NHK Documentary

The Plant Hunter

Imagine going on adventures to remote places to collect exotic plants and trees, then showing them to create an emotional impact with a deep purpose. There's a man who does just that: Seijun Nishihata, 34. They call him "the Plant Hunter". He's been to Asian tropical forests, Yemeni desert, Australian marshes, the Rocky Mountains... Every year he makes the equivalent of 10 trips around the globe. This program focuses on his quest to obtain 4 giant "palo borrachos", a rare tree from deep within an Argentine forest. He uses special techniques to essentially put the giant trees to sleep for their journey to Japan, where they will be displayed. Seijun himself looks like a bit of a wild child, but he is in fact a 5th generation professional horticulturist, heir to a plant and tree wholesaler that has been in business for a century and a half.