Among bonsai enthusiasts, there is a famous saying: “A bonsai doesn’t die by the shears; it dies by its location.” While care mistakes like improper watering or over-fertilizing can often be corrected, an fundamentally unsuitable location leads slowly and inevitably to the tree’s death.

The most common misconception among beginners is believing that a bonsai is purely an indoor houseplant—a decorative art piece for a living room shelf or desk. Botanical reality, however, is unforgiving: a bonsai is a fully-fledged tree with the exact same genetic and physiological requirements as its full-sized counterparts in forests or alpine mountain ranges…