Kinashi, in the western part of Takamatsu, is often called the home of pine bonsai. Bonsai growing here dates back to the Edo period, and over generations the area has grown into one of the largest pine bonsai producers in Japan. Today, trees raised in Kinashi are shipped across the country and to bonsai lovers around the world.

Driving through the neighborhood, you will see open fields lined with young pines and family-run nurseries filled with rows of potted trees. Many growers here specialize in Japanese black pine, a tree admired for its strong, rugged bark and dark green needles.

Your guide has personally worked at a bonsai nursery in Takamatsu and has built relationships with local growers. Thanks to these connections, you can visit working nurseries, meet the growers and hear their stories firsthand.

See trees at different stages, from young field-grown pines to mature specimens shaped over many decades, and learn how pruning, wiring and needle plucking give each tree its form. It is a rare look at the daily work behind one of Japan's most iconic living arts.

Kokubunji, a quiet farming area in the western part of Takamatsu, is one of the region's key bonsai-growing communities alongside neighboring Kinashi. Together, these two areas have made Takamatsu one of Japan's leading centers of pine bonsai production.

The area takes its name from Kokubunji Temple, Temple 80 of the Shikoku 88 Temple Pilgrimage, and bonsai nurseries sit among rice fields and homes in this peaceful countryside. Here you can see how bonsai growing is woven into everyday rural life, with trees cared for by families who have passed their skills down through generations.

Your guide has personally worked at a bonsai nursery in Takamatsu and knows the local growers. This allows you to step inside working nurseries, talk with the people who tend the trees and ask questions about their craft.

Walk among rows of pines and other trees in the fields and on the benches, and learn about the long process of growing a bonsai, from planting and early training to years of patient shaping. You will also learn about the seasonal work that keeps each tree healthy, and why growers think in terms of decades rather than years.