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Bonsai Empire Biography & Facts

Bonsai (; Japanese: 盆栽, lit. 'tray planting', pronounced [boɰ̃sai] ) is the Japanese art of growing and shaping miniature trees in containers, developed from the traditional Chinese art form of penjing (盆景). Penjing and bonsai differ in that the former attempts to display "wilder," more naturalistic scenes, often representing landscapes, including elements such as water, rocks, or figurines; on the other hand, bonsai typically focuses on a single tree or a group of trees of the same species, with a higher level of aesthetic refinement. Similar versions of the art exist in other cultures, including the miniature living landscapes of Vietnamese Hòn non bộ. During the Tang dynasty, when penjing was at its height, the art was first introduced from China. The loanword "bonsai" has become an umbrella term in English, attached to many forms of diminutive potted plants, and also on occasion to other living and non-living things. According to Stephen Orr in The New York Times, "the term should be reserved for plants that are grown in shallow containers following the precise tenets of bonsai pruning and training, resulting in an artful miniature replica of a full-grown tree in nature." In the most restrictive sense, "bonsai" refers to miniaturized, container-grown trees adhering to Japanese tradition and principles. Purposes of bonsai are primarily contemplation for the viewer, and the pleasant exercise of effort and ingenuity for the grower. In contrast to other plant cultivation practices, bonsai are not grown for the production of food or for medicine. A bonsai is created beginning with a specimen of source material. This may be a cutting, seedling, a tree from the wild (known as Yamadori) or small tree of a species suitable for bonsai development. Bonsai can be created from nearly any perennial woody-stemmed tree or shrub species that produces true branches and can be cultivated to remain small through pot confinement with crown and root pruning. Some species are popular as bonsai material because they have characteristics, such as small leaves or needles, that make them appropriate for the compact visual scope of bonsai. The source specimen is shaped to be relatively small and to meet the aesthetic standards of bonsai, which emphasizes not the entirety of grand sceneries but rather, only the tree itself. When the candidate bonsai nears its planned final size, it is planted in a display pot, usually one designed for bonsai display in one of a few accepted shapes and proportions. From that point forward, its growth is restricted by the pot environment. Throughout the year, the bonsai is shaped to limit growth, redistribute foliar vigor to areas requiring further development, and meet the artist's detailed design. The practice of bonsai is sometimes confused with dwarfing, but dwarfing generally refers to research, discovery, or creation of plants that are permanent, genetic miniatures of existing species. Plant dwarfing often uses selective breeding or genetic engineering to create dwarf cultivars. Bonsai does not require genetically-dwarfed trees but rather, depends on growing small trees from regular stock and seeds. Bonsai uses cultivation techniques like pruning, root reduction, potting, defoliation, and grafting to produce small trees that mimic the shape and style of mature, full-size trees. History Early versions The Japanese art of bonsai is believed to have originated from bonkei (盆景, penjing in Chinese) introduced from China. In the Tang Dynasty, there was the art of representing natural scenery with plants and stones in a tray. At that time, the term bonkei (penjing) was not yet used in China or Japan. Instead, the term penchi (盆池, lit. 'pond in a tray') was used in the Tang Dynasty. Penchi is a water tray in which water plants such as lotus and rice are planted. In Japan, the term kazan (仮山, lit. 'artificial mountain', later bonsan) was used. In Japan's Shōsōin, a kazan, in which beaches and mountains are made of wood and trees are made of silver on top of them, is still extant, albeit in an incomplete state. A miniature lotus pond made of wood and gilt bronze has also been handed down in the Shōsōin. In this way, there were already bonsan-like works in Japan during the Nara period (710-794), in which natural scenery was represented in a reduced scale. In the Heian period (794-1185), suhama (洲浜, lit. 'Intricate beach'), which expressed a beautiful landscape with plants and trees (often made of artificial materials) and accessories to match the title of a waka poem, were exhibited at poetry contests and competed with each other. Suhama is similar to bonkei, but expresses a uniquely Japanese scene of white sand and green pine trees on a tray with legs that imitate a sandy beach. Later, it came to be called shimadai (島台, lit. 'island tray'), and has been passed down to the present as a wedding ornament. In the medieval period, recognizable bonsai were portrayed in handscroll paintings like the Ippen Shōnin Eden (一遍上人絵伝, 1299). The 1195 scroll Saigyo Monogatari Emaki (西行物語絵巻 is the earliest known to depict dwarfed potted trees in Japan. Wooden tray and dish-like pots with dwarf landscapes on modern-looking wooden shelves also appear in the 1309 Kasuga Gongen Genki E (春日権現験記絵, Legends of Kasuga Shrine) scroll. Dwarf trees displayed on short poles are portrayed in the 1351 Boki Ekotoba scroll. Several other scrolls and paintings also include depictions of these kinds of trees. A close relationship between Japan's Zen Buddhism and the potted trees began to shape bonsai reputation and aesthetics, which were introduced to Japan from China. In this period, Chinese Chan (pronounced "Zen" in Japanese) Buddhist monks taught at Japan's monasteries. One of the monks' activities was to introduce political leaders to various arts of miniature landscapes as admirable accomplishments for men of taste and learning. Potted landscape arrangements up to this period included miniature figurines after the Chinese fashion. Japanese artists eventually adopted a simpler style for bonsai, increasing focus on the tree by removing miniatures and other decorations, and using smaller, plainer pots. Hachi no ki Around the 14th century, the term for dwarf potted trees was "the bowl's tree" (鉢の木, hachi no ki). This indicated use of a fairly deep pot rather than the shallow pot denoted by the eventual term bonsai. Hachi no Ki (The Potted Trees) is also the title of a circa 1383 noh play by Zeami Motokiyo, based on a story about an impoverished samurai who burns his last three potted trees as firewood to warm a traveling monk. The monk is a disguised official who later rewards the samurai for his actions. In later centuries, woodblock prints by several artists depicted this popular drama. There was even a fabric design of the same name. Through these and other popular media, bonsai became known to a broad Japanese population. Bonsai cultivation reached a high level of expertise in t.... Discover the Bonsai Empire popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Bonsai Empire books.