Tropical Bonsai Care

Ficus retusa / Indian laurel

Ficus microcarpa

Tigerbark ficus

Ficus microcarpa 'Tigerbark'

Willow-leaf ficus

Ficus salicaria

Bonsai trade uses willow-leaf ficus across several narrow-leaf fig labels. Verify the exact plant before applying native-range or hardiness claims.

Benjamin fig

Ficus benjamina

Too Little is the compact bonsai-relevant cultivar label, but it needs conservative pruning because Benjamin fig is brittle compared with many ficus.

Ginseng ficus

Ficus microcarpa 'Ginseng'

Mistletoe fig

Ficus deltoidea

Rubber fig

Ficus elastica

Large-leaf tropical Ficus best treated as scale-aware houseplant-to-bonsai material, not as a tiny refined ficus.

Brazilian rain tree

Chloroleucon tortum

Premna

Premna microphylla, Premna obtusifolia

Fukien tea

Ehretia microphylla

Bougainvillea

Bougainvillea spectabilis, Bougainvillea glabra

Sweet plum / Chinese sweet plum

Sageretia thea

Kew accepts Sageretia thea; bonsai trade references still commonly use Sageretia theezans.

Texas ebony

Ebenopsis ebano

Jaboticaba

Plinia cauliflora

Neea / tropical boxwood

Neea buxifolia

Bahama berry

Nashia inaguensis

Kew accepts Nashia inaguensis and lists Lippia inaguensis as the homotypic synonym; verify against Neea, Fukien tea, Serissa, Premna, and generic tropical boxwood labels.

Dwarf umbrella tree / Hawaiian umbrella

Heptapleurum arboricola

Kew accepts Heptapleurum arboricola and lists Schefflera arboricola as synonym data; the local Mirai corpus uses Schefflera. Verify against Heptapleurum actinophyllum and ficus when applying care.

Buttonwood

Conocarpus erectus

Florida guidance treats green and silver buttonwood within Conocarpus erectus; choose bonsai material by root health, leaf scale, and trunk quality rather than color alone.

Dwarf black olive

Terminalia molinetii

Current Kew taxonomy accepts Terminalia molinetii; Bucida spinosa remains the common bonsai trade label. Keep separate from Terminalia buceras, the larger black olive / oxhorn bucida / Shady Lady tree.

Tamarind

Tamarindus indica

Surinam cherry

Eugenia uniflora

Use this page for Eugenia uniflora labels only. Florida guidance lists the species as invasive in south Florida, so seed control and local rules matter for warm-climate growers.

Powderpuff

Calliandra tergemina var. emarginata, Calliandra haematocephala, Calliandra surinamensis

Use this parent page for Calliandra powderpuff bonsai labels. Kew treats Calliandra emarginata as a synonym of Calliandra tergemina var. emarginata; C. haematocephala and C. surinamensis remain separate powderpuff taxa in the trade.

Serissa / snow rose

Serissa japonica

Pemphis

Pemphis acidula

Water jasmine

Wrightia religiosa

Orange jasmine

Murraya paniculata

Barbados cherry

Malpighia emarginata, Malpighia glabra

Parent page for practical Barbados cherry bonsai labels. Kew accepts M. emarginata and M. glabra separately; older M. punicifolia labels are treated under M. glabra, and FNA warns that many plants sold as M. glabra are actually M. emarginata.

Natal plum

Carissa macrocarpa

Brush cherry

Syzygium paniculatum

Current accepted name is Syzygium paniculatum. Eugenia paniculata is a formal synonym, Eugenia myrtifolia appears in trade, and lilly pilly / brush cherry labels need exact-species verification.

Gardenia

Gardenia jasminoides

Gardenia jasminoides is the accepted target. Older synonym and trade labels appear around cape jasmine, cape jessamine, Kuchinashi, Gardenia florida, Gardenia grandiflora, and Gardenia radicans; verify the exact plant before applying cultivar or hardiness claims.

Money tree

Pachira aquatica

Ming aralia

Polyscias fruticosa

Polyscias fruticosa is the target. Keep Ming aralia separate from false aralia, dwarf umbrella tree, Schefflera labels, Polyscias balfouriana, and Polyscias guilfoylei before applying this warm tropical profile.

Citrus

Citrus limon, Citrus sinensis, and related hybrids

Use as a parent page for lemon, orange, mandarin, lime, kumquat, calamondin, and grafted patio citrus. Verify scion, rootstock, and local citrus-movement rules before applying cold tolerance, fruiting, or disease guidance.

Hibiscus

Hibiscus rosa-sinensis

Use for tropical Chinese hibiscus bonsai. Keep separate from hardy rose of Sharon, cranberry hibiscus, and perennial/swamp hibiscus; Kew treats the accepted plant as Hibiscus x rosa-sinensis while nursery and extension sources commonly use Hibiscus rosa-sinensis.

Duranta

Duranta erecta

Kew accepts Duranta erecta and treats Duranta repens / D. plumieri as synonym labels still common in bonsai and nursery trade. Fruit and leaves are toxic, and Florida guidance currently treats cultivated golden dewdrop as high invasion risk.

Sandpaper tree / serut

Streblus asper