Bonsai is the English approximation of two characters read in Japanese as ‘bon’ (tray) and ‘sai’ (plant). This chapter traces the history of the famous art of Bonsai and illustrates its developments in Europe and the UK. 

This portrait considers the significance of two nineteenth-century plant collectors in Japan, Robert Fortune and John Gould Veitch.

This essay details Isaac Bunting's (1850-1936) trade in lily bulbs in Japan, the growth and decline of the business, and the work and character of Bunting himself.

John Corner is offten described as a colourful and controversial biologist, and this portrait considers his career and contributions to botany.

The essay details the career of Botanist Kathleen Mary Drew Baker (1901-57), and how her studies helped to save the Japanese Nori industry.

This portait outlines the major figures of Japanese garden design in Britain, their separate contributions to the medium, and their impact upon the understanding of other aspects of Japanese culture in Britain. Includes thoughts from Eida Saburo, Suzuki Jiju, Honda Taki, and Kusumoto Seyemon.

Thomas Wright Blakiston (1832-91), explorer, engineer and ornithologist, is best known for his discovery of 'Blackiston's Line' a zoogeographical boundary along the Tsugaru Strait.