The History of the Bonsai

From: New Standard Encyclopedia

The Japanese art of producing miniature woody plants, usually trees. The plants themselves are also called bonsai. They range in height from about six inches (15 CM) to two feet (60 CM) anre shaped to give the appearence of being large, old plants in miniature. To make a bonsai, a seedling or a rooted cutting of such plants as pine, spruce, juniper,maple, Flowering quince or azalea is used. The plants are shaped by severe pruning and by wrapping trunk and stems with wire to restrice growth and bend them into the desired form. Periodic prudining of both stems and roots is necessary to keep the plant dwqrfed. An important feature of a bonsai display is the container, or pot. It is carefully selected to complement the plant's color and shape.

From: The Mini Bonsai Kit

Approximately two thousand years ago, the chinese literati, men of great wealth and education, would travel from the cities into the countryside to contemplate nature, write poetry, and paint. they soon discovered that they could also create artistice representations of nature by collecting small trees from the countryside, placing them in pots, and train them to resemble their full-size brethren. Using wires, weights, and levers, these early bonsai artist created trees taht had the look of majestic, old trees that had weathered the extremes of nature and survived.