Bonsai fascinates me. I never gave much thought to the fact that the small Bonsai trees would change with the seasons just as their larger counterparts do. A visit to the National Bonsai & Penjing Museum at the U.S. National Arboretum in autumn brought it to my attention that a visit during each season of the year would allow me to view the small trees with no leaves in winter, buds in the spring, leaves/flowers in summer and colorful leaves in autumn.
My autumn visit included viewing both deciduous trees and conifers. I have included several pictures of trees or groups of trees with autumn leaves as well as trees which had already lost their leaves for the season. The trees which had lost their leaves allowed viewing the shape and form of the bare trunk and branches. The extremely small Bonsai dish which held the tree/group of trees seemed to be even more shallow when the trees were barren of leaves.
I enjoyed the small groves of trees best. It seemed like a small forest was captured in each of the small dishes. I expected to see very small squirrels or birds soon. There were a few displays where landscaping was accomplished to include the Bonsai plants in a scene. Some of the scenes include miniature buildings, people or animals.
The majority of the plants are displayed outdoors. The display area has walls which create the feeling of moving from room to room. Wooden slatted tables hold most of the displays. There are some decorative and useful tools for caring for Bonsai which add to the aesthetics as well as the historical aspect of Bonsai.
The indoor museum displays explore the history of Bonsai. Many aspects of this art are explored and explained through exhibits and displays. Both permanent and changing displays make this a museum to visit many times.
I spent several hours viewing the displays both indoors and outdoors. I’m sure I left only because I grew tired of standing; not because I had seen all of the displays.
A visit to the National Bonsai & Penjing Museum would be interesting and enjoyable during any season of the year. It would be very interesting to visit and photograph a few of the displays during each of the four seasons of the year.