I had the opportunity to take a class on Bonsai through Exotic Gardens TT, so I took it. Up until yesterday I had just been someone who plays with ideas now and then, which is really not the best way to practice bonsai. I knew that, the plants knew that, and I buried many a mistake.

Since I wrote about the way we bonsai things ourselves recently, it was also a good opportunity that got me away from the keyboard for a while. Among other people.

I’ve been playing with bonsai for years and have managed to kill more than my fair share of trees doing it – and in the class, I did learn why those failed, so I’m likely not going to be a serial bonsai killer anymore.

This type of horticulture, creating dwarf trees, is very old. Originally done by the Chinese, it’s popularity as we know it today comes from Japan as well. The trouble in the tropical regions is that tropical plants aren’t the same. Since I live in a tropical region and have limited space outdoors, it’s a nice way for me to have plants around without occupying too much space.

I suppose another thing that draws me to this way of dealing with potted plants is that they are functional works. In the class I think that it was called ‘living art’, which is also true. There is science, there is art, there is aesthetic (which I have never been terribly good at) and there is just maintaining potted plants.

The bonsai tree I worked on was already well started, which was fortunate for me and not to be expected all the time. It’s a Barbados Cherry, not to be confused with the more well known West Indian cherry tree more often seen in Trinidad and Tobago, and mine was actually started years ago by the instructor. This likely won’t happen for future classes as much simply because of availability, so if a class starts up soon and you’re nearby, you can benefit from the early classes.

In fact, this was the first class they held, and it was very nicely done. It helps that everyone there wanted to be there, that everyone was interested in the topic, and that we all enjoyed each other’s work. It might even be a different kind of team building exercise in that regard, because everyone is working on something different and looking for a different result – which is what teams do in minutiae.

The practical aspect of the class covered the pruning with tips and tricks, the shaping with wire as well as an explanation of how to not use wire with some plants, the trimming of roots and repotting. One thing I didn’t understand before the class was the surface roots (Nebari) and how to create them, and within a few minutes I was taught these things. I’d wasted years trying to do things the wrong way.

Of course, bonsai isn’t about immediate satisfaction. Each plant is years of commitment. In many ways, it’s like having a pet, though with this the satisfaction is maybe having the vision and shaping the plant toward that vision.

I look forward to seeing what else Exotic Garden TT will be doing in the future.