Botanical & Bonsai TermsBONSAI TERMS Having a working familiarity with bonsai terms will enable you to effectively express all facets of your bonsai activities to others, both more and less skilled than yourself, in the bonsai community. The following list of words and definitions will help you on your way to becoming fluent in the unique language of bonsai: 1. Accent Plant - a small plant that is put on view in conjunction with a bonsai; usually when a bonsai is being formally displayed at a show or exhibition; also called a companion plant. 2. Air Layer - a method for propagating trees through the removal of a large branch or section of trunk from an existing tree, or bonsai, to create a new tree. 3. Akadama - a traditional Japanese bonsai soil that is comprised of the red volcanic matter of Japan; used for thousands of years by bonsai artists on most types of deciduous bonsai trees. 4. Apex - the very top or highest point of a bonsai tree. 5. Back budding - a process of encouraging new growth on a branch where growth is currently non-existent. 6. Broadleaved - trees, mainly deciduous, with broad, flat leaves; non-conifer trees. 7. Bunjin - a traditional Japanese bonsai style; also called literati. This is a tree that has a tall, slender trunk with foliage growing only near the top; illustrating maturity and the casting off of material things. 8. Buttress - the area of a tree trunk where the roots meet the soil surface; usually styled to convey strength. 9. Callus - the scar tissue that forms over a wound where a branch has been pruned off of a tree; it is part of the tree's healing process. 10. Cambium - the thin layer of green colored cell tissue growing between the bark and the wood of a living tree. 11. Canopy - all of the upper-most branches that form the top of a tree. 12. Chokkan - a traditional Japanese bonsai style; also called a formal upright. This is a tree that has a very straight trunk with symmetrical branching; illustrating strength and order. 13. Collected tree - finding and taking a tree from its natural habitat; a tree that has been shaped by the forces of nature alone. 14. Conifer - a tree that bears cones; mainly evergreen trees such as: pines, cedars, spruces and junipers. 15. Cross - a hybrid resulting from cross-fertilization between species or varieties. 16. Crown - the upper section of a bonsai where the branches spread out from the trunk. 17. Cultivars - cultivars are plants that have features desirable to the person "cultivating" them. These desirable characteristics have been deliberately selected and can be reliably reproduced in plants under controlled cultivation. 18. Cut-leaved - a bonsai that has leaves which are shaped in very distinct segments. 19. Deciduous - a tree that has a seasonal growth cycle where new foliage is produced in the spring, then grows throughout the summer, turns colors in autumn, and drops in the winter, leaving buds on the branches for next spring's new foliage.
21. Dieback - the death of the tips of branches, or whole branches, due to extreme weather or possibly one of several diseases. 22. Divided leaf - a leaf formed of separate sections that emerge from a common base. 23. Division - a method of propagating shrubs by carefully dividing the root ball and replanting the separated sections. 24. Dormant - the period of the year when little or no growth occurs; usually late autumn and throughout the winter months. 25. Dwarf - a variety or cultivar that is smaller than the species tree, but retains all of the characteristics of a full size species tree. 26. Evergreen - a tree or shrub that retains its leaves throughout the year. 27. Fertilizer - is "food" for trees, shrubs and plants; usually comprised of NPK: Nitrogen for the foliage, Phosphorous for the roots, and Potassium for the flowers. 28. Foliage pad - a mass of foliage on a branch; sometimes referred to as a cloud. 29. Fruit - the part of a plant that carries the seeds; usually berries or fleshy or pod like. 30. Fukinagashi - a traditional Japanese bonsai style; also called windswept. This is a tree that has its trunk and branches swept back in one direction; illustrating a tree exposed to very forceful winds. 31. Genus - a unit of classification for a group of closely related plants. 32. Germination - the moment a seed starts into growth, developing roots and shoots. 33. Girth - the circumference of the trunk of a tree, measured at just above the root base. 34. Grafting - is a commonly used method for propagating trees, when propagation by seeds or cuttings is impractical or impossible. 35. Han-Kengai - a traditional Japanese bonsai style; also called semi-cascade. Where the branches and trunk of a tree are swept down to one side, but not below the top lip of the container; illustrating a tree subject to violent winds and weather. 36. Hardy - a term used to describe trees capable a withstanding winter frost. 37. Hokidachi - a traditional Japanese bonsai style; also called broom. Where the trunk is straight with symmetrical branches and has its foliage arranged in a semi-circular dome or broom shape. 38. Humidity - the amount or degree of moisture in the air. 39. Internodal distance - the length of stem between two nodes or leaf joints. 40. Ikadabuki - a traditional Japanese bonsai style; also called raft. Where the tree is laid on its side and its branches are trained vertically and arranged in a group formation. 41. Ishitsuki - a traditional Japanese bonsai style; also called root over rock. Where the tree has its roots arranged so they have grown over and in the crevices of a rock. 42. Jin - is a branch, which has been stripped of its bark and cambium to represent a dead branch; illustrating great age or harsh conditions. 43. Juvenile foliage - the young leaves of a tree that produces two distinct shapes of leaves; the second type being mature foliage. 44. Kabudachi - a traditional Japanese bonsai style; also called clump. Where the trees' trunks all grow from the same point on the root mass and are more crowded in appearance than a regular group planting. 45. Kengai - a traditional Japanese bonsai style; also called cascade. Where the branches and trunk of the tree are swept to one side and hang below the container; illustrating a tree on the edge of a mountain cliff subjected to fierce winds. 46. Leader - the main shoot at the top of a tree, usually indicating the uppermost continuation of the trunk. 47. Lime Sulpher - a chemical used to whiten or bleach a section of stripped branch or trunk in order to preserve a jin or shari. 48. Loam - a soil mixture comprised of clay, sand and organic matter. 49. Mame - a term used in size classification of bonsai trees; this being a small bonsai. 50. Moyogi - a traditional Japanese bonsai style; also called informal upright. Where the trunk curves through its taper up to the apex. 51. Nebari - the exposed surface roots of a bonsai. 52. Needle - a type of leaf that is narrow and usually of a stiff texture, like those found on a black pine tree. 53. New wood - a stem or twig on a bonsai that originated during the current season's growth. 54. Nitrogen - an essential element of plant nutrition; identified by the chemical symbol N; aids in growth of stems and leaves. 55. Node - the point on a trunk or branch where the leaf buds emerge. 56. Old wood - a stem or twig on a bonsai that originated during the previous season's growth or at an earlier time. 57. Peat - partly decomposed organic matter; when it is used as an ingredient of potting soil it assists in moisture retention. 58. Perlite - a form of volcanic rock that is heat treated to develop a lightweight, coarse granule that when used as a component of potting soil has advantageous ventilation and water retention properties. 59. Phosphorous - another essential element of plant nutrition; identified by the chemical symbol P; aids in development of roots, ripening of fruits and seeds. 60. Pinching - is a technique used in bonsai cultivation of controlling and shaping the growth of foliage by pulling off soft new shoots with the finger and thumb in a pinching motion. 61. Potassium - the third essential element of plant nutrition; identified by the chemical symbol K; it encourages strong new growth, development of flower buds and fruit formation. 62. Pot-bound - the adverse state of a container grown plant where the root growth has filled the container to the extent of eliminating all vital air spaces. 63. Prostrate - the characteristic growth habit of a plant that naturally tends to grow along the ground instead of upright. 64. Pruning - the process of controlling the shape and growth rate of a tree by cutting back the shoots, stems and branches. 65. Raceme - a type of elongated flower that is composed of individual stalks all growing from a central stem; ex. Flower type found on wisteria trees. 66. Ramification - the dense branching structure of a bonsai that only develops after years of repeated pruning of the branches. 67. Repotting - the practice of replanting a bonsai tree at regular intervals to perform health maintaining tasks such as: root washing, inspecting, pruning, soil refreshing, and potting in a different or larger pot; all imperative to the health of a bonsai. 68. Rootball - the large mass of roots and soil visible when a tree is taken out of its pot or pulled from the ground. 69. Root pruning - the practice of cutting back the roots of bonsai in order to make room in the container for fresh soil and to encourage new root growth. 70. Rootstock - is the root system and main stem to be used as the base of a new tree when propagating through grafting. 71. Scion - is a small section of a tree, which contains all of the desirable characteristics of the parent tree that will be propagated into a new tree through grafting on top of the rootstock. 72. Shakan - a traditional Japanese bonsai style; also called slanting. Where the trees' trunk, appears similar to the formal upright style, but the trunk is slanting to one side. 73. Shari - an area where the bark and cambium have been removed from the trunk to suggest the struggle against fierce weather such as: wind, lightning, snow and ice. 74. Species - the unit of classification for a plant with identifiable characteristics. 75. Suiseki - stones that appear to look like large boulders or mountains and represent the spirit or essence of each; sometime used in a formal bonsai display. 76. Taproot - the large root of a tree that grows vertically downward, anchoring it into the ground; it is usually referred to in bonsai, because of its need to be pruned shorter or removed for container cultivation. 77. Tokonoma - a Japanese tradition of creating a specific area in the home where bonsai, accessory plants, Suiseki, and scrolls are displayed together in harmony. 78. Wound sealant - a number of compounds formulated to seal cuts made on branches or the trunk of bonsai to prevent the loss of moisture and promote heeling. 79. Yamadori - trees collected from the wild, which have been shaped by nature alone and have been collected to be developed into bonsai. 80. Yose-ue - a traditional Japanese bonsai style; also called a group or forest. Where the trees are arranged in a container to resemble a group or forest of trees. BOTANICAL TERMS Botanical Name - All plants have a name that is unique to them and this is often called the Botanical name, although some people prefer to use the term: Latin name or Scientific name, instead. Plant names are based on the Latin language, which was considered the universal language during the 18th century when a vast majority of the "naming" of newly discovered plants was taking place. Botanical names are descriptive. They describe many characteristics specific to that plant such as: the place of origin, color, growth habit, leaf size, bark texture, etc. Botanical names all have two main parts: a genus (generic) name and a species (specific) name: Genus - The genus or plant family. Plants in the same genus are closely related (family). Plants in the same Genus have similar characteristics, so when you see the same genus name you'll automatically know something about the plant. Plants in the same genus may interbreed with each other and if they do the resulting plant is a hybrid (see below). Example: Acer - maple Species - A species is those plants that are the same and will produce viable offspring. Plants in the same species always interbreed with each other. This certainty makes a species a species. Plants within a species can, because of their environment, climate and soil differences, vary in some small ways, such as: different leaf color, size, shape etc., so, as a result, within species you can have: sub-species, varieties, cultivars and hybrids. Example: Acer Palmatum - Japanese maple Sub-species - A subspecies is a variety within a species that shows identifiable characteristics different from other subspecies. It is usually geographically separate from other subspecies. These are still able to produce viable offspring when two subspecies within the same plant species are brought together. Example: Acer palmatum ssp. amoenum - Japanese red maple "Oshio Beni" Hybrid - A hybrid is a blending of two different species, usually breeding desirable traits into the new plant. When different species within a family or different families produce offspring, the new plants are called hybrids. Example: Acer x conspicuum 'Silver Vein' - Snake-bark maple Cultivars - cultivars are plants that have features desirable to the person "cultivating" them. These desirable characteristics have been deliberately selected and can be reliably reproduced in plants under controlled cultivation. Many cultivars are the result of careful breeding, producing hybrids that have desirable leaves, flowers or growth habits. To continue the desired attribute, grafting, layering or cuttings are used to propagate the cultivars. Cultivars are valued, because they insure that a plant will be exactly like the named plant sought. Example: Acer Palmatum Dissectum - Laceleaf Weeping Japanese maple The descriptive information inherent in Botanical Terms is important for learning about and locating a specific plant.
Use these Bonsai Terms to help grow your own tree!
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