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What is Bonsai?
Bonsai (pronounced bone-sigh) is at it's most basic level the literal Japanese translation, Tree in a Pot. Bon-
meaning pot, and Sai- meaning tree. But not simply any tree in a pot is truly a bonsai. But not every tree or
shrub grown in a container can be regarded as a bonsai. Any plant can be plunked into a bonsai pot, but
that does not make it a bonsai. A tree can be grown in a container for a hundred years, and while it may be
beautiful, isn't necessarily a bonsai.
What sets bonsai apart then, from any other tree merely grown in a pot? A bonsai must have something
more than simply the basic form or structure of a tree. Careful pruning and shaping techniques create
something that is now more than merely a "Tree in a Pot". Special techniques, some two thousand years old
and some created and refined only in the last few decades, are used to create a sense of age and aplomb, an
illusion of a mature or ancient tree growing in the wild, shrunken down in perfect miniature. Or strange,
sweeping forms that mimic intense forces of nature, or even give the impression of another creature, seeing
the lines of a dragon in a gnarled trunk, or the reaching arms of a dancer in the sinuous curves of the
branches. A bonsai can be a perfect miniature of the larger tree, growing in its natural habitat, or a strange
and twisting form that evokes a particular emotion or larger image. There are people in all schools of
thought. Some who see bonsai as a strict art with very specific rules and forms. Others who see a chance to
invoke something particular, whether dream or reality in miniature. A bonsai tree can be a stately elm,
growing its life in the center of a farmer's field, or a gnarled and wizened juniper, clinging to life at the
edge of a sheer cliff face. It can be a grove of quiet maples, almost bringing a sense of serenity and sedate
quiet of still afternoons, or a tangled mangrove of tropical ficus, aerial roots twisting and grasping.
Whatever one considers to be the spirit of bonsai, every bonsai should invoke a sensation or feeling. A
bonsai is, at it's core, a work of living art, always a work in progress. Without the art, it is simply a plant in
a pot.
meaning pot, and Sai- meaning tree. But not simply any tree in a pot is truly a bonsai. But not every tree or
shrub grown in a container can be regarded as a bonsai. Any plant can be plunked into a bonsai pot, but
that does not make it a bonsai. A tree can be grown in a container for a hundred years, and while it may be
beautiful, isn't necessarily a bonsai.
What sets bonsai apart then, from any other tree merely grown in a pot? A bonsai must have something
more than simply the basic form or structure of a tree. Careful pruning and shaping techniques create
something that is now more than merely a "Tree in a Pot". Special techniques, some two thousand years old
and some created and refined only in the last few decades, are used to create a sense of age and aplomb, an
illusion of a mature or ancient tree growing in the wild, shrunken down in perfect miniature. Or strange,
sweeping forms that mimic intense forces of nature, or even give the impression of another creature, seeing
the lines of a dragon in a gnarled trunk, or the reaching arms of a dancer in the sinuous curves of the
branches. A bonsai can be a perfect miniature of the larger tree, growing in its natural habitat, or a strange
and twisting form that evokes a particular emotion or larger image. There are people in all schools of
thought. Some who see bonsai as a strict art with very specific rules and forms. Others who see a chance to
invoke something particular, whether dream or reality in miniature. A bonsai tree can be a stately elm,
growing its life in the center of a farmer's field, or a gnarled and wizened juniper, clinging to life at the
edge of a sheer cliff face. It can be a grove of quiet maples, almost bringing a sense of serenity and sedate
quiet of still afternoons, or a tangled mangrove of tropical ficus, aerial roots twisting and grasping.
Whatever one considers to be the spirit of bonsai, every bonsai should invoke a sensation or feeling. A
bonsai is, at it's core, a work of living art, always a work in progress. Without the art, it is simply a plant in
a pot.