THE US REPORT

Standing on my deck a few weeks ago, I recalled a story I did about bonsai. I was about to repot the hibiscus that had outgrown its container on my deck. Originally shaped as a topiary, the hibiscus wanted more space and I suspect, to shape itself. It turned itself to the left, perhaps because that’s the side where the sun is strongest. It reminded me of some of the bonsai I’d seen when I did the story for The Florida Times Union. A master gardener told me, “Bonsai combines both art form and horticulture.”

I also learned the term itself is more complex than we realize, because bonsai doesn’t just refer to the tiny tree. The term means the tree and the pot.  The master gardener also talked about what you might call the principles of bonsai. He said the art form actually originated in China instead of Japan where interest arose in the 1600s because of trade between the two countries.

The objective is to recreate nature in miniature, shaping a presentation similar to the tree in its natural habitat.
Americans grew interested in the ancient craft after servicemen returned from World War II. Those who’d been in Japan were amazed at replicas of large trees. And the bonsai really doesn’t begin with a tree, but rather with a branch. Properly cut and potted, the branch becomes the tree.

There are a number of designs for establishing the roots, trunk, branches and foliage. The gardener told me those elements all work together to take on the proportion of the tree you see in nature. You know you’ve done your bonsai properly if you snap a photo of it and it’s hard to tell how large it is. The idea is to create nature in miniature.  That’s why what the gardener calls “negative space” is important. Trees in nature have space between their branches and so should a bonsai. Otherwise, you end up with something that looks like a shrub rather than a tree.

Different presentations suggest different states in nature. Some cascade, or spill their branches between the rim or the foot of the pot. Others are formal and upright with the apex of the tree top centered. Dead wood can be an asset, because it suggests age and hardship.

One of the more challenging styles, the Literati, renders the tree trunk slender, but strangely bent with sparse foliage. This style resembles images in ancient Chinese paintings and Japanese woodblock prints. Often when a bonsai is displayed, a “companion plant” is set beside the bonsai. Species like mondo grass are often used. The companion plant is smaller than the bonsai, and offers an added visual dimension.  Bonsai can even be started from seed.  I heard about a fellow in Hawaii who drills holes in lava rock and drops Schefflera seed into the holes. He puts them into a tray with water. Properly tended, a bonsai can live for a long time. Australia’s Brisbane Botanic Gardens have trees that are 80 years old.

There’s a mystique in growing and shaping a work that recreates nature on a small scale. The practice engages the imagination of gardeners partly because the finished product is a true work of art, the vision of a single craftsman. There are photos of some beautiful bonsai at a blog written by Hans Van Meer. With bonsai, a natural art form far more complex than I realized, the vastness and grace of the natural world can be brought inside, magnifying even the smallest space. (Story & photo filed by Kay B. Day)