bonsai


 * Bonsai**

A bonsai tree is a miniature tree found commonly in Japanese culture, and bonsai is actually a form of art in Japan. The word bonsai is analyzed in two parts: "bon" which means a tray or low-sided pot and "sai" which means one or more plantings. Many of today's bonsai trees are over 50 years old and some can be over 100 years old. A common bonsai can be made out of a small branch or a mature branch, which this technique is called cutting.

The Japanese bonsai tradition dates back to over a thousand years ago and still remains popular for its unique look. In fact, the first picture of a bonsai was found in the year 706 in the tomb of the crowned Prince Zhanghuai from the Tang Dynasty. Zen Buddhists began the practice of bonsai in the 17th and 18th centuries. They believed that bonsai represented a religious link among man, the soul, and nature. There was also a play made in the year 1383 called Hachi No Ki. It is about a samurai who burned his last three prized bonsai for an official who was disguised as a traveling monk. The official decides to reward the samurai by giving him ownership of land with his three favorite trees, plum, cherry, and pine.

There are some fun facts when it comes to the art of bonsai. You must repot the bonsai at a certain age in order for it to stay healthy. Most bonsai live outside during growing season. Bonsai first originated in China over 1000 years ago, but it was called punsai. Growing bonsai was accepted among the upper class of Japan during the Kamakura period. If you study hard in the way trees form you can design your own kind of bonsai.

The area of Greater Tokyo (Kanto) is home to some of the most well-known bonsai nurseries in Japan. Other areas where you can see this amazing gardening art-form include: Bonsai Villages in Omiya and Takamatsu, the Kyoto-based Koju-en Shohin nursery and the Kunio Kobayashi’s Shunkaen Bonsai museum in Tokyo. The Bonsai Village in Omiya was built after The Great Earthquake of 1923 in the Kanto area. Many bonsai artists and craftsmen decided to move over to Omiya and start the Bonsai VIllage. They created a list of requirements to live inside of the village which included: Each home must have at least 10 bonsai trees, everyone must open the gate to their gardens, no one is allowed to build a house or structure more than two stories tall, and everyone must have a "living" fence - which means that their fences are created out of plants or trees.