If you like the idea of growing a tree inside your home but you ... four expanding-soil discs, four bamboo plant markers, one bonsai clipper, and a comprehensive growing guide booklet.

Guy Joseph Guidry fondly remembers the moment he first encountered a bonsai tree, three decades ago. Guidry spotted a cluster of the miniature trees in his neighbor's backyard in New Orleans.

The Asian art of Bonsai offers an alternative to the scarcity of winter. Dwarf Yaupon Holly in the Chinese penjing style, which seeks to shape trees of unusual character to aesthetic principles.

These bonsai trees, crafted from golden bamboo, moss, grasses and unique stones, are frequently adorned with custom-made ceramic figurines portraying ancient Chinese poets, monks and musicians.