Page 37 - Tạp chí bonsai cây cảnh BCI 2015Q2

The staffs of the foreign embassies especially wanted process to get smaller more attractive trees. When Jay
to experience a form of Japan’s cultural arts. Toshio made plans to visit us, preparations for a saikei class
recruited Tom Yamamoto, a Hawaii native and part of intensified and the innovations created are the subject
the U.S. Army occupational forces who had retired in of this article.
Japan, as his English-speaking instructor. At the end of
the workshops after keepsake photos were taken, the NEW CONCEPTS AND CRITERIA
saikei were carefully taken apart and the components Unlike most saikei, I urged Jay to put together groups
cleaned and put away for future classes. The trees had of pre-selected rocks and trees that would allow him to
their roots “balled and burlapped” and sunk into sand first create a full range of designs that could become
beds for easy maintenance. increasingly complex. I made such a set to address
In the late 1960s Toshio Kawamoto and Tom the challenge of creating a tall complex saikei that I
Yamamoto gave several presentations in Honolulu had envisioned for many years. Jay’s workshop would
and I was a part of a team that assisted them in the teach him the primary saikei principles as well as have
preparations. I had already studied their book and him as a partner to address the tall complex challenge.
had made several saikei. They were generous in their I utilized Oregon pumice which is highly carvable
critiques of my efforts. In 1991 on a Hawaiian vacation, and which holds a lot of details. A number of individual
Tom Yamamoto did two major demonstrations at the stones had been carved. In Michigan, Jay also began
Kona Fuku-Bonsai Center. carving a set and his frequent photo reports produced
Rock plantings are popular in Hawaii and saikei increasingly better components. The objective was to
is considered an advanced rock planting activity. In create a sufficiently large set so a full range of saikei
the past two years, Fuku-Bonsai and the Mid-Pacific arrangements could be created. The arrangement
Bonsai Foundation partnered to publish the monthly could be continually assembled and modified from
e-mail Journal of Tropical & True Indoor Bonsai on time to time to improve and explore variations.
the www.fukubonsai.com website and there have been His younger trees were still in the growing-on
a number of rock-planting articles. stage and did not produce the desired effect. I sent
Contributing editor John “Jay” Boryczko of him trees with older extended roots that were moving
Farmington Hills, Michigan has especially been into refinement and the more detailed trees greatly
interested in saikei and has submitted reports and improved his initial results. So, when he decided to
articles of his efforts. To teach Jay, I had been working visit and take workshops here, saikei was the priority
on building a set of sculptured rocks and moving and it gave me an opportunity to teach and field test
trees into shallow containers as part of the refinement recent innovations that were in progress.

FIRST DAY, SAIKEI WORKSHOP:

Arrangements with 8-inch rocks

A. The first trial arrangement featured two 8-inch tall
rocks with a few other smaller rocks. The rocks had been
extended 4.5 inches and 5.5 inches with plastic pipes
and no effort was made to hide the pipe base. Using a
round plywood disc, the bases of the two tallest
rocks were taped to nails in the wood base to
hold them in position. The initial design
was created while explaining that my
basic designs places the first three
rocks into ideal positions; and that
the rocks suggest placement of
the trees. Having a tray of Java Moss
handy gave a nice look quickly.

April/May/June 2015 | BCI | 35