Not at all. It won't work unless you do it 100 x/day if that. You're better off getting a cheap plastic drainage tray for big pots at Wal-Mart, fill it with stones and water, but make sure the water never reaches the top of the stones because when your pot's on it, you don't want to roots to rot by wicking up water out of the tray. That's a humidity tray for future ref.:-). It's not ideal, and a room humidifier would be better in winter, but it's better than not using one and better than misting. "Wide" enough so it spans the foliage.

Also it depends on what kind of tree/shrub it is.
I mist some bonsai (redwood) but not others (oak)
I wouldn't keep a bonsai inside except for an hour or so
just for showing. If it is the outside heat you are trying
to protect your plant from then maybe build a screen house
with shading and a gravel floor that you can wet down. If there is no wind then you could run some juice to it and stick in a fan. The combo of the evaporating water and a
breeze may be cooling to it as well as yourself!!!

Any tree does better outdoors during the summer months. Any tree that is hardy in your zone should be left outside year round. Except for tropical and a few subtropical trees, bonsai are NOT houseplants & should be kept outdoors.

I have a tropical hibiscus. I keep it indoors all winter and set it out only when weather is ideal (i.e. itÂs not going to frost) in the summer. Since I can't let the direct sun strike it or it will die it never gets rained on. Even rain could kill it if the roots are too wet for an unforgiving short amount of time.

So, in the evenings, I have to mist it when its outside, but when its inside I use a humidity try like what has already been stated; the larger the tray the better.

Assuming you has a tropical or subtropical tree...

Technically, if your bonsai is being kept inside you shouldn't mist it or use foliar feeding. This is because the water does not evaporate or absorb into the leaf properly and can damage the leaves. Foliar feeding inside can kill off the leaves in the same manner; only at a much accelerated rate. This leaves the water on the foliage a lot longer than what it would outside. Also, since its inside there is usually a larger amount of dust (and/or parasites) that won't get regularly washed off the leaves by rain. Take it to your shower and give a good once-over with gentle spray once a week. Do that and keep a large humidity tray under it and things should be fine.

deiscorides

I'm having a difficult time understanding why a tropical hibiscus can't have direct sun or get rained on. I probably have a 100 that should be dead based on your care advice :-).

Tropical hibiscus thrive in sun. That's what they grow in in habitat. Every single one I know of growing in tropical regions gets rained on.

You soil sounds like a major problem if you are afraid of extended periods of rain.

IMO plants outside don't need misting. Unless you live in the high mountains, humidity is naturally high enough without it.

Misting really doesn't raise humidity to the point of being productive anyway unless you have a propagation system on timers that runs 24/7.

randy

rjj1:

My tropical hibiscus will drop all its leaves if I move it from one side of the room to the other sometimes (drafts.) Hardy hibiscus can take almost anything and come right back or won't be phased at all. My tropical doesn't like change very well. I had a neighbor care for it one day and she decided to set it outside in the sun for a while (though I told her not to.) It almost completely died after just 3 hours. Not just wilting, the branches died too. The soil was cool and moist though. Several years later it was left outside on my roofed porch and that night it frosted. I almost lost it that time. It died back to just a stump. It took many years to recover (itÂs over 30 years old, older than I am. I'm the 4th owner.) I repotted it last year so that its "soil" is now mostly substrate and no soil. ItÂs a bonsai now, though an ugly battered one. Here's a pic of what it looked like last year before repotting it.

{{gwi:11606}} - 93kb

The dead branch you see was chopped off by someone that thought they were helping. I was going to make it into dead wood. *sigh* It has a dark red, double bloom and thrives inside near my wood stove which is the only time it will bloom.

Good link on them:
http://www.trop-hibiscus.com/gindr.html

Sorry for getting off topic. :-/

I agree with misting not raising the humidity, perhaps a temporary raise, but that's all.

I'll be quiet now.