The Essential Bonsai Book

A beautifully photographed guide for creating bonsai, expanding your knowledge, and growing your collection, from the expert behind the Bonsai Tonight blog and The Little Book of Bonsai.

While the word bonsai is of Japanese origin, the artform first took root in China nearly 3,000 years ago. This ancient garden practice has intrigued enthusiasts for centuries. Fans collect and nurture miniature trees and shrubs, using exacting methods to shape and mold their specimen. Over time, bonsai accrue characteristics that make the trees look old, unique, and beautiful.

The Essential Bonsai Book is helpful for recognizing, creating, and maintaining quality bonsai. It's appropriate for beginners who want to learn more but also for intermediate and even advanced practitioners.

While there are many ways to make beautiful trees, The Essential Bonsai Book provides an opportunity to determine which characteristics appeal most to you and helps you develop these characteristics in your trees. Learn how to create deadwood features, wire branches to alter a tree's silhouette, prune to encourage proper regrowth, move branches to different trunk locations, and repot specimen. Each task is explained in careful detail with step-by-step photos.

The Essential Bonsai Book will:

• provide starting points for doing the work
• help you determine next steps to make your trees more beautiful
• offer guidance to help you evaluate the success of your work

The Essential Bonsai Book will help you build a better collection, instill confidence about the work you do on your bonsai, and create more enjoyment from this ancient garden artform.