Wonderworld of Tropical Bonsai: Creation and Enjoyment of Miniature Trees and Landscapes

Email

Whatsapp

Facebook

Pinterest

Twitter

Copy link

Bonsai as a common art for the mankind is familiar to all people who love trees and is rapidly growing as a bridge towards world peace and friendship. At such a time, Jyoti and Nikunj who are tops among the living leaders of Bonsai in India, have authored a book for the tropics and sub-tropics, titled Wonderworld of Tropical Bonsai." It is a significant publication. We sincerely pay our respects to their study of many years and appreciate their endeavour and great zeal. As their names rightly suggest, Jyoti means lamp the lamp of knowledge and Nikunj means a grove a group of trees, under whose shady retreat the lord enjoys flute playing. We firmly believe that people who love bonsai in the tropics and sub-tropics are sure to welcome heartily this new book. It will be a great help in the development of the art of bonsai which is contributing greatly towards maintaining world fellowship.

Bonsai is an art, which everyone can pursue and enjoy, making our life worth living. Nevertheless, we cannot disregard the climate in the region, its environment and the nature of plants, because bonsai can be selectively created, by the Grace of God, depending on the benefits of earth and people's affection.

Mr. and Mrs. Parekh have been to Japan for the study of bonsai and Mrs. Parekh was invited by us to the 1st World Bonsai & Suiseki Convention held at Osaka in April 1980, at which she reported her precious opinion for the development of the art of bonsai.

As enthusiastic bonsai growers and teachers they are well-known not only in Japan, but also in other countries.

We sincerely congratulate them on their new publication and wish both of them best of health and a happy life.

Traditionally, we began plant growing with the Tulsi (Sweet Basil) and Money plants (Scindapsus aureus). We would not have ventured beyond Tulsi and Money plants, but for Mrs. Suneeta Vaswani and Mrs. Ratna Thadani. It is to them that one of us owe our early introduction and initiation into the world of miniature trees or what is known as bonsai.

Since then, we have come a long way and acquired a lot of experience and knowledge in the field, mainly from friends and other bonsai enthusiasts. Perhaps our progress has been made easier due to the guidance, encouragement and blessings we received from the directors of Nippon Bonsai Association, Japan and California Bonsai Society, U.S.A.; particularly from Bonsai Masters Saburo Kato, Shinji Ogasawara and John Naka during our visit to Japan and U.S.A.

With the memorable visit of Mr. John Naka to Bombay in June 1981 for the first ever "BONSAI WEEK" organised by Bonsai Study Group of The Indo-Japanese Association, with which we are actively connected, a further impetus was received on acquiring the advanced knowledge of bonsai art. The co-operation, encouragement and blessings from the family members is one of the greatest assets and we thank GOD ALMIGHTY for granting this asset to us.

Our object in this work is to provide the newcomers to the field with a brief write-up on the subject. We have avoided using very complicated botanical terminology. However, an effort has been made to explain, with the use of simple drawings and explanations, the few botanical terms used in the book.

This write-up on WONDERWORLD OF TROPICAL BONSAI' has been made from personal experience and is intended as a practical guide to beginners and active bonsai growers. In the preparation of this book, we have received very great encouragement from many bonsai growers and students. No less important is the encouragement we received from Mrs. Shakuntala S. Parekh and Mrs. Neela B. Khambhla at every stage throughout the compilation of this new book. Our daughter, Sonali, helped us in preparing notes at the initial stage and her artistic bent helped us in selecting proper pots and background material for bonsai photography. Special mention has also to be made here of the invaluable help and suggestions we received from Prof. G. Rajarama Rao of Jaipur, who went through the previous book 'TROPICAL BONSAI' with minute care and made valuable suggestions to bring out this new book.

The Japanese have spent many years developing the technique of dwarfing trees and perfecting it into an art. The art has since spread to other parts of the world. In fact, the beauty of bonsai has won the hearts of people all over the world.

However, it is only from recent times, that we in India have also started appreciating bonsai. In India, great strides at mastering the art of bonsai were made by late Mr. Agnihotri of New Delhi, and since then the art has spread all over India. Some of us have now taken to cultivating miniature trees very seriously and scientifically.

Bonsai (pronounced as bon-sigh) consists of two Japanese words, 'bon' meaning a shallow container and 'sai" meaning a plant. Basically, bonsai is the process of keeping trees or shrubs in proportionately small containers, indefinitely and treating them with certain dwarfing techniques to impart to them an appearance of age. Bonsai is part horticulture, part art; yet totally different from anything else in the world of gardening. There are no guarded, mysterious secrets. Three ordinary gardening techniques pruning, shaping and container growing are used to produce beautiful, dwarfed, three-dimensional forms suggesting natural trees or landscapes. This is Bonsai - living sculpture and idealised nature in miniature.

While doing so, the bonsai grower must visualise and keep in mind the overall harmony of design, the size, shape and colour of the container as well as the line and patterns formed by each component part of the bonsai in relation.

This finished form has so great a charm, that the viewer will be quite lost in the beauty of this piece of nature.

Bonsai are not just specimens to show the skill of a grower in miniaturising a plant, but in reality they are the expression of 'much in little.' In short, the beauty of wild unkempt nature is condensed in bonsai without losing any of its characteristics or charm.

There are certain misconceptions about bonsai. One such is that bonsai are very old trees. This is not the whole truth, though in Japan people do have very old bonsai. Even a young tree can be trained and given appearance of old age by shortening the branches, so that the trunk looks thicker (hence older) in proportion. The same effect can be had also by training the branches downward as in old trees rather than upward as in young trees. Again, if we expose some surface roots at the base of the trunk as in old trees, an appearance of age can be achieved.