Bonsai - The Miniature Work Of Art
By Tim Gorman
In ancient times, it was venerable Japanese artisans who named their unique artwork "Bonsai", meaning "a Tree In A Tray". With great skill, artistry, and devotion, they labored to fashion exquisite miniature trees, literally, in a tray.
Bonsai craftsmen work decade upon decade to produce a single tree. Such trees, if healthy and well cared for, can last far beyond the life of their designers, being handed down to generation after generation of Bonsai lovers.
Bonsai trees are not dwarf trees. Starting with a seedling, or very young ordinary tree - pine, juniper, maple, elm, brush cherry, cedar - among others, the Bonsai artist uses specific techniques - over long periods of time - shaping and pruning both roots and branches, to produce his miniature tree in a tray! The grower's artistic vision and skill determine the shape as well as the height of a bonsai tree - which might range from a few inches tall to all of fourteen inches after ten years of controlled growth. Along with their leaves, some bonsai will produce lovely flowers and/or fruit.
You are a beginner in the field of bonsai art? Good! Your primary mission is to read all the up-to-date material you can find on the subject. Be sure you are familiar with what is actually involved. You will learn that bonsai trees are not ordinary plants, and ordinary plant care is not good enough. They need extraordinary care. If you are a faithful artist and caretaker, you will be amply rewarded continually by the health and beauty of your unique bonsai - shaped, pruned, growing and nurtured by your very own hands!
Before you shop for your first plant, decide whether it will be an outdoor or indoor plant, keeping in mind the environment in which you and your bonsai will live. Is there ample sunlight as well as available shade (bonsai love sunlight, but not in the heat of the day). Can you maintain the disciplined watering schedule, the humidity, temperature, and soil type required by your plant?
When it comes time for you to select and purchase a tree seedling or a plant, visit a nursery that grows and sells bonsai. Avoid purchasing from a retail department store, or kiosk in the mall - these outlets are mainly interested in selling their goods with little regard for the health of your selection. It takes time for the actual health of a bonsai to be revealed in its appearance. A bonsai might even be dead, and only an expert eye could detect it. Buy from a nursery where there are trained professionals in the art of bonsai. Be sure to ask for any literature they might have on the plant you are buying.
So now you have your plant in hand and you are eager to embark on an exotic journey into the fascinating world of bonsai . . . living work of art . . . a tree in a tray . . . an ongoing creative experience you will enjoy for a lifetime.
