Bonsai is a Japanese word that means “plant in a tray.” In the modern context, Bonsai can be defined as the art of growing dwarfed plants or trees in a pot, aesthetically pruned through certain prescribed techniques to keep them small without stunting their growth. This process allows the plant to retain all the natural, basic qualities of a larger tree.

Bonsai has been practiced in China since time immemorial. The Chinese loved to give their bonsai plants the shapes of serpents or dragons. But they failed to keep their plants artistically pruned or proportional.

In the eleventh or twelfth century, bonsai was introduced in Japan, and the Japanese painstakingly experimented with it. It is the result of their efforts and hard work that today bonsai is regarded as a piece of art. The Japanese grew them in aesthetically appealing shapes and sizes.

Bonsai can be grown with seeds or by planting saplings. One of the two basic styles of bonsai is Classie, where the trunk or base of the plant is broad, and as it grows upwards, it adopts a thinner look. The other style is Camie, which has a slender base, and as it grows upwards, it takes a broader look. Though bonsai is physically independent of the earth, as it is grown in a pot, it is a part of nature. Bonsai-lovers, therefore call it “heaven and earth together in one container.”

Bonsai was first introduced to the world in the nineteenth century. The Japanese used native plants like pine, maple, and azaleas for bonsai; but today, any plant can be turned into a bonsai. Since its introduction to the world, it has enthralled both classes and the masses. It is fast developing as a favorite pastime, passion, and profession. If it is nurtured with utmost care, with the proper supply of water, air, light, and nutrients, and quality time is spent in pruning it creatively, bonsai can live up to hundreds of years. Bonsai emanates three qualities: love, beauty and goodness. With these plants, all these qualities are passed on from one generation to another, Bonsai is certainly a horticultural marvel tastefully done.