Small leaf tamarind: Diploglottis campbellii

[BonsaiLittleMe]

Hi everyone,
I have spotted an advanced small leaf tamarind at a local nursery.
Has anyone had any experience with this species as a bonsai?
It is a native of northern NSW and from my research seems to be an endangered species.
Would be great to know from experienced bonsai people if it is worth a try.
Many thanks.

[delisea]

They have great red fruit if you could get them to work it would be amazing. I have a couple grown for seed, but they are at trunk fattening stage - 8 foot tall. I have no idea how they will respond to pruning or potting. Unfortunately they have a type of compound leaves so might be tricky.

It can't hurt trying.

Cheers,
Symon

[BonsaiLittleMe]

Thanks for that advice Symon.
I have found a bit more info on the tree. Apparently it is happy in pots, likes part-shade and produces big red fruits that are good in chutneys. It is a small dense tree that copes with regular pruning
The tree I saw was about 6ft tall, with leaves at the top section and shoots down lower near the base. And reduced to $18.
I am considering getting it and layering the top section, then re-growing the base, and see where it takes me.
It would be cool to own a tree that is so endangered in the wild, even if it doesn’t become a bonsai.

[Redsonic]

I live in Brisbane and bought a couple of these online from Daley's Fruit Tree Nursery. I was disappointed with how big the leaves were when they arrived. (I'd hate to see the large leafed tamarind!) I lost one repotting them, but the larger one powered on, and I grew it as a pot plant with about 3hours of full sun per day. It absolutely thrived, and I sold it to a landscaper for planting out. As the blurb said, it tolerated pruning well. I did get some leaf burn during a hot, windy spell, so you might need to water well if yours is in a bonsai pot. $18 seems like good value for the size. I think I sold mine for around twice that.

[melbrackstone]

I've seen some amazing bonsai made with tamarind from various Asian sources. I reckon it'd be worth a try.

[Redsonic]

Diploglottis isn't really a Tamarind, so no relation to the Asian ones.

[melbrackstone]

ohhh, I didn't know that! Wonder what it was I bought from Daleys then....lol.

Edit, just checked... I bought a real tamarind. (apparently)

[BonsaiLittleMe]

Thanks for the replies re this tree.
I have decided against buying it, given that the plant seems to have no history as a bonsai.
I am too young in bonsai years to be a pioneer, so will save my money until something more promising comes along!