Kobayashi - Miniature Japanese Gardens: Beautiful Bonsai Landscape Gardens for Your Home

MINIATURE JAPANESE GARDENS BEAUTIFUL BONSAI LANDSCAPE
GARDENS FOR YOUR HOME KENJI KOBAYASHI Authors Note Whether you live in the city or in the countryside, greenery nourishes the spirit. Being spiritually rich means having compassion for others and for the world as a whole. This kind of feeling is undeniably important. I believe that in order to have compassion for the different kinds of people in this world, its important to be fully open and aware. Plants help us to become that way. As we have been given four beautiful seasons, instead of just plodding from one busy day to the next, we should take time to appreciate deep emotion such as that which comes when a single flower blossoms on a cherry tree you raised yourself.

It might only be for two weeks out of 365 days, but its such a worthwhile experience, and to get there, one should think of caring for the tree not as a chore, but as something that brings joy. The tree gratefully takes in the water you give it and puts forth buds. Taking pleasure in caring for it elicits an awareness that cant be expressed in words. Awareness is vital because being tuned in to others feelingsbeing aware of others besides ourselvesallows both self and others to be rescued. Thats the kind of thing that plants teach us. Its said that a bonsai tree is like a microcosm formed from the trees inherent narrative or derived from its shape and form.

Bonsai landscapesrecreating scenery in a potevoke pleasant associations and thoughtsa tree Id like to read beneath, or lets spread a picnic blanket out under this tree and drink beer on a day off. When starting out with bonsai landscapes, you may tend to think that raising these plants is difficult or labor-intensive, but its far easier than raising pets or children. I hope this book will show you the fun of raising plants and enrich your spirit. Kenji Kobayashi PART ONE Designing a Miniature Bonsai Landscape Bonsai landscaping is a method by which scenery can be rendered in a pot according to ones own tastes. However, even if you have some experience with bonsai, making landscapes calls for a different approach. Basic Bonsai Landscape Techniques First of all, here are the instructions for creating the most basic of bonsai landscapes composed of a single seedling, moss and ornamental sand. Basic Bonsai Landscape Techniques First of all, here are the instructions for creating the most basic of bonsai landscapes composed of a single seedling, moss and ornamental sand.

Regardless of the type of bonsai landscape youre making, this is the basic method, so make sure to master it. Here, we will make a bonsai landscape with a single tree using a Chinese elm (Ulmus parvifolia Jacq.) and Leucobryum juniperoideum. METHOD Place a net over the hole in the base of the pot and secure it with aluminum wire, then use the scoop to pour in stones to line the base (large grain Fuji sand). [see tools and instructions in ]. Use the scoop to add compost until the base stones are concealed. Use pruning scissors to trim off old or damaged leaves.

Check that there are no insects on the backs of the leaves. Use the tips of your tweezers to brush off the soil around the roots a little at a time. Draw out the roots and use scissors to trim the ends, adjusting the size of the upper section. Hold the seedling in the pot and use a scoop to pour soil in. Use a chopstick to work the soil into gaps around the roots, packing it in firmly. Spray the soil 35 times with an atomizer to firm it, making sure the water is absorbed. Place a large piece of moss on the desired spot. Using a chopstick at the edge of the moss to hold it in place, press the moss firmly into the soil. Work in the same way to add more moss, taking care to make it look as if its spreading naturally. Use a scoop to add in ornamental gravel (Maifan stones) over areas where the soil is visible. Use a spatula to level the ornamental gravel and make it neater