The olive trees of Mallorca are unmistakable to everybody. They are sculptures a thousand years old, dancing in our fields and mountains. Symbols and illustrations have been found alluding to the world of the olive, not only as food, but also as the subjects of artistic expression. Those olive trees of my Mallorca more so, by their movements and sharis made over the years, transmitting an infinity of images, whatever one might want to see in them. Even in Greek mythology, they say that Athens was founded from an olive tree which grew in a rock where the god of wisdom and war drove in his lance.

The olive tree, the olive groves and the oil have been a source of inspiration for many writers, such as Antonio Machado, Alberti, Lope de Vega, Tirso de Molina or Antonio Gala , ...

And what to say of flamenco songs like the aceituneras or the temporeras , typical of the olive-picking season, authentic tributes to Andalusian folklore.

The olive tree (Ullastre), particularly the wild olive tree, inspired me to learn the art of bonsai. This gave me many pleasures, perhaps the most important of these being the friendships shared in a variety of countries all over the world.

I also believe that some of us are educated with this art, those of us who really love the bonsai - a relaxing hobby if you treat it as such.

When I enter my garden, or that of any colleague or friend, just talking about bonsai causes peace to pervade everything. Though if they talk to me about business, not that of bonsai sellers, I get irritated: we are no longer talking of the art of bonsai - we are talking of those who ruthlessly destroy our mountains.

I was probably someone who, 20 years ago, behaved reproachably on occasions. Nowadays this is my advice: one can live and enjoy the bonsai without destroying the mountains. Enough is enough.

Best wishes to all the lovers of bonsai. I invite you all to visit Mallorca, to admire our very special thousand year old olive trees and our countryside. I guarantee you it is worth seeing.