The Secret Techniques of Bonsai: A Guide to Starting, Raising, and Shaping Bonsai (Hardcover)

~ Masakuni Kawasumi II and Masakuni Kawasu III (Author), Kay Yokota (Translator) "The following chapters explore the actual art of cultivating bonsai..." (more)
Key Phrases: bonsai sword, trunk splitter, concave branch cutter, Sargent Juniper (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Incorporating advice from his son, a tree doctor, the author teaches how to produce splendid specimens." -- The Washington Post

Review

"Incorporating advice from his son, a tree doctor, the author teaches how to produce splendid specimens." -The Washington Post

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 112 pages
• Publisher: Kodansha International (February 17, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 4770029438
• ISBN-13: 978-4770029430
• Product Dimensions: 10.3 x 7.6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #39,742 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

29 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A well-organized, helpful start, August 29, 2007

By	M. Marsula "musc475" (Philadelphia, PA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

In short, my opinion is that this is an excellent book if you are serious about bonsai and would like to get started, or to complement your knowledge from other books.

Before I purchased this book, I checked out several books from my local library. Some books seem to show many pictures of finished bonsai without really getting into details and I feel as if I still don't have the knowledge to even start on a bonsai. This book is a bit more helpful with step-by-step pictures from repotting to pruning, diagrams of undesirable branches, and methods of propagation.

There is a lot of information in this book that I read in this book that other books brush by, but I found helpful to me. Without a doubt, it is important to read different books because each author has their own views on certain issues.

Other books that you might want to look into are "Bonsai (101 Essential Tips)" by Harry Tomlinson and "The Bonsai Workshop" by Herb Gustafson.

21 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fine Summary of Advanced Level Bonsai , January 3, 2007

By	R. K. Marsh "4weirdbooks" (Michigan, USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is a fine work on Advanced Techniques for the Bonsai enthusiast, in particular giving full particulars on specialty tools and pruning shears in Bonsai Culture. It is kind of surprising the great tips one can get, from just the one paragraph tips that the authors son added after his father death. Very concise and precise is a great summary for this book.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Advanced, July 14, 2008

By	T. Nunley "Tiki" (Austin, TX) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I do not recommend this book to the beginner who is just getting into Bonsai care-taking. This is more of a comprehensive book explaining how to create, shape, and nurture Bonsai trees. This book is very well written for and advanced level Bonsai owner. It goes into detail about how to start Bonsai trees, wire them, how to pick out the right environment, etc.
So if you're beginning, I think you should pass this book by at first. If, however, you have been into Bonsai trees for a while, this is the book to go with.