Bonsai is a Japanese word formed by two ideogram characters, the first meaning "pot" or "container" and the second "to cultivate." It is a term that can be applied to any plant grown in a pot. Today it is applied to a tree or shrub grown usually in a ceramic pot, trained or styled by clipping or wiring or both. But it is so much more.

Bonsai is an ancient art form with its origins in China at least as far back as the fourth century. Soon the art spread to Korea and was found in Japan by the sixth and seventh centuries. During the last hundred years the art of bonsai spread and now enjoys worldwide popularity.

Even today, bonsai continues to touch one's soul and intellect with its beauty, tranquility, and natural character of age, just as one would react to viewing a masterpiece of art...