Learn Bonsai styles
There are various bonsai styles and learning each style will increase your bonsai knowledge and you can get an idea of creating your bonsai your own way.
Here are well know bonsai styles and there are many more I guess. (I don't know how many styles there are exactly.)
Japanese name is in parentheses( ).
Bonsai Styles
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Upright style (chokkan)
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Literati style (bunjingi)
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Informal Upright style (moyohgi)
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Slanting style (shakan)
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Cascade style (kengai)
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Semi Cascade style (hankengai)
- Multiple Trunk style (kabudachi)
- Wind Swept style (fukinagashi)
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Twin Trunk style (sohkan)
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Rock Grown style (ishizuki)
Upright style (chokkan)
- the most basic bonsai style
- vertically grown
- thick at the bottom and gradually gets thinner as it grows up
Trees that suit this style are:
- pine tree
- Japanese cypress
- Japanese cedar
Literati style (bunjingi)
- the name is from the Literati of imperial China
- grown with a few branches and a thin trunk
Trees that suit this style are:
- red pine
- white pine
- Japanese plum tree
Informal Upright style (moyohgi)
- with the trunk curving in many directions
Trees that suit this style are:
- white pine
- Japanese maple
Slanting style (shakan)
- slanting to one side because of the wind or the weight of a branch
Trees that suit this style are:
- pine tree
- Japanese cedar
Cascade style (kengai)
- with the trunk and branches growing down out of the pot.
Trees that suit this style are:
- juniper
- satsuki azelea
Semi Cascade style (hankengai)
- with the trunk and branches growing down out of the pot but shorter than cascade style and growing more horizontally to the pot.
Multiple Trunk style (kabudachi)
- more than 5 trunks growing from one trunk at the bottom
Trees that suit this style are:
- white pine
Wind Swept style (fukinagashi)
- entire tree grows to one side because of being blown by the wind
Trees that suit this style are:
- black pine
- spruce
Twin Trunk style (sohkan)
- two trunks grown at the bottom
- one of the trunks was a branch and grown as a trunk
Trees that suit this style are:
- maple
- Japanese beech
Rock Grown style (ishizuki)
- grown on rock
Trees that suit this style are:
- black pine
- maple
the drawings on this page by NiCOGUSA. A lot of thanks!