A rake is used to work the soil of your bonsai pot, checking for clumps and otherwise maintaining this aspect of your bonsai. A pair of tweezers is desired to remove any leaves and other small plants from taking away precious nutrients from your bonsai. Finally, you will need a small broom to clean your bonsai. Because of this, beginners are sometimes overwhelmed by the things they need to do to ensure their bonsai plant survives. There are only a few things that a beginner to raising a bonsai plant needs to remember. A bonsai plant thrives best outdoors. While they can be brought inside for display, it is best to leave the plants outdoors as frequently as possible. There are many Japanese manufacturers of bonsai goods that periodically sell their goods at low prices in order to make way for new stock. These types of bonsai sales are usually where you can get the best prices on high quality bonsai supplies and plants. This is the type of bonsai sale that you want to take advantage of, as these high quality Japanese bonsai supplies will last a lifetime if properly cared for. While most beginners only work with the four basic bonsai supplies, advanced users will use wire pliers, and special concave clippers to help shape and grow their bonsai. As you become more skilled with your bonsai, you will find you need more of these bonsai supplies in order to get the style of bonsai you desire. Suitable for the standard bonsai design, as well as root over rock styles, the ficus bonsai is a versatile, hardy tree that is relatively easy to care for. It can be kept indoors or outdoors, although some care is required if you intend on keeping ficus bonsai indoors. Like many plants, ficus bonsai trees require a period of dormancy, where the plant is given time to recover from the blooming and growing season. These trees are typically five to seven years old and have had their basic shape already tended to by a bonsai tree artist. These trees are easier to take care of than shaping and designing your own tree, but are also more restrictive on what can be done with them. These trees are good for beginners who want to learn how to care for a bonsai tree without investing several years in designing the tree.