Extremely confused choosing a Bonsai book!

18 years ago

Dear friends,

Please help me choosing the right books for a beginner in the world of Bonsai & as future references & advanced stages. IÂve collected some booksÂ names by searching through Amazon.com and asking you to help me choose the best of them(One, two or three if necessary):

* The Complete Book of Bonsai (by Harry Tomlinson).

* The Secret Techniques of Bonsai : A Guide to Starting, Raising, and Shaping Bonsai (by Masakuni Kawasumi II and Masakuni Kawasumi III).

* Successful Bonsai: Raising Exotic Miniature Trees (by David Squire).

* Growing Bonsai: A Practical Encyclopedia : The essential practical guide to a classic art with techniques, step-by-step projects and over 600 photographs (by Ken Norman).

* Bonsai School : The Complete Course in Care, Training & Maintenance (by Craig Coussins).

*Bonsai with Tropicals: Some Things I Learned Along the Way (by Mary C Miller).

* The Bonsai Workshop (by Herb Gustafson).

* Creating Bonsai Landscapes : 18 Miniature Garden Projects (by Su Chin Ee, Lewis Collin).

*Totally Bonsai: A Guide to Growing, Shaping, and Caring for Miniature Trees and Shrubs (by Craig Coussins).

Thanks in advanceÂ

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Comments (9)

lucy
18 years ago
Hi, the Tomlinson (1st here) is excellent - lots and lots of pictures, info., and basic care of many trees. Bonsai School (Coussins) may be a little heavy, but also very good. Mary M's new bk on Tropicals ('indoor' stuff) is very good, as is Totally Bonsai. Herb Gustafson is good, but that book is all about growing conifers in the Pacific NW of the U.S., not at all your thing at the moment, and most things by Colin Lewis would be great, but not that particular one as it's addressing something you may want to get into later on (you did ask about the future), but not yet. Paul Lesniewicz has a good book on Indoor Bonsai, and Deborah Koreshoff (Australia) has a big book on everything. You've got a few good ones to start with, and once you've got a better overall view of things, and have done a little practicing on some young 'starters' from a local nursery (for outdoor trees), or decided to definitely work on trops. indoors, then would be a good time to start trading info. on forums (e.g. the Bonsaisite is very active). Try www. bonsaihunk.com to learn ALL about growing ficus from an expert (Jerry) - a great start for your climate.
botanical_bill
18 years ago
Im less than one year into this hobbie. The only book I bough was 'The Bonsai Handbook' by David Prescott. This book covers every thing from basics to history to indepth stuff. I then got tons of questions answered here and my local bonsai nursery has a great owner that likes to BS and answer questions. Just remember, you dont need all the tools at once. Just buy as you need.
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rjj1
18 years ago
The Complete Book of Bonsai by Harry Tomlinson is an excellent choice and because of your climate I might go with Mary Miller 2nd.

randy
lucy
18 years ago
One caution - don't base any one important aspect of care on what is said in one book alone. All authors (growers) disagree on various things, and depending on where they live, or trained, or their experience with whatever the local soil was like, etc., you'll get 10 answers to 5 questions, so it's really important to see what a few people agree on about any one aspect of growing.
tapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
18 years ago
Lucy is right in that the more ideas you are exposed to, the broader your list of options to choose something appropriate from will be. Of all the books I have, easily 100 on bonsai, I think (just an opinion) John Naka's "Bonsai Techniques I" is probably the best choice for a beginner. You'll likely want to acquire "Bonsai Techniques II" soon after you finish the first book. The line drawings and text are clear and easy to understand. I also have a copy of Deb Koreshoff's first printing of "Bonsai - Its Art, Science, History, and Philosophy", which I believe is back in print now. I consider it among the best books out there for solid information and great line drawings.

Al
bonsai_audge
18 years ago
"The Bonsai Workshop" by Herb Gustafson was the first bonsai book I've read, and it was really good in covering all the basics. It has "workshops" of different case studies covering various topics, so it's good for the beginner to see (more or less) the techniques in practice.

Once you've got a general understanding, Deborah Koreshoff's "Bonsai - Its Art, Science, History and Philosophy" is really an intensive study on bonsai. I still haven't read the entire thing, even after having it for quite a few years already. It has TONS of information, and a lot of it very specific as well.

-Audric
anaman
18 years ago
Tapla gave you the best advice. If you want to learnb to grow bonsai seriously, there are only two books.

Bonsai Techniques I& II by John Yoshio Naka

The others have nice pictures but lousey on techniques.
rjj1
18 years ago
Anaman

Your post brings an old saying to mind, but it's probably best not repeated here.

Your opinion is unduly noted:-).

There are some great books on that list by knowledgeable people that express ideas in a very informative way.

randy
bwaynef
18 years ago
BT 1 (& apparently 2, though I have no first hand knowledge of 2) has excellent insight. The sketches are priceless. There are several color plates of Naka's trees. He had a great personality, and was liked by a lot of people.

A lot of his advice is specific to California, probably Southern California. The recipes for soil are way complex and outdated.

I'd suggest Tomlinson, Coussins or Gustafson for a good beginners' book.

Extremely confused choosing a Bonsai book!

Comments (9)

lucy

botanical_bill

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