These midgets can be mysterious and mindboggling

The mention of the word ‘tree’ immediately conjures up an image with enormity as its key character-- trunks of vast circumference and wide-spread canopy stemming from innumerable branches and sub-branches. If one can think different; think of midget trunks and insignificant canopy with scaled-down heights, growing from trays and having only so many branches as the owner wishes, one has known and seen the bonsai beauties.

The Japanese word ‘bonsai’ means ‘potted plant’ and does not in literal sense convey what it denotes—a miniature tree. Though said to be originating from China, Bonsai technique reached its acme only in Japan, where it was transformed into an art, and spread across the world. Not many noticed the presence of bonsai in the world’s first Horticultural Show of Paris in 1848, yet the show in 1912 at London drew hordes that immediately attributed mysticism to the art of bonsai. Post World War II, the veil of mystery removed, it became a craze even in the Western world.
Artistic touch

“While horticulture is a healthy diversion from mundane activities, bonsai adds a touch of art to it. A bonsai tree is the result of a series of physical manipulations, not genetic modifications. Hence, sowing of a bonsai’s seed does not yield a Bonsai tree,” says D. L. N. Prasad, eminent plastic surgeon who first brought the art to the city.

Showing around his much-loved and cared for garden of miniatures, he explained how he and his wife first started off in 1967 with minimal knowledge, how they used the curd-bowls to plant the saplings, and later tried out earthen trays and failed, and how finally got the miniature Ficus bengalensis that survived till now, with prop roots et al.

“Now, I can tell you the shortcuts, but initially it was a story of repeated failures. Patience and perseverance are the two investments needed for bonsai cultivation. First thing you should know is that there is a pre-bonsai stage in which sapling from the nursery is prepared,” Dr. Prasad says.

Seedlings from nursery, if planted directly in a typical bonsai tray, will not last long. Instead, they should first go straight into earth or a pot as the case may be, and grown like normal plants.

Even before obtaining the plant, one should have a vision about what one would like to do with it, about its growth orientation and the number and size of branches one would like to retain. It is more or less similar to the creation of an artwork, in that, both are driven by an idea.
Selection process

Though there are no rigid rules in selection of saplings for bonsai, a few practical considerations could go a long way in ensuring trees as family legacy.

“Any species that branches freely may be chosen for bonsai. They should be soft-stemmed and be able to take pruning of roots and branches. All Ficus varieties apart from trees such as tamarind, badam, baobab and guava may be trained as bonsais,” says M. M. Hussain from Plants Land Nursery. Another point to be borne in mind is the life of the plant. It takes about five years for a plant to be made into a bonsai. Those with marginal lifespan will not be suitable for the art, as they die sooner.

As miniatures, bonsais should always represent nature in its myriad forms, but not beyond that. A few basic growth orientations adopted straight from nature will help one to visualise what one would like to design. For single-trunk bonsais, it might be formal upright, informally upright with scattered branches, slanting, curved/twisted trunk, semi-cascading with down-ward bend, cascading with total fall, wind blown, or literati with foliage in the top.

Those with multiple trunks may be double-trunked, triple-trunked, a series of trunks, growth akin to a raft, or rambling ones. Seasoned growers may also plan a landscape of bonsais in a single tray. Once the orientation and the number and placement of branches to go with it are clear, one should visit a nursery and choose a plant that shows promise of the desired growth.

Pot should be of the same size as the plant and the tap-root of the sapling may be cut and a rock placed underneath to encourage growth of secondary roots.

After planting and nurturing it in a pot, one should allow vigorous growth of the desired branches, albeit after slicing off all the superfluous ones.

Any unwanted growth disturbing the desired branching should be immediately curbed. One should not mind the growth of the required branches till the thickness intended for the stem is arrived at. Pruning of the branches to suit the proportions comes only at a later stage.
Do’s and don’ts

The focus of a bonsai artist should largely rest over trunk and canopy which are known as primary features and over the branches—main, secondary, tertiary and lateral—and roots that are the secondary features. One aspect typical of bonsai is the discouragement of thick foliage at the middle stem.

“Care should be taken to make the main branches visible. They should be trained in such a way to have gaps among them. No two branches on either side or vertically should begin from the same point of the trunk and they should not be at right angles. Branches may also be trained in the desired direction by tying them with wires,” says Dr. Prasad, his hands automatically pruning away the excess foliage.

Once the stem becomes thick—which might take upto five years—the plant is ready for transplantation into a tray. Selection of a tray should follow the tree’s height and branching. If it is rectangular, planting should take place to a side, for attaining that ravishing look. While displaying, the tree should always be at the eye level.
A creative touch

Much depends on innovation that amply manifested itself in Dr. Prasad’s garden as knots wherever he cut away the branches. By scooping away a bit of wood from the cuts, he made them look like natural hollows.

He also resorted to air-layering as a method to curb the tree’s height, and pruning of the selected leaves to keep the size of the rest small. Leaf-size reduction and also root exposure come at a much later stage and a beginner need not worry about them.

“There are three limitations for bonsai, namely light, water and time. Bonsai is not meant for indoors and needs as much sunlight as a grown up tree. Hence, it must be kept outside and carried in only occasionally,” says Dr. Prasad.

“Watering is a must three to four times a day depending on the season, as the roots are shallow.

Time, in my opinion, is not difficult to shell out for a passionate heart,” he adds as an afterthought.

Bonsai buffs may call him at 040-23392424.