Natural Bonsai

Whilst I admire the skills and creations of those who practice the Japanese art of growing a bonsai, a part of me feels disturbed by the procedure of purposefully stunting the growth and potential of what could be a magnificent tree with many uses.

Two years ago, my husband and I collected seeds from 6 different species of Acacia.  We went through the process of germinating and planting specimens, watching them develop and noting the different growth patterns.

From the onset, we noticed that one of our Acacia sieberiana (Paperbark) saplings was a little different.  He battled to burst forth from the hard casing protecting the seed and, in the process of shedding off the covering somehow got damaged.

We fed and nurtured all the plants with the same treatment.  Whilst all the others grew straight stems at phenomenal a rate, this little one grew very slowly with a twisted trunk.  Despite being weak and warped, he continued growing and developing himself.

Where similar plants grown for commercial purposes would have long ago been discarded, we kept this treasure and now have ourselves a natural bonsai without going through the practice of wiring his trunk to give it an artistically misshapen appearance.

The other plants are now towering young trees up to 3 metres tall and I hope they will grow into
magnificent specimens fulfilling many purposes like providing a home to wildlife, enhancing the air and providing shade.  Incidentally, my garden is far too small to grow a full size Acacia sieberiana , so, whilst I cannot benefit from sitting under the shade of my bonsai, I have the privilege of using him as the centre piece on my patio table.  I still have my view on the practice of creating bonsai, but I can now appreciate one of the advantages of owning one.  Most importantly, I played a part in creating him and did not give up on the joy of watching him reach for the sun.