The term bonsai came from the Chinese word which means a plant in pot. It was the Chinese who introduced the miniature ornamental trees in the period of the second century B.C. This was the period of perfecting the landscape and trees where planted in specific containers.

Bonsai are plants that measures around 2 inches up to 3 feet in height which grew from seeds and as well as from cuttings. This plant is usually grown in pots or containers which are kept small by pruning the branches and roots to serve as decorations. There are times that the trees are wired on its branch and trunk to attain a desired shape.

Bonsais live for many years and some families think about as prized possessions. Bonsai have many varieties such as the gardenia, azalea, bamboo, camellia, pine and even plum. There are so many styles that you can do with bonsai. You can have it informal upright, formal upright, cascade, semi-cascade and slanting style.

Professionals with bonsai use specialized tools to mold and create bonsai into different forms such as the pliers, concave branch cutters, root trimmers and shears. If you want to create your own form of bonsai, there are 12 steps that you can follow.

You must choose first a petite shrub from common varieties of garden such as the azalea, camellia, boxwood, gardenia, cotoneaster, or even hibiscus. Trim the plant with the use of bypass pruners until a structure is seen. After that you need to remove the bonsai from its pot and place the root of the bonsai in water.

Decrease the amount of soil around its roots in order for the root ball to fit the said container. Trim the roots to until two-thirds of the original size are reduced. The next thing that you will need to do is to place a plastic window or a piece of gauze over the drainage hole of the pot.

Then add an inch of blended potting soil on it then the root ball while spreading gently its roots over the soil. Put additional soil again to cover the roots but make sure that there's a one inch allowance on top for watering purposes. Prune the plant on your desired structure.

The last thing that you'll do is to water it until the soil is soaked then covers it with aquarium gravel. Place the plant on a location wherein it can receive a adequate amount of sunlight.

When you hear 'bonsai', the first image that comes to mind is a miniature tree. Aesthetic miniaturization of trees that are grown in the containers is an art practiced by Japanese, Chinese and Korean.

For the Chinese, it is 'penjing', for the Korean 'bunjae', whereas for the Japanese, the term is 'bonsai.'

The Chinese were the first to grow miniature-size trees in containers. They started doing so around 200 CE. This is how herbal healers transported medicinal plants.

The practice spread to Japan during the Heian period. Landscape gardening was given importance during the Tokugawa period. Maples and azalea were cultivated by the wealthy for a pastime activity.

The term used at that time was 'hachi-no-ki' which means "a tree in a pot." Bonsai was used in the Meiji period during the late 19th century.

There are various kinds of bonsai. These are the slant, formal upright, informal upright, raft, literati, cascade, semi-cascade and the forest/group.

The slant style bonsai is like the straight trunk of any upright trees. The apex extends to the right or the left of the base. The formal upright is similar to a straight and tapered trunk. This is as opposed to the informal upright that has curves and bends with the apex usually found on top of the roots.

The raft bonsai is considered to be a phenomenon because it takes place after a tree is toppled from natural force or erosion. The branches then expose the edge of the trunk. Roots grow from these buried portions. A literati is when the trunk line is bare and there are minimum branches on a somehow contorted trunk.

Cascades are models of trees that grow on the side of the mountains and the water's surface. The tip or the apex of a cascade bonsai reaches underneath the lip of the pot. Finally, a forest or group bonsai is a group of trees that grow altogether in a pot. These are usually of a similar species.

Bonsai are classed according to their sizes. There are styles and techniques associated to the shito and mame bonsais. These are the bonsais that are grown in pots as small as thimbles.

The bonsai enthusiast must know that the smaller the size of the bonsai, the greater the care he has to exert. The miniature sized bonsai often requires special attention.

Bonsai is often found in the center of a garden when set alongside an urban or wild landscape. Bonsai collectors put high value on the bonsai because of the plant's ability to exhibit age as they mature.