Hinoki Cypress trees make great bonsai and have several advantages.  First, it is easy to find decent material because Hinoki are common landscape plants.  The trees grow well, the foliage is easy to work with and they make bonsai rapidly. The trees have lush green foliage and look good year around.

Hinoki are forest trees and require cool roots which means that in hot areas the trees should be provided with some shade as well as protection from hot dry winds. In all areas Hinoki do well in part shade in contrast to many of the more usual bonsai trees which do best in full sun.  Variegated cultivars of Hinoki tend to drop their foliage and burn easily on exposure to sun and therefore are probably not good choices for bonsai.

Branches can be wired when the bark on the branch turns brown.  Juvenile branches are green and are be easily broken when wired.  The trees are relatively fast growing so they should be carefully watched for wire biting into the branches.  The flat fan like foliage quickly forms pads which can be further shaped by a combination of clip and grow as well as with fine wire.

Cutting of major branches is best done in the spring before the hot weather of summer.  If it is necessary to remove major branches in the summer, the tree should be placed afterwards in a shady location to prevent leaf burn.  The trees are fertilized between March and October.  Good success can be had with using slow release fertilizers.  Hinoki give you easy-to-spot indications of poor culture.  If they are too dry, the inside foliage dies out and if they are too wet the foliage tips die.