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Cascade-style or
kengai
specimens are modelled
after trees that grow over
water or down mountain
sides.The apex of a full-
cascade style falls below the
base of the pot.
A number of styles describe
the trunk shape and bark
finish. For example, the
Deadwood
Bonsai Styles,
identify trees with
prominent dead branches or
trunk scarring.
Shari
or
sharimiki
style
portrays a tree struggling to
live, while a significant part
of its trunk is bare of bark.
Root-over-rock or
sekijoju
is a style in which the roots
are wrapped around a rock,
entering the soil at the base
of the rock.
Growing-in-a-rock or
ishizuke
or
ishitsuki
style,
has the roots growing in soil
contained within the cracks
and holes of the rock.
Forest/group or
yose ue
style comprises planting
several trees of one species,
typically an odd number, in
a Bonsai pot.
The
sokan
and
sankan
styles have all the trunks
growing out of one spot
with one root system, so it
is actually a single tree.
Raft-style or
ikadabuki
Bonsai mimics a tree toppled
onto its side. Branches along
the top side of the trunk
continue to grow as a group
of new trunks.
Literati or
bunjin-gi
style
has an almost bare trunk
line, with branches reduced
to a minimum, and foliage
placed toward the top of a
long, often contorted trunk.
Broom or
hokidachi
style is
used for trees with fine
branching, like Thuja.The
trunk is straight and the
branches form a ball-shaped
crown.
Windswept or
fukinagashi
style describes a tree that
appears to be affected by
strong winds blowing
continuously from one
direction.
To conclude, let the
various styles and
foreign names not deter
you. It is your aesthetic
sense that will serve you
well in creating your
Bonsai. In art, rules are
meant to be broken and
sometimes Bonsai
which break all rules
are the most dramatic.
Keeping these in
mind…the sky is the
limit!
52 July 2016