Page 26 - BSAM 2016 Q4

24 | BCI | October/November/December 2016
DIVERSITY OF METHODS IN SHUYANG
2nd China Bonsai Making Games
IBy Larry Stephan, USA
n North America we think of Bonsai creation in a somewhat structured form, in uenced in large measure by Japanese style and processes. For example, to create a Bonsai you need all the appropriate tools. ese may include a wide variety of cutters, scissors, pliers, tweezers, picks, rakes and saws just to mention a few. Usually the tools are specialty items made just for work on Bonsai projects. Soils should be particle based such as Akadama, pumice or Turface with leaf mold. Potting of a tree is started with numerous wires
secured to the bottom of the pot in order to wire the tree. You can throw out these concepts when it comes to a Chinese Bonsai competition.
At the 4th Shuyang Flower and Seedling Festival events were started with an all day China Bonsai Making Games. 75 bonsai artists from all over China competed in the morning for 3 1/2 hours followed by 75 more in the a ernoon. Participants traveled to Shuyang from Wuhan in Hubei province, with others coming from Anhui, Guangdong and Hunan. Each artist brought their own un-styled material with them. Awards were given to the top 8 artists in each group.
What amazed me were the di erences in the Bonsai creation process. Most artists did not use wires to secure the trees in the pots. Generally the soil being used was a mixture of what in the US we call potting soil and top soil. e tools were a surprise as well. e number of tools being used was about 1/4 of what you would expect to see in a US or Japanese Bonsai demonstration. Hammers, chisels and garden type saws were common. Chisels were o en used instead of our variety of cutters. While most of the artists were men of various ages there were several young women competing, at least one of whom won an award for her tree.