Author: Peter Meredith
Teaching the art of bonsai to beginners has been a truly rewarding experience for myself over the last 3 or 4 years.
No matter how many books you read or demonstrations you attend, there is nothing like hands on experience and walking away with a tree you have created yourself, and that’s what I love seeing in my classes.
Some of the class participants either have, or in a lot of cases HAD a bonsai at some stage, either brought from a nursery or given to them as a gift, and some have absolutely no idea about bonsai and just wish to find out where to start.
No matter what experience level the bonsai enthusiast is at, I find reminding them of the basics is always a great place to start. I still find myself reverting back to the basic principles of Japanese bonsai (there is differences between Chinese and Japanese styles) when re styling or re potting my own collection.
By familiarising participants with the 5 basic styles (formal upright, informal upright, slanting, semi cascade and full cascade)this then gives them a place to start when recognising trees they may have or a style they wish to produce.
After considering the basic styles of Japanese bonsai you can then start to understand how certain trees will lend themselves to some styles and others may not produce such good stock if styled a particular style.
The rules or guidelines for the roots, trunk and branches for these bonsai styles help to produce symmetry, proportion and balance to the tree and gives it the visual aspect of a much larger tree in miniature.
The true secret to bonsai is being able to find a balance between these rules or guidelines while keeping the tree looking natural rather than produced or fake.
By letting nature guide you a little in the way the tree likes to naturally grow is something I feel you can only learn over time.
Start by looking for a triangular shape with your tree, from the end of your first branch to the top of the tree down to the end of your second branch (1st and second branches should be on opposite sides) then back across to the end of your first branch again. fill in this triangle with other branches, trim off anything that grows outside this triangle and then over time you can learn to refine the tree as you learn more about bonsai.
Look at as many pictures of bonsai and exhibitions as you can to see how your tree can look and then experiment as your tree grows and you learn.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/hobbies-articles/i-had-a-bonsai-once-1472397.html
About the Author:
For more bonsai tips check out my Blog on root pruning and re-potting
and Bonsai, pruning for compact growth
