Information sheet on eastern white cedar

Guide to bonsai pots
Vianney Leduc
V1.0 October 2014
1- The role of a bonsai pot
- Container for the soil with the required drainage hole
- Esthetic: to complement or enhance the characteristics of a
bonsai
- Represent about 1/3 of the visual composition
Pot color complementing the color characteristics of flowers
Pot color complementing the fall color of leaves
2- Basic esthetic elements
- Color glazed pots are normally used for leafy tree (i.e. shiny leaves =
shiny pots)
- Earth color unglazed pots are used mostly with coniferous
- Pot have an overall shape: round, rectangular, oval, etc. which is
an important element of its personality
- Pots have to be proportional to the tree
o Pot thickness should be roughly the thickness of the trunk
o The width of the pot should be roughly 2/3 the width of the height
of the tree
In this case: width is 2/3 the height
In this case:
o width is less than 2/3 the width
o Pot thickness is less than thickness of trunk
These are just guidelines and not rules…!
Visual elements that can exist in each section of a pot.
- Each section of the pot also have characteristics that affect its personality
- Generally: The more personality a tree has, the more visual element should be
present and vice versa
- The top section can have a lip that will add interest and will provide a more
massive look. A lip can also add a feeling of age
- The middle section can have various visual element
- The feet can go from modest to having a lot of details in them
Example of modest tree
- pot that has less features (i.e. no lips, no middle section features and
feet that are discrete)
Example of tree with a lot of personality (i.e. lot of visual features)
- pot that has many features (i.e. lips, 2 series of lines and 2 colors in middle
section, feet with a lot of details)
NOTE: these are final pots for tree ready for exhibition
- We often use transition pot or training pot and reduce our way down until
the final pot
3- Rectangular to oval pots
- Used for trees from formal upright to informal upright
- From masculine to feminine characteristics
o Masculine pot has very angular shape
o Pot with both feminine and masculine characteristics will have overall
rectangular shape combined with softer angles in different area
o Feminine pot will have only soft angles
- What are the masculine characteristics which can exist on a tree:
o Sharp trunk angles (this include straight trunk of formal upright)
o The trunk thickness ratio in relation to the height (e.g. 1 to 4 and shorter is
considered a masculine powerful trunk)
o The roughness of the bark
o The roughness of the foliage
- What are the feminine characteristics which can exists on a tree:
o Softer trunk angle
o The trunk thickness ratio in relation to the height (e.g. 1/8 or taller)
o The smoothness of the bark
o The smoothness of the foliage
o Flowers
- Many trees will have both feminine and masculine characteristics
o We could have a very straight and powerful Azalea trunk with flowers
o Hemlock and Spruce have rough bark combined with soft foliage
Example of tree with mostly masculine characteristics
Example of tree with mostly feminine characteristics
4- Round pots
- Used for trees that move outside of the container like slanted trees and also
for Literati (slim tall trunk)
- Not suited for tree with mostly masculine characteristics
5- Tall pots
- Used for semi-cascade and cascading trees
- These pots will also have feminine and masculine characteristics
Semi cascading tree with smooth curves
Cascading tree with mostly feminine qualities and some
masculine characteristics. The pot is mostly feminine but has a few
sharp angle
Cascading tree in semi cascade pot. The irregular shape and
texture of the pot complement well an older tree.
6- Shallow oval and rectangular pots
- Used for forest and raft-style
7- Stone or slab
- Used to suggest the natural location where the tree was growing
- Suitable for forest, raft style and some collected trees
8- Quality of pots
- Temperature during firing process (1200-1300 Celsius)
- How many drainage hole
- Stamp of manufacturer is normally a sign of higher quality
- Beware of some flaws like crevices below the drainage holes
9- Unique pots
10- Find the flaw in these combinations