Styles of the Bonsai Tree

There are a number of bonsai styles. Each has numerous translations, based on the teachings of the bonsai school.

Styles of the Bonsai Tree part(1)   

Growing a bonsai tree is very much different than say growing a maple tree in your backyard.  With the maple tree, you plant, feed and water the tree. And other than an occasional pruning to remove dead or damaged branches, you simply sit back and let nature take over. However with a bonsai, from day one you are growing a specimen with a defined "look" in mind.  You will prune and train the tree to eventually achieve this look. Nature may grow the tree, but you determine its final appearance.

While the final appearance of the tree is part of the growers interpretation, there are five or six defined styles that your bonsai will fall into. Within the first five classifications you will find the "Formal Upright" bonsai, the "Informal Upright, the "Slanting" bonsai, the "Cascade" and the "Semi Cascade" bonsai. As the names of the first two classifications elude to, trees grown in this style are trained to grow in a straight up right direction. The "Slanting" bonsai is one in which the tree angles either right or left. In the cascade style(s), the tree is pruned and trained to resemble a cascading waterfall.

The sixth style of the bonsai is known as "Windswept".  With this style the bonsai is trained to appear as it is being constantly blown by the wind.   The inclusion of the windswept style into the classifications is a cause of some controversy amongst growers and traditionalist.   Because of the visual interest that this style can generate, we felt it was important to include it in a discussion of the styles of bonsai trees.

Your choice of style will be made early in the life of the bonsai.  The actual specimen chosen by you can be governed by the style choice.  Also your choice of design and color of the pot will also be influenced by the style of bonsai you choose to grow.

To help you decide which style of bonsai best suits your intended design, let's take a closer look at each of the styles. Each of these styles has some specific guidelines for that particular style.  But remember these are guidelines only. One of the more enjoyable parts of the bonsai experience is to create that one of a kind specimen.

By: Justin Lee