What is Bonsai?

When undertaking bonsai, you are beginning an experience that will expand your horizons in countless ways. You may find a new sense of appreciation for nature, you may start looking at trees, bushes and shrubs differently. You will certainly find yourself looking around all the "worst parts" of your local nurseries where they keep the plants that most people wouldn't look twice at. How the art of bonsai will change you is as unpredictable as nature itself, but be assured of one thing: Bonsai will change the way that you look at things.

What are the goals of Bonsai?

Nature

I like my trees to look as natural as possible. To me that means a couple of different things. First, that means you should discover the tree inside the plant that you have found at your local nursery. Let the tree itself suggest possibilities to you. Does the trunk bend to the left? Let it. Work with it. Make that a feature of your bonsai. There are always possibilities in every tree. The real trick is in finding them, bringing them out, and highlighting them. The tree is always right, it is usually just a matter of listening to it closely enough to hear what it is telling us.

Beauty

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. You trees should be beautiful to you. To some of us there is great beauty in following the rules of bonsai design, placing branches just so, and the like, for others, the thrill is in breaking all the rules. Your masterpiece only needs to be a masterpiece to you. It is probably a good idea to learn the rules before you go breaking them (that way at least you will know you are breaking them), but you should feel free to learn, experiment, and develop. There is no right way to measure beauty.

Maturity

One thing that most bonsai practioners will agree on is the idea that bonsai should simulate age. One of the goals of bonsai, then, is to produce the appearance of maturity in your tree. Although the tree may only be ten or fifteen years old, you can make it look as if it has been growing for decades or even centuries. Two features that give the appearance of age to trees are the caliper of the trunk and the degree of taper of the trunk. The trunks of bonsai (in most styles) will be very wide at the base and taper very smoothly to the top of the tree (the apex). One species that illustrates this quite clearly is the Trident Maple (Acer beurgeranum). Notice the way the massive trunk gradually tapers as it reaches the top.

A Few Words of Warning

• Bonsai is an outdoor activity. Trees are outdoor plants, putting them into pots does not transform them into indoor plants. With very few exceptions, if you keep your bonsai indoors they will die. Make room for your collection outside. You'll be happier and your trees will be happier.

• You will make mistakes. Lots of them. Everyone does. In fact, most of us still do.

• You will kill trees. This is a sad fact of the activity, especially as you start out. You are dealing with living things, and you must be respectful of that. Commit yourself to understanding why every tree dies and what can be done to prevent it. Learn from your mistakes and do your best to prevent them in the future.

• Try to limit yourself to a few kinds of plants. Every tree is different. Likewise, every kind of tree is different as well. Maples have differnet requirements from Junipers, which have different requirements from Serrisas, and so on. Learn to care for a few different types of plants, and grown your collection from there.

• Find a club or organization in your area and join. This is, undoubtedly, the best way to learn bonsai. People in these clubs have been, in my experience, always willing to help newcomers and very enthusiastic in their support. It is a great way to learn (most organizations hold workshops, have guest speakers, and even put on shows) and to see more experienced member's trees.

• Perhaps most importantly, understand that when you put a tree in a pot you are committing yourself to the care of that tree. You cannot simply ignore it or it will die. Bonsai is a responsibility as well as a hobby. If you practice it with care and patience, he rewards are tremendous.

• Finally, almost nothing in bonsai is immemdiate. Expect your trees to develop over years, even decades. It may be ten years (or longer) before your plant will actually be a "bonsai." Don't be discouraged by this, but think of it as part of the experience.

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  During my first workshop I had brought in a tree that I had cut some months earlier. To my mind, I had spent a long afternoon shaping, pruning, perfecting and potting it. When I took it to the workshop, the instructor talked to me about branch layout, tree design, and helped me completely reshape the tree. When we were done it looked completely different and, much to my amazement, a hundred times better. Finally, I thought, this tree is finished!

  One of the more experienced club members stopped, looked the tree over, and nodded his head in approval.

  "In twenty years," he told me, "that will be a nice tree."

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Selecting your first tree

In general there are five things that you should look for in nursery stock. First, look at the rootage and check to see if it gives the appearance of a strong foundation. The roots, at the base of the trunk, should appear to gently spread out in a radial pattern (this will be less apparent on junipers) and should both provide a sense of stability and invite you to follow the line of the tree, focusing your attention on the trunk. Good rootage invites you to examine the tree from the ground up!

If the rootage looks good, begin to examine the trunk. The qualities you are looking for in the trunk depend somewhat on the style of the tree. In almost all cases, however, a thich base which tapers gradually and gently to a thin apex will make for a nice tree. If you are thinking about a formal upright design, you will want a very straight trunk, with little or no curvature. If you are considering other styles, you will want to examine how the trunk "moves." Try to find a trunk that curves in interesting or unusual ways, that has some sense of movement, which invites you to examine it further. Follow the main trunk line to its highest point (that will, most likely, be the apex). Does it suggest a design to you? Does it look tree-like? Can you begin to see the tree within the plant?

Third, look at the branching pattern. While most nursery stock will not be trained as bonsai, you should be looking for thick low branches and thinner higher ones. These branches will form the main structure of your tree. Try to imagine how the fit with and balance out the movement of the trunk.

At this point, a style should be suggesting itself to you. Does the tree fit any particular style? Can you see it as a windswept design, as a cascade? What kind of growth and shaping will be required in order for the tree to emerge? Do you see something in that mass of branches, twigs, needles or leaves that others might not? How can you bring it out?

Finally, examine the plant to make sure it is healthy. Pull it out of its container and look to see if there are white fiberous roots (a sign of good health and growth) around the perimeter of the soil. Are the leaves colorful and vibrant? Is there new growth? Does the plant look healthy? As you experiment more and more, signs of growth and health will become more apparent to you. If you suspect the tree is unhealthy, pass on it. For your first (or one of your first) time out, try to pick something that will be able to withstand the process of pruning, wiring and potting that you are going to undertake.

What tools will I need?