8 • ISSUE September 2009
Volume 16, No. 1
PATIENCE IS KEY TO HORTICULTURAL ARTFORM AS A GARDENER FOR Shangri La Botanical Gardens in Orange and as a folk artist, Greg LeBlanc’s skills lend themselves naturally to the horticultural art of bonsai. LeBlanc, from Lake Charles, La., said the word “bonsai” is Japanese in origin and actually means “planted in a tray” because of the tray-like pots in which the trees are planted. He also uses his expertise to expel one of the
Story and photos by Tara Smith
most common bonsai myths. “A lot of people think that bonsai is a specific species of tree,” LeBlanc said. “But it is not. You can make a bonsai out of any tree.” He emphasizes that this does not mean a person should pick just any tree. “You usually want trees that have smaller leaves,” he said. Choosing a tree with smaller leaves is only a part of the key to reaching the goal of the art. “The goal,” he said, “is to make a tree look like a really old tree in nature, but in miniature.” LeBlanc said he knows he has reached his goal
Greg LeBlanc holds one of the bonsai trees he has shaped. LeBlanc said it can take from one to 20 years to train a tree into a nice looking bonsai.
if the tree reminds others of an old tree from their childhood or one they have recently seen in nature they found beautiful. Children are especially good critics. “When a child walks up to a bonsai and says the tree looks like a big old tree in the woods,” he said, “you know you’ve done something good.” The process of reaching this goal is arduous because bonsai trees have to be specifically trained into a certain shape and style. “It all depends on what shape you want it to be,” he said. “There are the formal uprights, the informal uprights, the slanting, cascading, and then there are group or forest-style plantings.” According to LeBlanc, bonsais are trained mostly through pruning and wiring. The wiring works similar to braces on teeth and bone by pushing the tree into a particular shape and style. It is a time-consuming process. “It takes anywhere from one to twenty years to train a tree into a nice-looking bonsai,” he said. LeBlanc, therefore, suggests that before getting into bonsai, people should ask themselves if they have the required patience needed for the art. “Some people, when they start, they soon get out of it,” he said. “It takes a lot of responsibility.” Part of that responsibility is having the materials needed, which can be expensive. “Because you put so much time in it,” he said, “bonsai is kind of expensive. So, if you are just starting out, you don’t want to spend $300 to $400 on a tree when you don’t know anything about it.” LeBlanc admits that he is now hooked on the art of bonsai and the philosophy and spiritual lessons that come with it. “It is sort of like a meditation, a peacefulness you get when in and around nature,” he said. “I get into the soul of a tree and find its movement, where it wants to go or what it wants to be.” He said the phrase “Wabi Sabi” often comes to mind as he is working on a tree. “Wabi Sabi has lots of meanings of beauty and aesthetics,” he said. “Imperfections of nature, asymmetry, simplicity, modesty, patience and intimacy.” The art of bonsai caught LeBlanc’s attention around 28 years ago when he landed his first landscaping job. “My boss had a book on botany,” he said. “I started looking through it one day and saw pictures of bonsai.” Though there were only three pictures of them in the entire book, the trees made a serious impression on him.
