by George Buehler

To describe a composition of wild plants a denotation kusa mono is used around Europe for several years already. In literal sense kusa = grass and mono = plant or thing. In earlier times in Japan were used for creating the plant compositions largely the wild plants that people found in mountains.

Hence comes the name kusamono, and in this connection we speak as well about the grass bonsai, the kusabonsai. The name bonsai is derived from correspondent Chinese character punsai, in literal translation "planted" or "to plant". At the result practically all the plants set in pots are denoted as bonsai. Even today in Japan they grow kusamono including besides the grasses also of wild florid plants.

Formerly, as the people were collecting the plants in the wild, it often occured that they casually lifted up also some florid plant. These adventitious plantings of grasses and florid plants enjoyed their viewers so much, that in present time they create them deliberately (pict. 2). Many beautiful flowers-fanciers joins together their love to nature at all. Often they would sigh for a possibility to have a piece of the magnificient nature always around. Many people therefore maintain their gardens, orchids, indoor plants and bonsais, they do ikebana, kusamono, ikebono or suiseki (pict. 4, 5). The Japanese adopted the art of bonsai, kusamono and suiseki from the Chinese and have developed it further. In China during the 8th century, the tea have introduced some gallant playthings into the Realm of poetry. In Japan only in 15th century the culture of tea has become a "religion of aesthetics" - a Way of Tea. Later it has developed into a form of a cult based upon the veneration for beauty hidden within the unseem everyday reality. However, in the tea filosophy the substance it is not the aesthetics in it´s general interpretation, it is rather linked with morality and ethics of our overall perception of the man-nature relationship. If the Western man follows the motto "Let´s subjugate the Earth", the Asiatic assumes himself as a part of nature. On this idea ground the Japanese flower and tea masters preparing in a traditional show alocove (tokonoma) in a tearoom a display of artisticaly arranged objects or plants for enjoyment of their guests and especially their friends. In the substance of the matter it is a worshiping of something imperfect and volatile, a susceptible and gentle attempt to complete something possible in an unfeasible space that we use to call "Life".

One great Japanese flower master said: "We should abandon the passing dreams and stick to the beauty of modest things" (pict. 6). Displaying of beautiful things is a specific ceremony that is to direct toward a harmonic and ingenious result. Although often displayed as accent or accessory plants together with bonsai, suiseki and others, kusamono is also currently presented as the main object ensembled with other objects. Kusamono used as an accent or accessory plant is called shitakusa.

What is the characteristic of kusamono?

Kusamono is a planting of artisticaly tidied plants set in a pot or a tray. Often it used to be displayed at a show place or in a show alcove (tokonoma) together with another artwork (caligraphy, painted scroll, bonsai, suiseki, small sculpture). To reach a harmony of the whole creation you have to:

1. choose such colours, that blend well with the main object (bonsai, suiseki, piece of art...)
2. include in the theme some element pointing out the season
3. push forward the whole theme
4. observe the accordance in sizes \and shapes with respect to the main object
5. see to it that some element constitutes a link between the components

Which plants are suitable for kusamono?

Formerly in Japan they used mostly the mountain plants. In present time there are used generally small florid plants along with grasses, saxifrages, sempervives, ferns, scouring rushes and other plants and mosses planted in a pot. Meantime people have developed fabrication of special pottery (pict. 1, 3, 10) assigned to supplement and point out the kusamono´s aritstic message. Instead of the pot there are occassionaly used also pieces of driftwood or stones like bottoms for the plantigs set on their surface, or it is possible to complement a group of plants with a decorative stone. It is possible to create plantings as with one, so with several botanical species. However, a planting with more than five species is rather rare. If uses three and more species, the grower should try to divide them into three sections according to their growth to depict symbolically the relationship between the heaven, the man and the earth.