Whenever I see bonsai for sale in the U.S., I'm pretty sure those miniature trees are being served a death sentence. Sure, they're hard to resist with their small pots, twisted branches, and elegant petite stature. But bonsai require more maintenance than most people are prepared to provide, and they're incredibly difficult to keep alive. I know, because I, too, bought one.
The art of tree miniaturization originated in China and was imported to Japan in the 9th century, gaining popularity among the wealthy classes during the Edo Period. Bonsai are not dwarfs by nature, but can be created from any tree or shrub that is confined to a small container and by careful pruning of its crown and roots. I learned about the difficulties of growing bonsai in Kinashi, a village outside Takamatsu on the island of Shikoku, where I talked with Yoichi Nakanishi, a fifth-generation bonsai grower.Yoichi Nakanishi "They're hard to keep alive," Nakanishi-san explained. "They have to be watered two to three times a day in summer. They have to be replanted every 4 or 5 years so they'll grow better because the roots become cramped." Bonsai should also be kept mostly outdoors, since indoor air is too dry, especially in winter. Although Nakanishi-san grows many of his bonsai from seeds, he also scours the coast along the Seto Inland Sea for seedlings clinging to rocks, where harsh conditions and wind shape them into interesting, constricted forms (of course, he added quickly, he gets permission from landowners before removing any trees). He also has bonsai that were started by his grandfather's grandfather, with the oldest around 250 years old. How cool would that be-tending a plant you knew was guided by the skillful hands of your great-great-grandfather! Nakanishi-san is actually one of about 40 bonsai cultivators in Kinashi, which has been a center of bonsai since the Edo Period and remains the largest bonsai-growing region in Japan. For people who can't make it to Shikoku, there's the Omiya Bonsai Village near Omiya-Koen Station (about an hour northwest of Tokyo), where more than a half-dozen bonsai nurseries are open to the public daily except Thursday. And of course, you can spot the odd bonsai here and there, on the front stoop of a house or on the grounds of a Buddhist temple.
Bonsai at Nakanishi Chinshouen nursery Bonsai in Japan can range in price from about $20 to $2,000, but for Americans who wish to bring one back to the United States there's a two-year quarantine period, according to Nakanishi-san, during which time the plant is stripped of soil and then repotted. But even in Japan, caring for bonsai can be difficult. "Retired people do the best with bonsai because they have more time," he said. "Some people will bring in their bonsai for me to take care of when they're on vacation. Others buy them but keep them here all the time." Which is one way, I guess, to keep your bonsai alive. As for me, I enjoyed my bonsai pine for months after I killed it-by spray-painting it green.
