai! Always have and always will. Like all species they have a specific care regime and you need to understand where their strength comes from. They are simple to care for when you know how. This podcast has an overview on junipers and...
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Season 8 Episode 1 - Better Bonsai for Us All, 2026 Goals, Mid Summer Review
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu Welcome to 2026 and what a year in bonsai it is going to be! I always like to start the year with some goal setting and what my focus will be and bonsai is all about repeating good practices and procedures over and over and over again. Doing what makes me and…
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Season 7 Episode 51 - Yearly Plan Review
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu It's one thing to set goals for yourself and your bonsai but it is very important to honestly look back and review the outcomes. My goals were made in episode 1 this season and it's now time to see how I went (and my bonsai too). As 2025 wraps to a close I want to...
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Season 7 Episode 50 - Holiday Jobs, Calculated Risks
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu With the holiday season upon us I’ve got some jobs for you! It’s a great time to get out there and knock off some jobs that will make a massive difference to your bonsai. And it’s not a bad time to stop and admire these beautiful trees. When we work on our bonsai...
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Season 7 Episode 49 - Lessons and Reminders from Decandling
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu I am a reflection/continuous improvement sort of person. I like to consider how could I do that better? Or what do I need to focus on? What do I need to change or stop? Always taking steps forward along with my bonsai. So as decandling season starts to wrap up for…
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Season 7 Episode 48 - Test the System, Pine Decandling Refresher
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu Summer is a time for a well earned rest but for your bonsai it can be a very stressful time. Whatever the system is you plan on using for while you are having a break, make sure you test it early. Friends, family, neighbours, watering system, no matter what your…
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Season 7 Episode 47 - Watch Out for Shading, Time Sensitive Tasks and their Timing
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu Sometimes you can just get caught by surprise. You style a bonsai and it looks great, then a year or two goes by and all of a sudden you look at a part of a pad and it's weaker than it should be. Almost always it is a result of shading either from another part of…
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Season 7 Episode 46 - Pruning for Ramification, Fear of Cutting Vs Health
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu Doing something which may not be perfect is far better than doing nothing. But more important than that is the health of your bonsai. So sometimes it is best to do nothing, but at times you have to do something. Taking your bonsai to the next level in the...
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Season 7 Episode 45 - Spruce and Cedar Maintenance, Caring in the current Environment
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu Spruce and Cedar both make excellent bonsai and about now is a vital time to do some maintenance to improve their future structure. There are a few techniques I use that will help you understand and develop them into beautiful bonsai. Spring is a turbulent time for...
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Season 7 Episode 44 - When is it Best to Just Let it Grow, Short Term Sacrifice Branches
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu With all this talk about pruning and managing the Spring growth, is there ever a time where you should just let them grow? Yes there definitely is. And if you do let them run when should you prune them? To improve the strength of your bonsai we can use selective...
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Season 7 Episode 43 - Candle Cutting Technique on Some Pine Species and What to Expect
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu The candle cutting process is a technique we can use to successfully develop certain pine species. It is not decandling, rather candle cutting into the new spring candle to help build structure and ramification. I chat about the process, timing, what to expect…
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Season 7 Episode 42 - Bonsai Life on the Road, Making a Bonsai from a Bush
Contact Scott from Bonsai Matsu What a month of bonsai! Travelling around different areas of Australia, meeting loads of bonsai lovers and getting to create new bonsai. What could be better? When I do a demonstration I need to find the bonsai within the 'bush' and I have a process that I will…
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
A bonsai based podcast from Melbourne, Australia by Scott Martin from Bonsai Matsu. A diverse, informative and thorough podcast for everyone that loves bonsai! If you enjoy the podcast then become a podcast supporter, it's greatly appreciated. https://www.buzzsprout.com/263290/support
HOSTED BY
Bonsai Matsu - Scott Martin
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does Bonsai Stuff have?
Bonsai Stuff currently has 230 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is Bonsai Stuff about?
A bonsai based podcast from Melbourne, Australia by Scott Martin from Bonsai Matsu. A diverse, informative and thorough podcast for everyone that loves bonsai! If you enjoy the podcast then become a podcast supporter, it's greatly appreciated. https://www.buzzsprout.com/263290/support
How often does Bonsai Stuff release new episodes?
Bonsai Stuff publishes regularly with 230 episodes available. Check the episode list for the typical release schedule.
Where can I listen to Bonsai Stuff?
You can listen to Bonsai Stuff on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts Bonsai Stuff?
Bonsai Stuff is created and hosted by Bonsai Matsu - Scott Martin.
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