Capital press., August 19, 2016, Page 7, Image 21

August 19, 2016
CapitalPress.com
BONZAI
Continued from Page 6
knowing he wanted to apply
his studies to bonsai some-
day. While traveling through
California learning from peo-
ple who had bonsai, Neil met
his future garden director,
Troy Cardoza. When Neil
returned from Japan and be-
gan his nursery in St. Helens,
Troy was one of his irst stu-
dents.
“Bonsai was always a
hobby of mine. Now it is my
job and I love it,” Cardoza
said. “I have a very personal
connection to it.”
Neil said there is a big mis-
conception about bonsai with
many people believing a part
of it is “torturing” trees.
He added that the materi-
als used at Mirai Bonsai come
from very harsh environments
where they are considered
garbage among the rest of
the trees. When a tree comes
to Mirai Bonsai, he said it
is pampered with water and
Janae Sargent/Capital Press
Troy Cardoza, garden director, wraps the branches of a bonsai tree
with wire to manipulate the way it grows.
good conditions and encour-
aged to thrive.
Mirai Bonsai’s focus on
Americanized bonsai is inten-
tional. Neil said it is a vehicle
to discuss what the origin of
American culture is.
“To me, the origin of our
culture is our landscapes.
They can form people. Liv-
ing in the Rocky Mountains
formed who I was, what I
did and what I aspired to
be,” Neil said. “In this world
where there is no limitation
to what we can do or where
we can go, losing our con-
nection is like losing our
foundations.”
Neil said his dream for
Mirai Bonsai is to be consid-
ered at or above the level of
a professional operation in
Japan and to expand people’s
knowledge and understanding
of bonsai as an art form.
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