Bonsai is an ancient art developed first in China more than one thousand years ago, then later in Japan during the Middle Ages, and now practiced throughout the world. Bonsai combines horticultural knowledge and practices with art to create living trees in miniature. Pronounced bone-sigh, not bon-zigh, the word means a tree in a shallow pot [bon=pot ... sai=tree].

Bonsai is a horticultural art that takes many forms. Bonsai trees can be evergreen or deciduous; flowering or non-flowering; grouped or planted alone; grown indoors or outdoors depending on species; planted on or over rocks or in small displays that convey idealized scenes in nature.

Many styles exist, but the main three are trunk, branch, and root styled trees. The trunk styled trees feature the trunk which may be straight or curved, slanted or cascaded. Branch styles are most familiar to us as windswept trees with the branches growing in a single direction. Root style trees feature the roots of a tree planted on a rock with the roots descending along and clinging to the rock. Many plants are suitable for bonsai, especially those with small leaves or needles and short internodes (the distance between the leaf buds).

The Pacific Northwest provides an excellent environment for bonsai culture. A long growing season and mild winters help enthusiasts develop and maintain collections containing a wide variety of plant material. There are several nurseries in the area which specialize in bonsai material. You may also find good material, with a little searching, at the regular nurseries which abound in our region.