Bonsai for the blind

BarbaraM

Are there any outreach programs that bring bonsai to the blind?

I imagine it would help someone who has never "seen" a large tree beyond feeling the trunk, cool shade, and hearing the wind move the branches. Feeling the full composition of a stately bonsai oak or elm or bald cyprus would help a blind person better imagine what a larger tree looks like.

If a person lost sight later in life they would probably deeply enjoy "seeing" a bonsai tree.

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"What I like about bonsai is that it has a beginning but no end. A bud today becomes a branch tomorrow. It is like searching for the rainbow's end; the farther it is pursued, the farther away it is." John Naka

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Cathie

That sounds like a really great idea, but I wonder how many growers would be open to having their trees handled to any extent, no matter how gently? I do know that organizations for the blind do use all kinds of sculpted, raised pictures to illustrate many things - without necessarily needing to have 'the real thing' to touch.

Eaglion

I know only a few blind men in person, but ones i witness via TV has always been amazing me. Although the embosses books would fail to give them the feel of the leaves, i am sure they would help them a lot to grasp the idea of styles and tree species.

I hope some one will want to invest on this.

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Taylan Benker
Eurosia Bonsai Club-Turkey
www.avrasyabonsai.com