樹形Styling
Bonsai Tools for Beginners: What You Really Need
by Benny Schey 22 October 2026 5 min read
When you start with bonsai, you quickly come across sets with ten or more pieces. The good news: the list of bonsai tools for beginners is short. Three or four good pieces will carry you through the first years. Here you'll find out what really comes first, what can wait and what to look for when buying.
What you really need first
- Bonsai shears: Your most important tool. You use them to cut thin shoots and leaves. They have long handles and short, pointed blades so you can reach right into the canopy. In Japanese, shears are called hasami (鋏).
- Concave cutter: For cutting thicker branches right at the trunk. The blades are slightly curved and leave a small hollow instead of a stub. Why that matters: the wound heals flatter and is barely visible later. In Japanese it is called mataeda-kiri (又枝切り).
- Watering can with a fine rose: Sounds trivial, but it matters. A hard jet washes the soil out of the pot. More on this in our guide to watering a bonsai.
Add these once you start wiring
Wiring means wrapping wire around branches to bend them into shape. It's usually not your first project, but it will come up soon.
- Aluminium wire in two or three thicknesses. It is soft and easy to bend, ideal for practice.
- Wire cutter: It has a rounded head and cuts the wire close to the branch without damaging the bark. Ordinary pliers from the hardware store, on the other hand, easily crush the bark. And never use your shears on wire: it will blunt the blade.
What can wait
Much of what comes in big sets you'll only need later, or never:
- Root shears, root hook, rake: only for repotting. A wooden chopstick already helps a lot and costs nothing.
- Soil sieve: Sifts dust out of the soil so it drains better. Handy, but only needed for your first repotting. Many ready-made bonsai soils are already sifted.
- Knob cutter: for refining large pruning wounds. Rarely needed by beginners.
- Jin pliers, saw, carving tools, turntable, copper wire: advanced topics. Take your time.
Material: carbon steel or stainless steel?
- Carbon steel (often dark or black): gets very sharp and is easy to resharpen. Downside: it rusts if you don't look after it.
- Stainless steel (silver): hardly rusts and needs less care. It is usually more expensive.
Both are fine for starting out. If you know you tend to leave tools lying around wet, stainless steel is more relaxed.
How to care for your tools
- Wipe after every session: Remove sap and soil with a cloth.
- Store dry: Never put them away wet.
- Oil lightly: A thin film of oil on blades and joint protects against rust. In Japan, camellia oil (tsubaki-abura) is traditionally used, because it is light and doesn't get sticky.
- Disinfect: Clean the blades, for example with alcohol, especially after working on a sick tree. That way you don't carry fungi or germs from tree to tree.
- Use each tool for its job: No roots with the concave cutter, no wire with the shears. Grit and wire quickly blunt fine edges.
You can resharpen with a whetstone. It's best to practise on an old, cheap pair of scissors first.
What to look for when buying
- Blades close cleanly: No gap and no offset. Otherwise the tool crushes instead of cutting.
- No play in the joint: Nothing should wobble or grind.
- Comfortable in the hand: The handles should fit well and not dig in.
- Medium size: A medium-sized concave cutter is enough for most beginner trees. Very large models are meant for thick branches on big trees.
- A few good pieces beat many: Three solid tools will serve you better than twelve mediocre ones.
Cheap starter sets: an honest look
In favour:
- Little money, everything at once.
- Good for finding out whether you enjoy the hobby.
Against:
- You won't need many of the pieces for a long time.
- Quality varies a lot. Cheap blades often dull quickly, joints wobble, wire cutters slip.
- Dull blades crush branches instead of cutting cleanly. That heals worse.
Our advice: A cheap set is okay to start with. Once you notice you're sticking with it, replace the tool you use most, usually the shears, with a good single piece first. If you'd rather buy carefully from the start, get shears and a concave cutter individually in good quality.
A touch of Japan
Japan has a long tradition of blacksmithing, and many high-quality bonsai tools are still made there today. The attitude is typically Japanese too: a tool is seen as a companion that you care for and use for many years. A good tool that you keep clean can stay with you for a very long time.
Just getting started? Then also read our guide bonsai for beginners. The bonsai calendar shows you when each kind of pruning is due.
Frequently asked questions
Which bonsai tools do I need first?
Bonsai shears for thin shoots and a concave cutter for thicker branches. Plus a watering can with a fine rose.
Can I use ordinary scissors at first?
For thin shoots, a sharp, clean pair of scissors will do at a pinch. Blunt household scissors crush the shoots, though, and you can't cut thicker branches cleanly with them.
Is a cheap starter set worth it?
For trying things out, yes. But expect some pieces to dull quickly and many to sit unused for a while. Later, replace the tool you use most with a good single piece.
Carbon steel or stainless steel?
Carbon steel gets very sharp but rusts without care. Stainless steel is lower maintenance and usually more expensive. Both are fine for beginners.
How do I care for my bonsai tools?
Wipe them after cutting, store them dry and occasionally apply a thin film of oil to blades and joint. Disinfect the blades after working on a sick tree.