Bonsai is the art of growing and grooming plants in dwarfed or miniaturised form to make them attractive ornamentals (Japanese - bon = tray; sai = tree). Bonsai is a cultural technique for dwarfing plants. It is accomplished through creative design, artistic pruning and shaping, and careful culturing of plants in shallow containers. It is generally believed that bonsai emerged as a form of art in China through many hundred years long trials and errors. Japanese people learned this art from Chinese. Still, their style was quite different from that of Chinese in that it was mainly centred around the miniaturisation trees. PRINCIPLES OF BONSAI The basic aspects of bonsai are related to plant selection, design, pruning and management.

1. BONSAI
DR CHITHRA M

2. BONSAI
 Bonsai is the art of growing and grooming plants in dwarfed or
miniaturised form to make them attractive ornamentals
(Japanese - bon = tray; sai = tree).
 Bonsai is a cultural technique for dwarfing plants.
 It is accomplished through creative design, artistic pruning and
shaping, and careful culturing of plants in shallow containers.
 It is generally believed that bonsai emerged as a form of art in
China through many hundred years long trials and errors.
Japanese people learned this art from Chinese. Still, their style
was quite different from that of Chinese in that it was mainly
centred around the miniaturisation trees.

3. PRINCIPLES OF BONSAI
The basic aspects of bonsai are related to
plant selection, design, pruning and management.
1. PLANT SELECTION
All plants are not suitable or ideal for bonsai.
Plants with small leaves, and restricted growth in
limited space, are most desirable. Plants
generally used include conifers, deciduous trees
and ornamental shrubs.

4. CONIFERS DECIDUOUS TREES ORNAMENTAL SHRUBS

5. 2. DESIGN
Since bonsai is a form of art, creativity is very important for the
overall appeal of the finished product. Longevity also is an
important aspect of bonsai.
Designs are particularly meant for making the plants appear old,
rugged and withered.
Designs of bonsai should be natural. Some designs portray plants
responding to the impacts of natural forces, such as wind.
Designs may include a single tree with a single trunk, a single tree
with multiple trunks, or a group of trees.

6. 3. PRUNING
Pruning to control plant size is also important in bonsai culture.
After establishment, pruning has to be periodically repeated to
restrict growth and to maintain the shape of the bonsai.
Roots and shoots are judiciously pruned to obtain the desired shape
and size and also to control development.
It is often necessary to use wires to force the plant to assume a
desired shape.

7. 4. Management
Bonsai plants need to be properly watered, fertilized,
and placed under appropriate environmental
conditions at all times. This requires effective
supervision and management.

8. TOOLS
A variety of tools are used for pruning and cutting in bonsai
culture. The cutting ends of these tools should be small
enough to cut the parts of the miniature plants.
(i) Small scissors for root pruning.
(ii) Pliers for cutting tap root.
(iii) Pruning scissors for shoot pruning.
(iv) Leaf cutter for leaf pruning.

9. (v) Clippers for shaping the bark of limbs.
(vi) Copper wires of desired gauge (10-12) for forcing
trunk and branches to assume a desired shape and to
grow in a desired direction.
(vii) Wire cutter for cutting away the copper wire that are
used for shaping trunk and branches.
(viii) Concave cutter for making holes on the trunk.

10. (ix) Saw for removing unwanted branches.
(x) Rake for uprooting seedlings from soil and also for raking the
soil in the pot.
(xi) Filter for filtering the soil during potting.
(xii) Plastic net for plugging the drainage holes of the pot.

11. CONTAINER
The selected plant can be left in its original container during the
initial stages of bonsai culture. After top working is completed, it
should be transplanted to a bonsai container, which is
characteristically very shallow. Bonsai containers are usually round,
but they can also be oblong or rectangular. The colour of the
container should not be bright (brown and green are the preferred
colours). Earthern pots, with unglazed inner face, are the best.
Drainage holes should be provided at the bottom of the container.

12. PLANT SELECTION
Both deciduous and evergreen plants, purchased from a
local nursery or collected from natural surroundings, can
be excellent bonsai materials. It is always better to look for
seedlings that are already rugged and irregular in
appearance. When such a plant is found, it should be
carefully taken out and transplanted in the dormant
period. It is important to dig up (rather than by plucking)
all the roots, together with a ball of soil.

13. Plant selection
Both deciduous and evergreen plants, purchased from
a local nursery or collected from natural
surroundings, can be excellent bonsai materials. It is
always better to look for seedlings that are already
rugged and irregular in appearance. When such a
plant is found, it should be carefully taken out and
transplanted in the dormant period. It is important to
dig up (rather than by plucking) all the roots, together
with a ball of soil.

14. Plant shape and primary pruning
The selected plant should be examined for desirable features,
such as natural curves, turns and twists. The designer should
first decide and work for the best viewing angle of the finished
product. The lowest primary branch of the future plant should
be identified and all the unwanted branches below it should be
removed. Dead branches, if any, below the lowest branch can be
retained, provided they add to the attraction. The maximum
height of the bonsai must be decided next. The plant should then
be pruned to that height. The branches between the top and
bottom ones are to be pruned in such a way that the upper ones
are shorter than the lower ones.

15. Downwardly pointing branches may be completely removed.
During the initial pruning stage, one or two lowest branches
may be cut away, leaving 2-4 inches long stumps whose bark
is stripped off to kill it. This creates dead wood (aging), which
enhances the beauty of the design. The tap root should be
removed to encourage the growth of lateral or secondary
roots. When starting from seed, pruning must begin when the
seedling is young. Tap root and main stem are pruned to
induce lateral branching.

16. Secondary pruning
Secondary pruning is done quite frequently to
preserve the plant shape, to remove unwanted
branching, and to control growth. Leaves are
chipped and sometimes completely removed in
deciduous species. Regular removal of buds
produces smaller leaves.

17. Wiring
Stem and branches may be forced to assume unnatural shapes
by twisting a copper wire around them and bending them in a
different direction. Wiring starts from the lower part of the
stem or branch and progresses to the tip.

18. Thinner wires are used for thinner limbs.
Branches that are close to each other can be pushed
apart first by wiring and then by bending.
These operations should be done very carefully to
avoid bruising the bark or breaking off the limb.
The ends of the wires should be tucked away from
view. Wires should be removed after the desired shape
is obtained.
The base of the trunk must be deliberately wired to
induce thickening.

19. AGEING
The technique by which apperance is established is called
jin.
A simple grafting knife can be used for this purpose.
After stripping off the bark, the bare surface is polished
with fine-grade sand paper. then, dilute citric acid
solution is rubbed on the bare surface to bleach the area.
the result is the appearance of aged plants.

20. Repotting of bonsai
For repotting the bonsai, a piece of wire is passed
through the holes in the bottom of the container to
anchor the plant. A fine wire mesh is stretched over
the drainage hole, and a layer of gravel or potting
medium is placed to a depth of about 1 inch in the
container.

21. Root pruning
For root pruning, the plant is removed from its
container and its roots are examined after removing
much of the soil. The tap root is cut away, leaving a
short stump. Some lateral roots are also pruned in such
a way that the remaining roots fit into the bonsai
container.

22. Balancing the plant
With a reduced root system, the plant is often heavy
and needs to be fixed in the shallow container. This
can be managed by tying the plant with an anchor
wire that passes through the drainage holes. After
that, more potting medium is added to cover the
roots. This forms a mound around the base of stem.

23. Watering and fertilizing
Watering and fertilizing are two operations that are
very critical to the success of a bonsai. Growth
control depends on the extent of watering and
fertilizing. Since the bonsai container is shallow, the
plant should be watered thoroughly. The spout of the
watering can should be capped with a head that
delivers a fine spray.

24. Slow-acting fertilizers are most desirable. Specially
formulated bonsai fertilizers may be purchased from a
nursery. Organic fertilizers, containing nitrogen,
phosphorous and potassium in the ratio 50:30:20, are
compounded from materials such as bone meal and fish
meal. Bonsai plants are fertilized during the active growing
period. Fertilizing of flowering and fruiting bonsai plants
should be delayed until flowering.

25. Bonsai plants are generally designed for outdoors. So,
when they are used indoors, appropriate adjustments
should be made to provide the necessary
environmental conditions for proper growth and
development.

26. Bonsai styles
Different styles have been adopted for miniaturising
trees, retaining their natural features. Some of the
common styles of bonsai are the following