How many kinds of roadside trees can you recognize?
Walking around your neighbors, you could see many kinds of trees at a roadside, or, in a park, in a garden, in a mountainside. Can you tell each kind of tree names right away? Just few people can do that.

You may hear following well-known tree names like Maple trees, gingko trees, plane trees, zelkova trees, dogwoods, mountain ash, ilex, Japanese pagoda trees. But, if you can recognize around ten to twenty kinds of trees, you should be a true tree lover indeed. Nowadays, more than four hundred kinds of the miniature bonsai have been raised. And you may wonder why plane tree included as a miniature bonsai? Pick some plane tree seeds and plant them, you will see how lively and actively the planted tree to grow.

To learn various kinds of trees by seeds
Any trees bear fruit and to scatter their seeds. But huge amount of trees will not be propagated because of a restricted germination film around seeds. It is very interesting to see various types of “seeds fashion” by studying them closely. A seed, which is garmented by a flesh of fruit. A seed, which wears feather. A seed, which wears fur. � Some seeds are germinated in a short period of time, but another seeds need a whole year to be germinated. A seedling that means to raise tree from a seed. If you raise a tree from a seedling, it definitely gives you a lot of joys to raise various kinds of trees from a germination periods like a nursing child. �

How to sort out seeds
It is four seed type classifications as Shohaku, Zouki, Hanamono, Mimono.
For Shohaku, you can enjoy to see evergreen of a pine tree, or falling leaves of a larch tree.
For Zouki, you can enjoy changing four seasonal leaves and slender branches.
For Hanamono, you can enjoy blooming flowers.
For Mimono, you can enjoy bearing fruit. �

For examples,
Shohaku includes Kuro-matsu(Pinus thunbergii), Aka-matsu(Pinus densiflora), Goyo-matsu(Piuns parviflora), Shimpaku(Juniperus chinensis ver, sargentii), Ichii(Taxus cuspidata), Tosho(Juniperus rigida), Hinoki(Chamaecyparis obtusa), etc.
Zouki includes Tokaede(Acer buergerianum), Yamamomiji(Acer palmatum var. matsumurae), Keyaki)Zelkova serrata), Buna(Fagus crenata), Akaside(Carpinus laxiflora), Kumashide(Carpinus japonica), Haze(rhus succedanea), Tsuta(Parthenocissus tricuspidata), etc. �
Hanamono includes Ume(Prunus mume), Sakura(Prunus ---), Boke(Chaenomeles speciosa), Satsuki(Rhododendron indicum), tsutsuji(Rhododendron ---), Hanakaido(Malus halliana), Sarusuberi(Lagerstroemia indica), Fuji(Wisteria floribunda), Nemu(Albizia julibrissin), Tsubaki(Camellia japonica,atc.), Tosamizuki(Corylopsis spicata), Oubai(Jasminum nudiflorum), Egonoki(styrax japonica), Kuchinashi(Gardenia jasminoides), Rengyo(Forsythia korena), etc. �
Minomo includes Umemodoki(Ilex serrata), Himeringo(Malu*cerasifera), Mikaido(Mulus nicromalus), Pirakansa(Pyracantha coccinea), Karin(chaenomeles sisensis), Mayumi(euonymus sieboldianus), Kaki(Diospyros ---), Murasakishikibu(Callicarpa japonica), Akebi(akebia quinata), Kamatsuka(pourthiaea villosa), Gumi(Elaeagnus ---), Benishitan(Cotoneaster horizontails), Zakuro(Punica granatum), etc. �

While raising Mikaido, Kuchinashi, Pirakansa, Egonoki, you can enjoy blooming flowers in spring to early summer season and some bearing fruits in autumn by one tree. �

Even a palm holding size tiny potted tree, it charms you by showing four seasonal changing appearances and by having graceful beauties of flowers and fruits.