Bonsai trees, which may be as small as 5-9cm / 2-3in in height, are cultivated so that they grow into miniature trees with all the characteristics of large trees in nature.

Japanese 'bowl cultivation'.
Art of producing miniature trees by selective pruning. It originated in China many centuries ago and later spread to Japan. Some specimens in China are about 1,000 years old and some in the imperial Japanese collection are more than 300 years old.
In Japan, bonsai trees are regarded as works of art and can be valued at millions of pounds.
British collectors have paid as much as £15,000 for one tree.

© The Hutchinson Encyclopedia