Detroit Bonsai

Category: Nurseries Also called: Detroit Bonsai ShopYard; detroitbonsai.com (Detroit, Michigan metro)

What it is

Detroit Bonsai is a first-party bonsai seller based in Detroit, Michigan, with its own online ShopYard at detroitbonsai.com. The home page says it works in three traditions: temperate trees raised through Michigan’s seasons, tropicals, and urban yamadori “collected from the cracks of the city itself.” Its Folk Tale page names founders including Master Mike (arborist), Ricardo / Richard Haewsky (20+ years training bonsai; Tri-Lake Property Maintenance in Macomb and Oakland counties), and Ron. It is a seller of bonsai specimens and pots, not a club or a school.

Official URL

ShopYard (shop): https://detroitbonsai.com/shopyard/

BoBo Hydrangea Survivor #003: https://detroitbonsai.com/product/bobo-hydrangea-survivor-003/
Primo Arborvitae Survivor #002: https://detroitbonsai.com/product/primo-arborvitae-survivor-002/
Swaying Yew Survivor #004: https://detroitbonsai.com/product/swaying-yew-survivor-004/
Chinese Elm sample (Survivor #001): https://detroitbonsai.com/product/detroit-survivor-001-chinese-elm-sample/
Cart: https://detroitbonsai.com/cart/
Our Folk Tale: https://detroitbonsai.com/our-folk-tale/
Urban Yamadori: https://detroitbonsai.com/urban-yamadori/
Care: https://detroitbonsai.com/care/
The Tale of Ricardo: https://detroitbonsai.com/the-tale-of-ricardo/
Workbench Events: https://detroitbonsai.com/shopyard/workbench-events/
Home: https://detroitbonsai.com/

Last checked

2026-11-05.

Who it’s for

Michigan and Midwest growers who want locally adapted temperate specimens, Detroit urban yamadori stories, and hand-turned pots from a first-party shop with posted prices and a cart—not marketplace resellers.

Why it’s listed

It is a first-party bonsai seller with priced trees, Add to cart buttons, and a working WooCommerce cart on its own site. It is not Amazon, eBay or Etsy. Checked on 2026-11-05:

ShopYard (10 results): BoBo Hydrangea | Survivor #003 $350.00 (Add to cart); Primo Arborvitae | Survivor #002 $250.00; Swaying Yew | Survivor #004 $250.00; Detroit Survivor #001 – Chinese Elm (Sample) $200.00 (page marked Out of stock / Read more); hand-turned pots Shiny Guy, Squatty Precious, Tall Boy, Tall Guy, Zen Bowl at $100.00 each; plus a Bonsai Workbench – Repotting Day July 25th 2026 ticket at $45.00.
Product detail (examples): Hydrangea ~14″ in a clay pot, Beginner/Intermediate, porch/lanai, “Pickup or Delivery”; Arborvitae ~14″ with red pumice dressing; Yew described as a swaying informal upright; Chinese Elm sample described as found near 8 Mile and Woodward, ~12″, beginner-friendly (out of stock on the check date).
Cart: product pages expose quantity and Add to cart; /cart/ is live (empty-cart state confirmed).
Story pages: Folk Tale and Tale of Ricardo describe the Detroit metro founders; Urban Yamadori explains city-collected material (elm, maple, mulberry, juniper, boxwood, crabapple, hawthorn and others); Care outlines Michigan winter dormancy and related topics.

Location

Detroit, Michigan (site branding and product Location fields). No street address or public phone is printed on the home, ShopYard, Folk Tale, Care or product pages opened on the check date. Product pages say Pickup or Delivery. Ricardo’s landscaping work is described in Macomb and Oakland counties (Utica, Shelby Township, Sterling Heights, Rochester Hills and beyond) on The Tale of Ricardo page.

Notes

Finn flags: no street address, hours, shipping policy or returns page was found on the opened first-party pages (precedent: Jackalope Bonsai). Contact/About/FAQs nav targets were missing or challenge-gated on this fetch path. The Chinese Elm sample is out of stock. The only Workbench event still listed is July 25, 2026 (already past as of the check date). Stock is a small numbered “Survivor” series plus pots, not a large catalog.
Geography: this is the first Michigan nursery on Bonsai Plaza. Michigan already has the Ann Arbor Bonsai Society under Clubs and Hidden Lake Gardens under Learning.
Listing image: the official Detroit Bonsai site logo (cropped-dbonsai.jpg from the site), saved as detroit-bonsai-logo.png (512×512).
Not affiliated with Bonsai Plaza. No order, cart add, form or contact was made.

FAQ

Q: What does Detroit Bonsai sell? A: Numbered temperate “Survivor” specimens (hydrangea, arborvitae, yew, and a Chinese elm sample), hand-turned pots, and occasional Workbench event tickets, sold from its own ShopYard with Add to cart.

Q: Where is Detroit Bonsai? A: Detroit, Michigan, per the site and product Location fields. No street address is printed on the pages opened for this listing.

Q: Can I order online? A: Yes. The ShopYard lists prices and has Add to cart / cart / checkout. Product pages note Pickup or Delivery.

Q: What is urban yamadori here? A: The Urban Yamadori page describes trees collected from Detroit city ground—vacant lots and hard sites—then trained as bonsai, alongside nursery-raised temperate stock.

Q: Is it good for beginners? A: Several specimen pages are tagged Beginner or Beginner/Intermediate; the out-of-stock Chinese elm sample is labeled beginner friendly. Confirm skill tags on the live product page before buying.