There are, of course, no bonsai seeds — only bonsai trees. Most tree species can be “trained” to become bonsai through a sophisticated, often obsessive process of cutting, potting, pruning, wiring and styling a plant into a miniature, meticulously sculpted version of itself.
The art form is rooted in centuries of Japanese and Chinese tradition, but there is a bonsai tree in Iowa that also has a (relatively) long history.
In the Greater Des Moines Botanical Garden there is a ginkgo biloba, or maidenhair tree, that began its training to become a bonsai in 1865. That Civil War-era tree was donated to the Botanical Garden by Ruth Ladany. Ladany and her late husband Jules had fallen in love with bonsai during a trip to Japan in the 1950s. They became devoted collectors, and helped found the Midwest Bonsai Society. Ladany gifted the impressive bonsai collection she and Jules collected to Greater Des Moines Botanical Garden when it first opened in 1979.
At that time, the Ladany’s collection was valued at $100,000. In today’s dollars that would be almost $410,000.
The 159-year-old bonsai is the oldest tree in the Botanical Garden’s collection, and is under the supervision of a team of caretakers who embody just the right blend of botanist and artist. Its primary caretaker is Scott Allen, president of the Iowa Bonsai Association and a bonsai enthusiast for two decades.
“If a tree looks like it’s undernourished, I advise on what we should be feeding them,” Allen said. “If a tree happens to get some kind of a disease then I advise on that. I keep trees that grow fast pruned so they’re looking good to be on display in a collection.”
The Iowa Bonsai Association was founded in 1979, growing alongside the Botanical Garden and their bonsai collection. (That also happened to be the year Pope John Paul II visited Living History Farms, but that’s a story for another day.)
Bonsai curators prune and wire branches into silhouettes, the desired shape of the tree. DMBG bonsai are silhouetted in a traditional Japanese style, with asymmetrical triangles and clean branches.
How often they prune depends on the tree, as some grow faster than others. Allen prunes the Russian Olive once every two weeks. Pruning bonsai is a difficult art to master, as too much can kill a plant, while pruning too little can lead to overgrowth.
“Every tree has different growing characteristics,” Allen said. “A lot of that influences how we would prune a tree. But it’s up to the owner, it’s their piece of art. So they prune it to how they like it.”
Because bonsai is a living sculpture, they’re one of the few works of art that are never “finished,” explained Todd Schlafer. Schlafer’s been involved with the Greater Des Moines Botanical Garden since 2017, when Allen put out a call for a new bonsai collection curator.
“I basically base my life around my trees and my wife,” Schlafer said. “But she’s very understanding.”
A lot of bonsai art revolves around planning for the future, since the artist must consider what the plant will look like five, 10, perhaps 50 years along the line.
Before he became a bonsai professional, Schlafer had a career as an art director for a pet toy company. But as time went on, he struggled with impatience.
“I talked to my dad and my dad said, ‘If money wasn’t an issue and you could do anything, what would you do?’ And so I told him I’d do bonsai. And he said, ‘That’s what you should do,’” Schlafer recalled. After that, he quit his job and committed to the art of bonsai full-time.
Though he lives in Denver, Schlafer comes to Des Moines three times a year to check on the collection. In early spring, he focuses on repotting; in June, he focuses on pruning; and in October he focuses on cleaning them and preparing them for their time indoors in the winter. He always checks the wiring and soil. While he’s gone, he communicates with Allen about what the trees need.
“There’s this reverence that you have to have towards [bonsais], and just an amount of respect,” Schlafer said.
This respect has helped him gain his patience back.
“It’s very fulfilling to see work done and then see the tree respond and grow after that work is done.”
Aaron Harpold, director of horticulture at the Botanical Garden, said he hopes the collection inspires visitors to attend one of the center’s Bonsai for Beginners classes, a two-part course held twice a year.
“[Bonsais are] an opportunity for people to tactically engage with nature, albeit in a very controlling way, but in a very different way,” Harpold said. “Any way I can get folks to slow down and pay attention to what’s around them through plants, it’s good for me.”
Bonsai may be an ancient art, but it’s always evolving. Allen said about five years ago he noticed a few of the bonsais in the Botanical Garden’s courtyard terrace began showing burn marks from sun exposure. It’s become an increasing problem, but Allen hopes putting up a shade cloth will help.
Still, the trees are extremely hardy, surviving years upon lifetimes with a much less dedicated team looking out for them.
“The collection has had its ups and downs,” Allen said. “Right now the collection is looking better than it has in a very long time.”
This article was originally published in Little Village’s July 2024 issue.
