The-Element
Everything bonsai
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"Don't be drawn into the trap of taking everything that this person says as gospel!" This applies especially if you are using a book as a reference when you are situated in a different part of the world from where it was written.
The two basic styles of bonsai are the classic (koten) and the informal or 'comic' (bunjin). In the former, the trunk of the tree is wider at the base and tapers off towards the top; it is just the opposite in the 'bunjin', a style more difficult to master. Over the years, bonsai enthusiasts have frequently tried to reclassify the styles, and their many sub-divisions into which plants can be trained. Once you understand the principles behind these designs/styles, you will have a reference point from which to assess a tree's potential for bonsai and to decide what style suits it. If you study very carefully the way trees grow in nature, it is possible to design a realistic bonsai without knowing the names of these styles. You do not need to stick strictly to the precise rules of your chosen style: adapt them to suit a plant's natural habitat. When you start a bonsai, always remember that you are working with a living plant. Look carefully at its natural characteristics and you may discern within them a suitable style, or styles. All conifers are reasonably unsuitable to the 'broom' style, for example, but are very suitable for all other styles, especially formal and informal upright - to which they are particularly suited. Often you can train a plant into several styles, even if it is basically upright like a beech or elegantly slender like a maple. Even if one style only really suits a particular plant, you still can interpret this in many different ways. Shrubs like azaleas that are not tree-like in nature have fewer restrictions in the style you choose, but, generally, it is best to base any design on the way a tree grows in nature. People that are still learning the basic principles of bonsai should not try to train a bonsai into a style totally unlike a tree's natural growth pattern, although this is quite possible as you gain more experience.
The Five Main, Commonly Used styles :The five basic bonsai styles are formal upright, informal upright, slanting or windswept, semi-cascade and cascade. All have their own individual beauty and serenity. I will now attempt to explain the basic principles of each style.
Formal Upright...
Recommended Species : Larches, Junipers, Pines and Spruces are all suitable species. Maples can also be used, but are not as easy to train into such a conformist style. Above all, fruiting or naturally informal trees are not suitable for formal upright
Processes/Techniques Used :As mentioned earlier, the branches and trunk of a formal upright bonsai always take on a very distinctive taper. This is achieved by cruelly cutting off the growing tip of the trunk or branch with each new year and wiring a new branch into position to form the apex. This is something quite hard to do, however it produces a stunning result when the trunk starts to mature and the taper starts becoming prominent. Informal Upright...
Recommended Species : Most species of plants are suitable for this style, mainly the Japanese Maple (Acer palmatum), Trident Maple (Acer buergerianum), Beech, practically all Conifers and other ornamental trees such as the Crab Apple, Cotoneaster and Pomegranite
Processes/Techniques Used :![]() Jin (carved remains of dead or unwanted branches to look like dead and rotting limbs of a tree - explained in 'Techniques 2') is also more appropriate and effective with the informal upright style Slanting...
Recommended Species : Most species are suitable for this style, as the style does bear similarity to informal upright. Conifers work particularly well
Processes/Techniques Used :This style is quite a simple one that can be achieved by many methods. At an early age, the bonsai can be trained to an angle by means of wiring the trunk until it is in position. Alternatively, the tree can be forced to grow in a slanted style by putting the actual pot on a slant causing the tree to grow abnormally. With formal upright, informal upright and slanted styles, the number three is significant. The lowest branches are grouped in threes, and this grouping begins one-third of the way up the trunk. The bottom-most three branches almost encircle the trunk, with two branches thrusting forward, one slightly higher than the other. The third branch, emanating from a point between the first two, is set at such an angle as to make the foliage appear lower than the other two. This pattern presents an easy way to tell front from back and sets the tone of the entire composition. Cascade...
Recommended Species : Many species are suitable, if they are not strongly upright.
Processes/Techniques Used :All that is required to create this style is a tall, narrow pot which will enhance the style and accommodate the cascade and a species of plant that will willingly adopt this style if trained. The main trunk should be wired to spill over and down the edge of the pot, with the main focus on the major bend (forming an upside-down U shape). Emphasis should also be kept on keeping the branches uniform and horizontal to the almost directly vertical trunk. Another major aspect to remember is that both cascade and semi-cascade should be positioned right into the center of the pot, the opposite to what you would do for any other styles. Semi-Cascade...
Recommended Species : Many species are suitable, except strongly upright ones. Flowering cherrys, cedars and junipers work well.
Processes/Techniques Used :Click here for a printable version of this page...
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