Tanuki, also known as the Japanese raccoon dog, is a canid mammal native to Japan. In Japanese folklore, tanuki are supernatural spirits (yōkai) that can shape-shift into almost anything, so a Tanuki bonsai is one designed to trick the eye.
Bonsai technique
Bonsai technique
- For those of us in the bonsai world, tanuki is a deadwood bonsai technique. Also called a Phoenix Graft. The technique demonstrated joins live trees to a piece of interesting deadwood. Here John plants three pomegranate trees in a pot and fits them into carved and drilled openings in the driftwood.
The demonstration was performed in February of 2022. Give the trees a few years to grow so the living and dead wood can become intermingled. Come visit the pavilion and see if you are tricked by this Tanuki.
Tanuki are a popular mascot in Japan, and statues or drawings of tanuki are often placed outside bars and restaurants to encourage people to come in.
Maybe there is a shape-shifting Tanuki hiding in your bonsai garden!