Bonsai is the Japanese art of growing dwarf trees. What is bonsai? How to grow a miniature tree at home

Growing bonsai is not just a creative hobby. Miniature plants are art, a living organism that grows and changes daily.

The ancient art of bonsai

« Bonsai"translated from Japanese as " wood in a flat vessel" It was first mentioned in Chinese chronicles about 2000 years ago. Dwarf plants decorated the gardens and houses of the nobility and were used for meditation, contemplation and reflection. Over time, beauty and harmony miniature compositions became an art that later flourished in Japan.

Japanese masters adopted the basic techniques and methods from the Chinese, but it was in the Land of the Rising Sun that they formed classic styles growing. The formed bonsai should resemble a tree or shrub in nature.

Bonsai came to our country only in 1974 as a gift from the wife of the Japanese ambassador. Since the beginning of the 90s, their popularity in Russia, as well as throughout the world, began to grow. Amateur clubs, nurseries for cultivation are created, exhibitions are organized.

Types of plants for bonsai

There are many trees and shrubs suitable for growing plant miniatures. How to decide?

The most unpretentious and small-leaved ficus species that are excellent for first experience.

Ficus benjamina and ficus obtuse

Evergreen trees. They winter well in room conditions. They don’t retire, they just slow down their growth. They grow quickly, you need to periodically thin out the crown.

Experienced gardeners can expand their list with subtropical deciduous and.

An evergreen coniferous plant, in nature it grows up to 10 m. It grows quickly, most species are perfectly formed from an early age. Resistant to pests. used for outdoor bonsai.

Dwarf pomegranate

Year-round flowering shrub from the Mediterranean, the flowers are small, bright red. In indoor conditions it can bear fruit. Pomegranate is shaped in all Japanese styles.

More difficult to grow - a group of deciduous plants middle zone. For them it is necessary to create special conditions for wintering.

More than 150 species are known. Maple is one of the symbols of bonsai in Japan. Valued for its beautiful decorative leaves, colored crimson in autumn. Light-loving, but can grow in shady places. Resistant to adverse conditions. Tolerates pruning well.

Blooming sakura (Japanese cherry) is a sight of special beauty. Its flowering in nature is celebrated annually in Japan as a national holiday. The trunk of the tree is red-brown in color with a dense crown. Bright pink and white flowers with a diameter of 1 cm are collected in inflorescences of several pieces. Grown as in open ground, and at home.

How to choose a bonsai in a store?

It is better to purchase plants in garden stores or in nurseries. They offer two options: young plants aged 2-3 years, which need to be trimmed at home and transplanted into a flat container or a ready-made bonsai.

What should you pay attention to when purchasing?

Appearance of the plant

The plant should look healthy: have good root system, lush crown and a strong trunk without scratches or wounds. It is acceptable to have a few yellowed leaves on the lower branches of deciduous plants in autumn period, but you should discard plants with half-dead leaves. The soil in the pot should not be waterlogged.

Presence of pests and diseases

They should not be on branches, trunk or ground. If it so happens that pests and diseases are discovered after purchase, then immediate treatment with drugs will prevent the spread of infection. The old soil is replaced by adding the drug Bazudin or Aktara to the new substrate to destroy the larvae.

What conditions are needed for growing?

Illumination

Plants have different lighting needs: some like constant bright light, others thrive in partial shade.

The location also depends on the orientation of the windows (north, south, west, east). Plants are placed so that the sun is available three to four hours a day. Every 2–4 weeks the containers are rotated 180°. IN winter time If the shoots begin to stretch, artificial lighting is provided.

Humidity

Optimal air humidity in a dry urban room is maintained by regularly spraying plants and the air around them with settled water. Placing trays of water and aquariums near the bonsai tree has a positive effect.

Temperature

Temperature conditions throughout the year must be consistent natural conditions in the homeland of plants.

Plants of the middle zone in warm weather keep on outdoors, for the winter they are either left there covered, or brought into a glassed-in loggia.

Subtropical plants in summer they are on the balcony, in the garden or near open window, during the cold period they are kept indoors at a temperature not exceeding 15°C.

Tropical A year-round temperature of 18°C ​​to 25°C is required.

The soil

Bonsai soil must retain moisture and provide the plant with oxygen and nutrition. Good substrate consists of peat, sand and humus soil(leaf or pine humus) in proportions corresponding to the needs of each species.

How to choose a pot?

The pot is the second most important element of a bonsai. Together with the plant they create a perfect harmonious image. Depending on the plant species and style, containers can be different shapes: round, oval, multifaceted, deep or flat.

For example, For cascade style fit tall and narrow, for formal and informal vertical styles round, square or rectangular are best.

It is preferable to use clay pots of natural colors: brown, gray, black, white. It is important that the coloring is not flashy and does not dominate the overall appearance. To drain, containers must have drainage holes.

How to grow bonsai from seeds?

Growing bonsai from seeds is a long journey, but some plants that do not take cuttings well or at all can only be propagated this way. These include: , cedars, maples, oaks, lindens, birches, elms, poplars and so on.

Seeds are prepared for sowing. Without pre-treatment, there will be fewer seedlings and you will have to wait longer for them. Conventionally, three groups of seeds can be distinguished:

1. Does not require stratification. Minimal processing required for seeds tropical and subtropical plants(, coffee, ficus), as well as some deciduous, whose seeds in nature ripen in early summer and sprout by autumn. It is enough to soak them for a day in warm water. If the seeds have a hard shell, then to stimulate germination it is carefully sawed off, being careful not to damage the core.
2. Requiring cold stratification. This group includes plants that live in places where alternation between warm and cold periods is common. After soaking, the seeds are placed in damp sand, sphagnum, vermiculite and kept in the cold for one to six months at temperatures up to 5°C. Seeds are periodically checked to monitor the appearance of sprouts and prevent rotting.
3. Requiring warm stratification. Plant seeds, genus from regions with mild winter(Southern Europe) After soaking and before cold stratification, they are kept for a month or two at a temperature of 15–20°C. Some of them are placed in hot water with a temperature of 40°C and left in it after cooling for a day. Then transferred to the cold. This is how plants artificially create an imitation of the changing seasons.

After seed treatment, sowing begins. You need flat, shallow containers with drainage holes and a lightweight substrate that does not retain water, for example, a mixture of peat and sand. To avoid rot and fungal diseases, the soil is watered with a fungicide. Seeds that germinate in the light are left on the surface, lightly pressed into the substrate. The rest are planted to a depth of 0.5 to 12 cm, depending on the size of the seeds.

At first, they only need moisture and warmth to germinate. The air temperature should be at least 25°C, after emergence it is reduced to 18°C. In order to develop safely, it is important for seedlings good lighting and moderate watering. Picking is carried out 3–4 weeks after germination, placing one plant at a time in small pots.

Propagation by cuttings

More quick way reproduction. Suitable for , boxwood, cypress, willow, ficus, cotoneaster and so on. When propagated by cuttings, all parental characteristics are preserved: the shape of the crown and leaves.

The best time for cuttings is March-August. The upper or middle part of the shoot, 8–25 cm long, depending on the type of plant, is taken and cut with a knife or pruning shears. There must be at least two nodes on the cutting.

The shoot is placed in water or in the substrate so that the lower node is buried. Roots will then begin to form from it. The soil must be porous, allowing water and air to pass through. Will do river sand, perlite, peat, sphagnum moss. When cuttings, growth stimulants can be used.

The cuttings are watered, periodically sprayed with water or covered with a jar or plastic bag. The room must be lighted, ventilated, with an air temperature of at least 24°C.

Rooting times vary; some species require more than one month. The appearance of young leaves in most species signals the appearance of roots. But for spruce this is not an indicator. Their shoot growth is faster than root formation.

After the roots appear, the plants are opened and ventilated daily. Transplant into separate pots after the plants have become stronger, after 2–3 months.

How to care?

Watering

The most important part of care. Most often, trees and shrubs die due to errors in watering. Water them as needed. The soil should be moist, but not dry or wet. Only the top layer is allowed to dry. Use settled, soft water so that mineral salts do not form a crust on the surface of the soil and trunk.

IN winter period For tropical and deciduous plants watering is reduced. Exception - conifers, since additional moisture saves them from dry air in the house. Watering for all species is combined with air humidification.

Fertilizer

Organic and mineral fertilizers without mixing them with each other. Plants are fed from spring, when they begin to grow, until autumn, once every 3-4 weeks.

Transfer

In the first year, the young tree grows freely; until 3–4 years old, it is replanted once a year. Afterwards, the regularity of transplantation is determined individually for each species.

The signal for the need for replanting is the emergence of roots into the drainage holes of the pot. The plant is removed from the pot, the lower and lateral roots are carefully cut off by 2–3 cm, planted in a new bowl and watered. The procedure is carried out in March-April, at the beginning of active growth.

Crown formation

The trunk and branches of the tree are the central parts of the image. The trunk should have a powerful base, gradually decreasing towards the crown. To form it, remove all branches that are unnecessary for the chosen style, the rest are shortened by at least 1/3.

The volume of the roots should be approximately equal to the volume of the crown. By trimming the crown, the roots are also shortened.

Regular pruning of branches keeps the tree miniature. When pruning, the lower shoots are left longer. Shortening the branches sets a new direction for growth - young shoots begin to grow from the buds located near the cut.

To significantly change the direction of branch growth, pruning alone is not enough. To obtain the desired result, use wire. It is first attached to the trunk or the thickest branch, then attached to a thinner one. No more than two branches are secured with one wire. You also need to make sure that the wires do not cross and do not cut into the bark of the branch.

Branches that are too thick are secured with tension wire, both ends of which are fixed in loops of thicker wire, secured through drainage holes in the bottom of the pot.

"Aging" of wood

You can give your bonsai an “ancient” look using:

Threads

Use a chisel or power tool to remove the bark from a certain area. These areas are then treated with a special cutter. This creates a cracked effect old wood. This method is used only during the dormant period on healthy trees that have been growing in a pot for at least two years.

Creating cracks and scars

Using chisels different sizes and a hammer make indentations on the barrel. Coal powder is rubbed into these places, the cracks will darken and look natural. Pressing a chisel into the wood and pulling it down the trunk will create a scar - a cavity rougher than a crack.

Imitation of rotting

Using a grinder, make several vertical cuts on the trunk, deepening them if necessary.

“Old” plants are protected, regularly watered, sprayed and not fed for a month.

Pests, diseases

Aphid

The first sign of infection is the appearance of a sticky light coating on the leaves. A quick and easy way to get rid of it is to wash the leaves with soapy water. Do this three times with a break of 3 days. If the aphids have bred, then use an aerosol insecticide. It is carefully sprayed on all sides and the plant is covered with a plastic bag for 30–40 minutes. The treatment is also carried out 3 times.

Spider mite

Feeds vegetable juices, causing the leaves to turn yellow and fall off. For prevention, spraying is carried out more often. If a mite does appear, then they fight it, like aphids, with aerosol agents.

Whitefly

A small white butterfly settles on the underside of a leaf. If there are a small number of pests, the plants are washed with soapy water. If the colony of insects has increased, then pesticides are used.

Shchitovka

Hides on the bottom of leaves and young shoots. Looks like brown plaques. Remove the scale by hand, washing the plant well. The procedure is repeated as new individuals appear.

Mealybug

The pest is white in color with a fluffy skin. Forms nests of many individuals. Aerosol chemicals are used for control.

Powdery mildew

Fungal disease. Appears on leaves as white plaque. Control measures include the use of fungicides.

Root rot

The most common reason occurrence - poor drainage. Roots can also be damaged by frost and watering with concentrated fertilizers. The tips of the shoots begin to dry out.

The diseased specimen is carefully removed from the pot, the rotten roots are removed to the healthy part, and the cut sites are treated with foundationazole and a growth stimulator. It is recommended to temporarily place the plants in sterile sand until signs of decay disappear.

Anyone can grow a bonsai. One or several plants will open up a whole world for the gardener, take him on an amazing journey and help him find harmony and himself.

Bonsai are miniature replicas of real trees grown in a tray. Translated from Japanese, bonsai means “grown in a tray.” The concept of this art came to Japan from China more than a thousand years ago and has been constantly evolving since then. It was in Japan that bonsai grew to the level of a fine art.

There are many techniques for pruning roots and branches that allow you to control the growth of the plant while maintaining natural proportions. Typically, trees such as pine, sakura, maple or fruit trees, for example, quince.

Bonsai styles

There are many styles of bonsai art. The most famous are:

• formal straight style,
• informal straight style,
• oblique style - a tree with a straight trunk growing at an angle to the ground,
• cascade - imitation of a tree growing near water,
• semi-cascade style - imitation of a tree with a trunk partially submerged or covered with earth,
• “root on a stone” style - a tree grows above a stone protruding from the ground, the roots entwine the stone.

• along with the trees themselves, trays and stones are important elements art of bonsai. However, unlike China, in Japan they choose less brightly colored trays, most often using dark or earthy colors.
• To enjoy the art of bonsai according to all the rules, you must first look at the composition from above and evaluate general form. Then you need to bend down to the level of the composition and try to imagine yourself small, looking at the tree from a “natural” environment.

Where can you see bonsai in Japan?

One of best places to discover the art of bonsai in Japan - Bonsai Village Omiya, located in Saitama Prefecture. The village is a bonsai nursery that was moved to Saitama from Tokyo after the Great Kanto Earthquake (1923). The village is also home to a magnificent museum of bonsai art.

Another great place for bonsai lovers is the Bonsai Village in Kinasi, located in Takamatsu. Kinasi is a leading manufacturer of bonsai trees. There are more than 30 nurseries located here.

Ancient Buddhists believed that the soul experiences a rebirth after death, and there is no worse fate for a person than to be reborn into a bonsai tree. Indeed, during the process of its growth, the branches of the tree are twisted and the roots are pruned to achieve the ideal shape of the plant. However, it was the followers of Buddhism who had a hand in the mass dissemination of the art of miniature trees.

Growing bonsai, according to the ideas of Buddhist monks, equated man with God, since the earthly world is the garden of Buddha, and he is the great gardener in it.

Excursion into history

The first bonsai appeared in ancient China back in the 8th century. There is a legend according to which one of the emperors of the ancient Han dynasty decided to see his empire in miniature and ordered the creation of an exact copy of all its corners, and this is how the first dwarf trees appeared.

But miniature copies of trees are associated more with Japanese culture, for which they have become an integral part. The art of Bonsai, brought to the land of the rising sun by Buddhist monks, organically fit into Japanese traditions, since the original beliefs of the Japanese were based on the worship of natural objects - plants, stones, water. Nature, according to the Japanese, personified the divine essence. Having accepted Buddhism as official religion, the Japanese people also adopted the idea of ​​​​the sacredness of the Bodhi tree, under whose branches Buddha achieved enlightenment and which, in a sense, is the prototype of bonsai.

In Japan, the art of bonsai went through a period of its formation, trees became objects cultural value and collectibles, because, despite small sizes, they can be several centuries old. Japanese masters emphasize the spiritual value of bonsai as an embodiment of the beauty of nature and the ability to find a source of inspiration in the surrounding world.

Choosing a Bonsai Plant

Almost all trees are suitable for growing a miniature tree, but for beginners it is better to choose unpretentious and fast-growing species. The hardest thing to grow conifers trees - in Japan, the creators of spruce or pine bonsai are considered real masters.

If you want to grow a bonsai from a small seedling from the very beginning, it is better to choose a plant adapted to the local climate, so there is a better chance that it will take root. It is necessary to plant young trees, no more than three years old. For starters, or will do.

Plants selected from the natural environment (yamadori) need to imitate the change of seasons - they need to overwinter indoors with temperatures down to -5˚C. It is impossible to keep trees at lower temperatures; the root system will freeze. It is not recommended for beginners to take plants from nature; they are difficult to form and care for; for the first experience, it is better to choose a houseplant that does not need wintering.

The best option for home bonsai are ficus trees. They are unpretentious, do not need wintering and are easy to form into beautiful plant in almost any style. Use better variety plants with small leaves, but . It grows very quickly, its trunk and branches bend well. In addition to ficus, you can choose,. ON THE PICTURE: Ficus benjamina bonsai

If you want to grow a tree from a seed, a shrubby succulent, a compact plant with a very beautiful flowers. Adenium seeds have a high germination rate, the plant grows quickly and is easy to care for. The trunk of this plant has a characteristic thickening (caudex), this will make the finished bonsai even more unusual.
ON THE PICTURE: Adenium bonsai

When choosing a bonsai you should pay attention to appearance plants, its condition, compliance with the declared style, resemblance to a real miniature plant. The tree should look healthy and strong. If you are choosing a deciduous plant, it is better to buy it during the period when the tree is overwintering, that is, has no leaves, so you can inspect all the shoots. Coniferous trees must have shiny needles.

Growing bonsai is a labor-intensive process and requires a lot of time to develop, at least 4–5 years. Therefore, you can purchase a ready-made adult tree.

There should be no marks on the tree bark from the wire used to form the bends of the trunk. Choose better wood up to 30 cm in height, with evenly distributed branches and a well-developed root system.

It is recommended to buy a tree in specialized stores or nurseries, this guarantees that the plant was grown with proper care and in proper conditions. In addition, from specialists you can obtain all the necessary information about a specific specimen, which will help organize further care and formation of the bonsai. You should not buy plants from regular stores for a home with a flower department - they sell only ordinary dwarf trees or stylized bonsai trees.

Bonsai care

Bonsai are very whimsical, so that the tree does not die and does not turn into an ordinary specimen of a houseplant, it is necessary to maintain comfortable environmental conditions for it. First of all this:

Illumination

Indoor bonsai are plants that often grow in tropical or subtropical climates and therefore require plenty of light. In the climate of central Russia, they, especially in winter, require additional lighting, for which it is better to use fluorescent lamps. Deciduous plants do not need light during the winter after the leaves have fallen; they can be moved to a cool, shaded place. Conifers and evergreens need lighting all year round.

How much light a particular plant needs depends on its species. When choosing a location for a bonsai, it is necessary to take into account all factors that affect illumination: the direction of the world, the distance from the window opening, the angle of incidence of the sun's rays.

The light is also important factor During the formation of a plant, with a lack of lighting, it changes shape - the branches stretch towards the light source, the lower, shaded branches atrophy. The bonsai must be rotated relative to the light source so that the tree develops evenly. However, you should not place the plant in the sun, especially at noon - this may have a negative effect on it. Almost all types of flora do not tolerate direct sunlight.
ON THE PICTURE: Placing the bonsai away from the window will protect the tree from direct exposure sunlight

Temperature

Choice temperature regime depends on the type of tree. Some plants need a cool winter, some all year round can be kept without changing the temperature environment. Subtropical species in winter should be kept at a temperature of no more than +15˚C, and in summer they will do better outdoors. Tropical - kept year-round at a temperature of +18–25˚C.

Classic tree bonsai in Japan are always outdoors; in our climate this is impossible, since the plants do not tolerate temperatures below 0˚C.

Humidity

Bonsai need humid air, That's why the best way out there will be an acquisition special humidifier. If this is not possible, then the container with the tree can be placed on a tray with gravel, which must be constantly moistened. You can place containers of water on operating heating radiators; this will also make the air in the room more humid. Spraying gives a good effect; it must be carried out daily, preferably in the morning.
ON THE PICTURE: Spraying of Carmona (Heretia) should be carried out year-round (source - http://www.bonsaiforum.ru)

Watering

Most miniature trees require frequent watering. The most important thing in watering bonsai is to maintain optimal soil moisture so that it does not dry out, but is not flooded with water for a long time. Water the bonsai through a watering can with small holes or by half-immersing the pot in a container of water for a while. All the soil in the container should be moistened. Most plants do not tolerate “hard” water with a high salt content; rain or melt water is better for them. Tap water Before watering, it is necessary to stand - the impurities will settle and the water will heat up to air temperature. Bonsai cannot be watered cold water why - you can find out from the article. The plant pot must have large drainage holes to avoid water stagnation.

Top dressing

Bonsai is demanding when it comes to feeding due to the small volume of substrate in the bowl in which it is grown. Fertilizer recommendations on the packaging must be carefully followed (for coniferous plants It is better to divide the dose into two). The fertilizers themselves must be extremely High Quality, preferably liquid and separate (separately phosphorus, potassium and nitrogen). Excessive feeding is also harmful - you can damage the root system of the plant and spoil the soil. During the formation of a plant, when it grows intensively, it is necessary to use complex fertilizers. Later, fertilizing with a low nitrogen content is usually used so as not to increase plant growth. Plants should not be fed after replanting or pruning, during illness or wintering.

Disease and pest control

Bonsai, like all plants, can suffer from certain diseases and be affected by pests. This is usually due to errors in the conditions of detention. To avoid this, you should adhere to the basic rules for growing:

1. It is necessary to carefully monitor the cleanliness of equipment used to care for the plant. All instruments must be washed in a soapy solution. Blades of tools for pruning plants are disinfected with alcohol before storing.
2. The pruning areas must be treated with garden varnish to prevent infection.
3. Branches of weakened, diseased or damaged plants should not be pruned until they have recovered.
4. The bonsai should be in a sunny place. Fungi, most often disease-causing in miniature plants, they love damp and dark rooms, where they reproduce well. If a fungal infection is detected, the tree must be sprayed with fungicidal agents, the affected leaves must be removed, and it is better to stop watering and spraying the plant for a while.
5. Regular inspection of the leaves and branches of the plant, collection and destruction of detected insects is necessary. If necessary, suitable insecticides should be used.

Subject to the rules of care and maintenance of home bonsai long years will delight you with its beauty. Shaping a plant in a certain way is not just entertainment, but a real art, a unique way of learning and changing existence, which can be accessed through a miniature tree.

1. If you want to form a bonsai of a certain style, carefully select suitable plant. Not all types can be brought to the desired shape.
2. For newbies the best option they will be unpretentious houseplants, which do not need the change of seasons.
3. For your first attempt, do not take a plant from its natural environment - it will take a lot of effort, some experience and endurance for it to take on the intended appearance.
4. When purchasing a ready-made bonsai, remember that you will have to continue shaping the tree yourself, otherwise it will lose its decorative appearance.
5. When caring for a bonsai, the main thing is to provide it the necessary conditions content, timely pruning and feeding.
6. Before planting or purchasing a bonsai, consider whether you have enough time to care for the tree as much as it needs.

The word "bonsai" is of Japanese origin and means a plant (sai) in a low container (bon). But not every tree in a low container is a bonsai. This concept is quite definite. A true bonsai is a work of art created by an artist who used living material and followed all the canons of this art.

(formal vertical style)

Suitable for spruce, larch, juniper, zelkova and ginkgo. If the tree does not experience competition from other trees, is not exposed to strong prevailing winds, and has sufficient nutrition and water, it will grow straight upward and its trunk will have a conical shape. The branches of bonsai trees should not be symmetrical; the upper branches should be shorter and thinner than the lower ones. The branches should extend horizontally from the trunk, and some lower branches may curve downward slightly. To prevent the container from tipping over, its weight and the weight of the tree should be approximately equal.

Suitable for a large number of species.
Under the influence of strong prevailing winds, the tree grows with an inclination, the same shape can be observed in a plant growing in the shade and reaching towards the sun. The tree trunk, which may be straight or slightly curved, should be inclined at an angle of 70 to 90° relative to the surface of the container. On one side of the tree, the roots are strongly developed, and it seems that they firmly hold onto the soil, and on the side of the leaning trunk, they go into the ground.

Suitable for almost all types of trees.
This style is widely found in nature and in many bonsai. The tree trunk has a number of bends, the bottom of which should be clearly pronounced. As with the formal upright style, the trunk is conical, the branches are arranged symmetrically, and the crown matches the thickness of the trunk.

Suitable for pines, cotoneasters, pyracanthas and junipers. Not recommended for trees with strong, poorly bending trunks.
A tree growing on a steep cliff can bend for many reasons - due to falling stones, under its own weight or the weight of snow, due to lack of light. This is the “cascade” style, created by nature itself. In relation to bonsai, this means that the crown of the tree should be located below the top edge of the container. It can be quite difficult to keep a cascade plant healthy as it tends to grow upward.

Suitable for all types, with the exception of strong, poorly bending trees.
This style, like the “cascade”, is found in nature in trees growing on steep slopes, along river banks and in swamps. Due to the proximity of water, the trunk does not grow downward, but rather in a horizontal direction. In semi-cascade style bonsai trees, the crown only falls slightly below the top edge of the container.

Suitable for most coniferous or broad-leaved trees.
This style takes its name from the painting style used by Chinese artists when drawing imaginary trees. The peculiarity of this style: an elegantly curved trunk line, with a complete absence of lower branches, the crown is located only in the upper part of the tree. We can find similar trees in the forest, when, due to lack of sunlight and crowded conditions, their lower branches die off, and the trunk looks gnarled and rough.

Suitable for broad-leaved trees with thin branches such as zelkova, elm and hornbeam.
In nature, this style is almost ideally observed in Zeikova (zelkova). When creating bonsai, this style can be used for several other species as well. The trunk is strictly vertical, but not too long, all branches diverge from one point. The crown is spherical and very dense. Thanks to many thin branches, the tree has an attractive appearance even without foliage. Overall the tree resembles an old broom.

Suitable for juniper.
In junipers growing on mountain slopes, significant parts of the trunk are not covered with bark and are bleached by the sun. In bonsai, these areas of dead wood are especially important and should be clearly visible. They are created artificially by cutting off certain areas of the bark and then bleaching them.

Suitable for all species with strongly developed roots, such as maple, Chinese elm, pine and juniper.
In rocky soils, some plants survive by digging their roots around boulders to find water and nutrients that accumulate in cracks and voids. The roots, exposed to the winds and exposed to various vicissitudes of weather, soon begin to resemble a trunk. An important element of bonsai is the spectacular interweaving of roots that look old. The tree itself can be grown in any style, but formal upright and "broom" will not best choice. Because the plant draws its nutrition from the container, caring for it is not much more difficult than other styles of plants. Replant so that the stone with its roots is clearly visible.

Suitable for pine, maple, flowering quince and rhododendron.
In this style of composition, trees grow from cracks in the stones. The roots seem to go into the stone and from there the plant receives all the necessary nutrition and water. For bonsai of this style, regular watering is very important, since the supply of moisture in the cracks is limited. To provide high humidity ambient air, the stone can be placed in a shallow dish with water. By planting a few trees, you can create a landscape.

Suitable for all types of trees. This silhouette is widespread in nature. Two trunks grow from one root, and one is much more powerful than the second. In bonsai this style can be created artificially when a second trunk is formed from a lower branch. Make sure that the branch is not placed too high, otherwise it will form a “fork” that will not fit into the bonsai style.

This style is suitable for all types of trees.
All trunks grow from one root and cannot be separated. This is the main difference between these plants and a group of separately growing specimens. It is similar to the twin barrel style, but here we are talking about three or more barrels.

Suitable for all types of trees.
Sometimes a fallen tree can survive by throwing up side branches that form new tree trunks. The old horizontal trunk is still visible. This style is often used in bonsai, especially when there is source material that has branches on one side. Unlike a group of individual plants in this style, the distance between individual trunks does not change

http://www.bonsai.narod.ru/style.html

The first manifestations of art, which today is considered an important part of oriental culture, dates back more than 2000 years. Although the official age of bonsai as a separate movement is approximately 1300 years. There are many legends and theories regarding the moment of its origin. According to one of them, the first admirer of this trend in art was the Chinese emperor from the Han dynasty (200 BC). One day the ruler had a desire to learn more about his empire. Naturally, the emperor could not travel all over the Celestial Empire, so groups of several dozen educated people were sent to all the provinces of China in order to study the characteristics of the area and subsequently depict them in miniature. Thus a miniature empire was created, which depicted rivers, mountains, trees, houses, livestock and even people on a significantly reduced scale. For the future model, the ruler ordered the construction of a wide platform of marble, the outlines of which should be identical to the outlines of the map of the country. Everything was done exactly as the emperor wished - the imported Chinese landscapes were installed near the palace. Then the art of depicting miniature landscapes began, which has gone through a long and difficult journey, constantly transforming and improving.

During the Middle Ages, along with Buddhist teachings and other cultural riches of the continent, the art of creating bonsai spread to Japan, where it initially took root among representatives of high society, in particular aristocrats, high-ranking samurai and Buddhist clergy, and later, at the beginning of the 18th century, at the national level .

The bonsai style was also developed by Buddhists, equating the person who grows the tree with God, since, according to their vision, the world looks like the garden of Buddha, in which he is the gardener.

Japanese craftsmen diligently refined the skills of foreign masters and turned the usual decorative techniques of Chinese gardeners into a self-sufficient and elegant art. The cultivation of miniature trees has become an integral part of Japanese culture. It was in the vastness of the Land of the Rising Sun that the method of growing bonsai most actively developed and reached its perfection.

At the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries, centuries-old Japanese bonsai traditions penetrated to the West. In Europe, the first exhibition took place in 1889 in the Japanese pavilion in Paris. Already in 1909, an exhibition was held in London, and later in other European countries. Oddly enough, at that time Europeans did not appreciate the new art and attacked it with furious criticism. Japanese masters, considering it “inhumane torture” of trees. After World War II, the movement began to become widely known in the West.

Today, more than 100 thousand miniature trees grow in Japan, some of which already have a centuries-old history. Absolutely all copies are considered national property. IN Japanese families There is a tradition of passing down bonsai trees from generation to generation as treasured family heirlooms.

Mini-trees have been rapidly growing in popularity over the past few years. Many people are trying to uncover and master the secrets of the art of growing bonsai, which requires regularity and great patience. To master basic principles It takes a future master an average of 5-10 years to create mini-trees. There is an opinion that it takes at least three years to master the elementary point - proper watering. Therefore, when starting to study this art, it is important to determine the strength of your desire to achieve a goal that does not accept vanity. With proper care, bonsai specimens can live for hundreds of years, preserving the memories of those who planted and raised them. The most famous ancient specimen surviving to this day is represented by a pine tree grown by shogun Iemitsu Tokugawa (1604–1651).

Naturally, old bonsai specimens are more valued and, accordingly, have a higher cost than young ones. Thus, hundred-year-old specimens are sold on the world market for tens of thousands of dollars. However, age is not the only thing here. important criterion. A significant role is played by the artistic idea displayed by the plant, as well as its compliance with the size of the container and its healthy appearance.

Suitable for growing bonsai various plants with dense branches and small leaves (pine, spruce, juniper, cypress, cherry, beech, cedar, zelkova, rhododendron and azalea). It is important to know that you need to use a cutting or seed of a regular tree, and in no case a hybrid tree. The height of the smallest specimens is 3-8 cm, while the largest representatives can reach 1.5-2 meters.