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Tiny leaves and small red fruit make Cotoneaster (Cotoneaster horizontalis) ideal for the little shohin or mame styles.
These trees resemble a template for bonsai in the Group Style: demonstrating subgroups, variations in trunk girth and depth of perspective.
The trunk
Starting at the base, the trunk should flare into surface roots (nebari) which grip the soil. It should taper evenly as it progresses upward, whether straight or curved, upright, inclined or cascading, but always tapered. If a trunk has curve at the base, it must curve throughout its length. If it is straight at the base, then it should continue straight. Curved sections alternating with straight ones look awkward.
The branches
Trees are three-dimensional. This sounds obvious, but one mistake novices often make is to arrange the branches so that the bonsai tree looks reasonable from a particular viewing side, but does not have enough branches for symmetry, to the front or the rear.
○ The first branch may be either on the left or the right but should come slightly forward.
○ The second branch should be on the opposite side, also coming slightly forward.
○ The third branch should be to the rear, to add a dimension of depth to the composition as a whole.
This is a good example of handsome nebari or exposed thick roots. The roots extend outwards from a tapering trunk and are seen to anchor the tree firmly.
IDEAL BRANCH ARRANGEMENT
PLEASING BRANCH ARRANGEMENT AS SHOWN FROM THE CANOPY (ABOVE) AND FROM THE FRONT (RIGHT) OF A BONSAI TREE EACH BRANCH HAS ITS SPACE AND NONE OVERSHADOWS ANOTHER.
The rules that govern branches
○ The lowest branches should be the thickest, and they become progressively thinner as they proceed up the length of the trunk.
○ Branches should be more widely spaced at the bottom of the tree, and should grow closer and closer together towards the top.
○ On a curved trunk, branches should always emerge from the outer edge of the curve, never from the inside of the curve.
○ No two branches should emerge directly opposite each other. This creates an undesirable ‘handlebar’ effect which immediately stops the eye from travelling up the trunk.
○ Branches should always harmonize with trunks. Straight trunks must have straight branches and curved trunks, curved branches.
This pattern is followed right up the trunk, with front branches being introduced at about two-thirds of the trunk height, or higher. Keeping the lower part free of forward-growing branches keeps the trunk within view. If the trunk is lost to view the bonsai will look more like a shrub than a tree.
Having learned the basic rules and started to apply them, you’ll see that it is practically impossible to satisfy them all, unless you start with a seedling. However, do try to stick as closely as possible to the ideal.
These rules, however, are not set in stone; they are guidelines which should lead you to the creation of a near-perfect tree. There are several methods by which you can achieve the same result by using a little imagination and ingenuity. Don’t ever think that you should sacrifice your creative sensibilities for the sake of adherence to a set of arbitrary rules.
An attractive bonsai Common Privet (Ligustrum lucidum) which demonstrates an excellent branch arrangement in the Upright Style.
BONSAI STYLES
There are six classic bonsai styles and a growing list of nonclassical styles as bonsai art involves new cultures and new species. Classical styles are rigidly defined and are based on an aspect of the trunk. Nonclassical styles are governed by the overall shape, number of trunks, method of planting or another aspect of the tree. These are more loosely defined.
CLASSICAL STYLES
FORM AL UP RIGHT
(CHOKKAN)
A STRAIGHT, UPRIGHT TRUNK THAT CARRIES ON ALL THE WAY TO THE VERY TOP OF THE TREE AND HAS A UNIFORM TAPER FROM THE BASE TO THE APEX. THIS STYLE IS MOST APPROPRIATELY USED AND ASSOCIATED WITH BONSAI CONIFERS.
INFORM AL UP RIGHT
(MOYOGI)
THIS IS THE MOST COMMON OF ALL BONSAI STYLES. THE TRUNK DESCRIBES A SERIES OF CURVES BEGINNING AT THE BASE AND CONTINUING UP TO THE APEX IN DIMINISHING SCALE. THIS IS IN ADDITION TO THE UNIFORM TAPER USUALLY. USED FOR CONIFERS OR BROADLEAVED TREES.
SLANTING
(SHAKAN)
THIS IS A VARIATION ON THE FORMAL AND INFORMAL UPRIGHT STYLES. THE TRUNK (NATURALLY ENOUGH) IS INCLINED EITHER TO THE LEFT OR RIGHT. CONIFERS OR BROADLEAVED SPECIES CAN BE TREATED THIS WAY.
BROOM
(HOKIDACHI)
THE MOST AUTHENTICALLY TREE-LIKE OF BONSAI STYLES. THE TRUNK IS STRAIGHT. THE BRANCHES FAN OUT, FORKING TO FORM A SYMMETRICAL, DOMED CANOPY. BEST CONFINED TO BROADLEAVED SPECIES.
SEMI-CASCADE
(HAN-KENGAI)
THIS STYLE MIMICS A TREE CLINGING TO A MOUNTAIN LEDGE, WHERE ITS LOWEST BRANCH CASCADES TO BELOW THE RIM OF THE POT. IT IS COMMONLY USED FOR CONIFERS, AND SOMETIMES FOR BROADLEAVED SPECIES.
CASCADE
(KENGAI)
INSPIRED BY THE IMAGE OF A TREE CLINGING TO A CLIFF FACE, THE LOWEST POINT OF THE TREE IN THE STYLE MUST FALL BELOW THE BASE OF THE POT. THIS STYLE (AND SEMI-CASCADE STYLES) ARE BEST PLANTED IN POTS THAT ARE DEEPER THAN THEY ARE WIDE. IT IS BEST USED WITH CONIFERS, AS BROADLEAVED SPECIES MAY BE WEAKENED AT THEIR LOWEST POINT.