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Golden Ratio Engineered Soil With RootWake™ | Bonsai N°01 ✔ Free Shipping ✔ Made In USA ✔ Carbon Neutral Mountain Mimicry Technology
A double-sifted, fast-draining bonsai soil built on horticultural pumice, black lava rock, and biochar. This aggregate mix mimics the free-draining, high-oxygen mountain soils where the world's oldest trees grow. Suited to conifers, deciduous trees, and indoor tropicals, it promotes the fine feeder roots and ramification bonsai work depends on. Includes a water-activated RootWake™ packet of mycorrhizal fungi and beneficial bacteria.
Why Bonsai N°01? Precision Drainage
Instant-flush drainage above 45 inches per hour keeps the root zone oxygenated in shallow bonsai pots, where waterlogging kills fastest.
Bonsai Thrive
Promotes fine feeder root growth and root division for the dense ramification and tight pad structure bonsai styling depends on.
Nutrient Control
A controlled CEC below 18 meq/100g lets you feed with precision instead of fighting salt buildup.
Structural Life
A heavy 80% mineral base of pumice and lava rock holds particle structure for 60+ months without compacting or breaking down into muck.
Who This Soil Is Best For
- ■User Profile: Enthusiasts / Professional Artists
- ■Plant Category: Conifers, Deciduous, and High-Value Tropicals
- ■Watering Cadence: Moderate (Every 2-4 Days)
- ■Root Performance: High (Fine Feeder Root Splitting)
- ■The Physics: Sifted Aggregates = High Gas Exchange
- ■Important Note: An aggregate substrate holds little native nutrition. Plan on a regular feeding schedule.
Inside The Bag
We utilize an 80% Mineral Base combined with a 20% Organic Base to ensure a structural integrity that never collapses or compacts.
- ■Horticultural Pumice (The Lungs): Porous volcanic aggregate that holds oxygen and moisture in the root zone.
- ■Black Lava Rock (The Structure): Rigid, uncrushable particles that hold air pockets open for root development.
- ■Pine & Orchid Bark (The Biology): Slow-decaying organic matter that acts as a moisture and nutrient reservoir.
- ■Biochar (The Habitat): Horticultural charcoal that gives mycorrhizal fungi a permanent, carbon-rich home to colonize.
- ■RootWake™ (The Mycorrhizal Fungi): A water-activated packet of endo and ecto mycorrhizae, beneficial bacteria, and trichoderma — 200k microbes and 800+ species. Particularly valuable for pines, which depend on mycorrhizal association.
Feed The Soil. Then Feed Everything Else.
The packet in this bag charges this mix. A full bag of RootWake™ mycorrhizal fungi keeps feeding it between repots — and covers the rest of your benches too.
- ■Re-inoculate after root pruning, when the fungal network takes the hit.
- ■Charge pre-bonsai and nursery stock still sitting in bagged potting soil.
- ■Works on every plant you own — trees, tropicals, cactus, veg. Non-burning.
Buy both together and we ship them in one box.
See RootWake™ Mycorrhizal Fungi →
Opens the RootWake™ listing on
Lab Analysis
Composition & Performance
- Drainage Velocity: > 45 in/hr (85% Water Drainage)
- Root Oxygen: 55% (Max Oxygen)
- Moisture Control: 15% (Pine Bark Buffer)
- Particle Grade: Double-Sifted (< 0.5% Dust)
- Mineral Base: 80% (Pumice, Black Lava)
- Organic Base: 20% (Pine Bark, Biochar, RootWake™)
Chemical Properties
- pH Level: 6.2 – 6.8 (Neutral)
- Salinity (EC): < 0.5 dS/m (Safe Range)
- Nutrient Hold: < 18 meq/100g (Controlled CEC)
Trees That Love This Mix
- ■Conifers: Japanese Black Pine, Juniper, Spruce
- ■Deciduous: Japanese Maple, Chinese Elm, Zelkova
- ■Tropicals (Indoor): Ficus, Jade, Fukien Tea, Schefflera
- ■Broadleaf: Boxwood, Olive, Holly, Cotoneaster
- ■Flowering: Bougainvillea, Serissa, Potentilla, Wisteria
- ■Pre-Bonsai: Raw Material in Training Pots, Nursery Stock, Yamadori
- ■Also Suits: Succulent Bonsai, Jade, Desert Rose (Adenium), Bougainvillea in Training
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Do I need to sift it?
A: No. Bonsai N°01 is double-sifted and dust-free at under 0.5%. It is ready to use straight from the bag.
Q: Is there fertilizer in it?
A: An aggregate bonsai soil is not a feeding system, by design — you control the nutrition. The included RootWake™ packet is a mycorrhizal inoculant rather than a fertilizer; it helps roots take up what you feed them. Plan on a regular liquid or slow-release schedule through the growing season.
Q: Does it work for pre-bonsai?
A: Yes. The high aeration promotes rapid root thickening, making it excellent for developing stock material.
Q: How often will I need to repot?
A: Repotting is driven by the roots, not the soil. This substrate stays structurally sound for 60+ months, so you are repotting on the tree's schedule — typically every 2-3 years for young deciduous stock and longer for established conifers.
Grower's Pro-Tip
Expect the pot to dry in 48-72 hours depending on humidity and exposure. Water until it runs freely from the base, then wait for the surface aggregate to lighten in color before the next cycle — that color shift is the most reliable moisture gauge an aggregate mix gives you.
