THE BONSAI BOND FOR ITS PRACTITIONERS, CULTIVATION OF TINY TREES CAN BE AN ENDURING OBSESSION.

Byline: Sherry Joe Crosby Staff Writer

Robert Pressler was just 10 years old when he saw his first bonsai at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. He never forgot the experience.

``It just blew me away,'' recalls the New Jersey native, now 46 and owner of Kimura Bonsai and Landscape Nursery in Northridge, where he practices the ancient Japanese art of raising potted trees.

The specimen that captivated Pressler and ignited a life-long passion was a 250-year-old fire needle pine from Japan.

``Half of it was completely dead wood and the other half had nice foliage pads. I couldn't believe anything that dead-looking was still alive,'' he says with a laugh.

Now the bonsai artist owns about 2,000 trees, which include those in his nursery stock. He also lectures on the subject and offers monthly instructional workshops at his nursery.

``It's addictive,'' he says of the practice, which began more than a thousand years ago in China, where it is known as Penjing, which means ``landscape in a pot.''

Bonsai, pronounced BONE-sigh, is a Japanese term meaning ``tree in a pot'' and represents the stylized art form most commonly seen today.

Large, but small

Bonsai are not miniature trees, but full-grown trees kept small through stunting and pruning their roots and branches, and repotting. They range in size from trees grown in thimble-size containers to trees requiring several men to move. With diligent care, bonsai can live hundreds of years.

While many trees are suitable for the practice, junipers, maples and pines are considered classic bonsai because of their well-tapered trunks, branch structure and small leaves. But even nontraditional plants, such as bougainvillea, can become bonsai.

Before buying a bonsai, however, Pressler and others advise beginners to join a club, many of which offer workshops on the care and maintenance of the trees. Taking lessons from a skilled bonsai artist is also strongly recommended.

``I didn't do any really successful things with bonsai until I joined a club and then started taking lessons,'' says Jack Reynolds, 67, of Simi Valley, who belongs to Sansui Kai of Southern California, a bonsai club that meets monthly at the Tillman Water Reclamation Center in Van Nuys. ``I benefit from taking the lessons. There's always something to learn.''

Try, try again

Reynolds' first bonsai experience ended in disappointment after he received a tree as a birthday gift.

``Of course I killed it in about a year. I didn't know how to take proper care of it.''

Despite his initial setback, the retired Moorpark College biology professor pursued his hobby and with his wife now owns about 300 to 400 bonsai plants. His trees have been seen in regional shows, including the prestigious Winter Silhouette Show, which is being held today and Sunday at the Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanic Garden.

``It gets to be an obsession,'' says Reynolds.

Nat Stein can agree with that. The 80-year-old retired Caltrans engineer has about 35 bonsai in the backyard of his Thousand Oaks town house. Among his collection of maples, elms, junipers and Japanese quince is a 450-year-old California juniper that he won as a raffle prize at a bonsai show.

``It teaches you patience. It teaches you to appreciate nature,'' says Stein, who belongs to the Descanso Bonsai Society and is an adviser to the year-old Conejo Valley Bonsai Society.

``Time is the most important thing about bonsai because, believe me, you don't make an instant bonsai - it takes years.''

Pressler agrees. He's been working on some trees for 30 years.

Painstaking pruning is used to retain the shape of the tree and enhance its beauty. Artists use their fingers and special tools to remove unwanted foliage and wrap shaping wire around branches to achieve desired effects.

``We sometimes cut off 80 percent of a tree when we first train it,'' Pressler says. ``The idea of less is more is really true.''

Varied origins

While bonsai plants can be grown from seedlings and cuttings or bought from reputable dealers, enthusiasts say their best trees come from the least likely sources.

``One of my best trees was from a debris pile,'' says Reynolds. ``There was a huge pile of junk laying there and there was an olive tree. It had three leaves on it. I dragged it home and now it's a bonsai. It's a really nice bonsai, too. On certain days, it's my best tree.''

Pressler's vast collection includes aging grapevines from a vineyard in Rancho Cucamonga, an evergreen pear tree toppled by a careening car and unwanted bougainvillea from the Hollywood Hills home of a landscaping client.

``There was all kinds of dead foliage on it,'' Pressler says of one San Jose juniper that he has transformed into a cascade-style bonsai over the past five years. ``I saw a really cool tree in that.''

Knowing which plants are best suited for bonsai takes a practiced eye, enthusiasts say.

``There's a lot of stuff you can use, depending on where you live,'' says Pressler. ``It's really important for beginners to know trees and not just buy the trees they see in books.''

Where to see and learn more

Winter Silhouette Show.

Where: Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanic Garden, Ayres Hall, 301 N. Baldwin Ave., Arcadia.

When: 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. today and Sunday.

Tickets: Free with paid admission to arboretum: $7 adults, $5 seniors over 62 and college students with ID, $2.50 children 5-12, free for children 4 and under. Call [phone] or visit www.arboretum.org.

Bonsai lecture and demonstration

Who: Robert Pressler, owner of Kimura Bonsai and Landscape in Northridge, will lead an informal session on the basics of this traditional Japanese art form.

Where: Soka University of America, Calabasas Botanical Research Center and Nursery, 26800 W. Mulholland Highway, Calabasas.

When: 10 to 11:30 a.m. Feb. 19. Rain date is Feb. 26.

Tickets: Admission is free. Call [phone] or email nativegarden(at)soka.edu

The best bonsai Suitable bonsai trees have:

--A wide base and tapering trunk.

--Well-formed roots, resembling fingers gripping the soil beneath the tree.

--Low-hanging, naturally spaced branches, with the largest branches at the bottom, gradually decreasing in size up the trunk.

--Healthy buds.

--Small leaves that can be reduced in size proportionate to the tree. Trees with large leaves, such as sycamores and eucalyptus, are ill-suited for bonsai.

Taking care of your bonsai Location: Outside, preferably on a shelf or table that can be shaded from midafternoon sun and protected during cold winter nights. Subtropical indoor varieties are the exception to this rule and may be grown inside.

Watering: Individual trees have different watering needs. In general, the top layer of soil must be allowed to dry down an inch before watering. Use a very fine spray-head watering can to water soil directly, or stand the bonsai in water up to the edge of its container for five to 10 minutes. Mist the foliage and moss regularly. Too much water can be harmful.

Feeding: Bonsai food pellets can be buried around the moss or under the gravel, or a common water-soluble fertilizer at half strength on actively growing plants may be used. Do not feed any plant during winter or immediately following transplanting.

Trimming/training: Snip and pinch with your fingers, or use sharp pointed bonsai scissors to clip hard-to-reach parts of tree to maintain the original artistic shape. Remove shaping wire when it becomes too tight as it can strangle the tree.

Transplanting: Bonsai should be transplanted every two to three years. If pests or diseases appear, treat promptly.

- Source: Robert Pressler, Kimura Bonsai and Landscape Nursery

5 basic styles Formal upright: Classic proportions that form the basis of all bonsai. Has a straight trunk and horizontal branches. Easiest for a beginner to grow because it requires the least experimentation. Looks best in oval or rectangular containers

Informal upright: Has much the same branch arrangement as the formal upright style, but the top - instead of being erect as in the formal upright style - bends slightly to the front. Looks best in an oval or rectangular pot.

Cascade: Tree's growing tip extends below the base of the pot. The trunk starts by growing upward from the soil, then turns downward abruptly and reaches a point below the bottom edge of the container. Looks best in a round or hexagonal container that is higher than it is wide.

Semi-cascade: Like the cascade, the growing tip projects over the rim of the pot but does not drop below its base.

Slanting: The trunk has a more acute angle than in the informal upright style. The lowest branch spreads in the opposite direction to the slant of the tree. Style looks best planted in the center of a round or square container.

- Source: My-Bonsai-Tree.com

CAPTION(S):

6 photos, 4 boxes

Photo:

(1 -- cover -- color) Robert Pressler, owner of Kimura Bonsai and Landscape Nursery in Northridge, tends to a prostrata juniper

(2 -- color) Saikei bonsai grouping, from the collection of Robert Pressler.

(3 -- color) Prostrata juniper in the informal upright style

(4 -- color) Semi-cascade grapevine

(5 -- color) Cascade-style San Jose juniper

(6 -- color) Formal upright

David Sprague/Staff Photographer

Box:

(1) Where to see and learn more (see text)

(2) The best bonsai (see text)

(3) Taking care of your Bonsai (see text)

(4) 5 basic styles (see text)