In Japan, the word bonsai means tray plant. It refers to the interesting combination of art and cultivation of miniature trees and plants. Bonsai originated in China more than 2,000 years ago. The tradition spread to Japan about 700 years ago, and it is still popular there today.

Some people believe that small, or dwarf, plants must be used in bonsai, but this is not true. Nearly any type of tree or plant can be used, as long as it is grown from a seed or small cutting. The owner must then prune, trim, and shape the plant as it grows so that it resembles a much larger tree. He or she must do this skillfully, however, because the plant must appear to have grown naturally, untouched by humans. It takes a great deal of care and patience to achieve this balance.

A bonsai is more than just a plant. It holds a special and significant place in Japanese culture. According to Japanese tradition, three elements are needed to create a successful bonsai: truth, goodness, and beauty. When these three elements come together, a bonsai can live for hundreds of years! It may be passed down from one generation of a family to the next as a prized possession.

In Japan, bonsais are grown in containers outdoors, but are brought into the home for special occasions. Inside, they are often placed in the tokonoma. This is a small area in traditional Japanese rooms intended for the display of artistic objects. In a Japanese garden, other items may be added to the bonsai. The addition of rocks, small buildings, and miniature people is called bon-kei. Sai-kei is is a related art form in which entire landscapes are reproduced in miniature.

There are five basic styles of bonsai: the formal upright, informal upright, slanting, cascade, and semi-cascade. In the formal upright, the trunk of the tree should be perfectly straight, and the branches should be balanced. In informal upright, the trunk should bend slightly to one side, but never toward the viewer. The trunk of a slanting tree leans to one side and may look similar to the informal upright.

Cascade and semi-cascade are similar because in both styles the leaves and the branches cascade down towards the base of the plant. The main difference is that in the cascade style, the leaves actually extend down below the bottom of the container.

If you are interested in raising a bonsai of your own, there is no need to go all the way to Japan to find one. Today bonsais are available in many countries.

I. Word List

dwarf: very small

prune: cut shorter

resembles: looks similar to

prized: very important

miniature: very small

reproduced: copied

trunk: the main part of a tree

II. Vocabulary skills—Find the correct words in the reading.

1. growing and caring for something: c _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

2. to trim away unwanted parts of a tree: p _ _ _ _

3. copied, made again: r _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

4. the bottom part: b _ _ _

5. something you own: p _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

III. Reading skills—Answer the following questions.

1. What are the three elements needed for a successful bonsai?

___________________________________________________________.

2. How are cascade and semi-cascade bonsais similar?

___________________________________________________________.

3. What are three things you learned about bonsai from this reading?

___________________________________________________________.

4. Would you like to try growing a bonsai? Why or why not?

___________________________________________________________.

5. Do you grow plants outside your house? If so, what kinds?

___________________________________________________________.

IV. Word groups—Find words in the reading that are similar to these ones.

1. bigger, greater, l _ _ _ _ _

2. look, seem, a _ _ _ _ _

3. cut, trim, p _ _ _ _

4. started, began, o _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

5. stones, pebbles, r _ _ _ _

6. tiny, small, d _ _ _ _