Humans seem to be obsessed¹ with things that float, like hoverboards, UFOs and levitating² Bluetooth speakers. A Kickstarter project wants to extend that love for the defiance³ of gravity to plant life. Air Bonsai⁴ uses the power of magnetic levitation⁵ to float small trees grown and groomed⁶ through the Japanese art of bonsai.

从悬浮滑板、飞碟，到悬浮音箱，人们往往对浮在空中的东西很是着迷。这股“悬浮风”甚至吹到了植物界：圆梦网上就有个名为空中盆栽的众筹项目。这种源于日本的盆栽艺术利用了磁悬浮原理，能让植物浮在空中。

Air Bonsai uses the same principle we've seen before in this floating chessboard and this UFO-inspired levitating speaker. Repelling⁷ magnets push away from each other, allowing the plant container to float above the base. The creators refer to the floating plants as "little stars."

与此前问世的悬浮棋盘和仿飞碟造型的悬浮音箱一样，空中盆栽利用的也是磁极同性相斥的原理。如此一来，盆栽便稳稳地浮在基座之上了。发明团队给这种盆栽取了个名字，叫“小星星”。

The effect is magical. The tiny trees float gently and spin slowly like imaginative creations from an anime. Some of them look like dainty planets with cratered⁸ surfaces. Small pines are what most people are familiar with when it comes to bonsai, but the Air Bonsai can also be used to grow other flora⁹ like mosses¹⁰ and flowering plants.

空中盆栽看上去颇为神奇。迷你植物在空中慢慢地旋转，好似动画片中的虚拟场景。有些盆栽甚至像缀满了陨石坑的微型星球。常见的盆栽几乎是清一色的小松树，但空中盆栽的植株中也有苔藓或花卉。

Shipping¹¹ live plants can be a challenge. Air Bonsai plans to use locally sourced plants for backers in the US. Backers in most other countries will have to provide their own bonsai.

不过，由于空中盆栽用的是正在生长中的植物，运输便成了大问题。发明团队会为身在美国的众筹赞助者们提供现成的植株，其他国家的则需自行准备。

There seems to be a lot of interest in magnetic gardening. The project blew away its original $80,000 funding goal and has attracted over $185,000 in funding so far with one month left to run.

人们似乎对空中盆栽兴趣很大。该项目最初的众筹目标是8万美元（约合52万元人民币），截至目前却已收获18.5万美元（约合121万元人民币）。要知道，离众筹结束还有整整一个月。

A basic Air Bonsai set that includes the growing container, "energy base," a cushion, a box and an AC adapter starts at a $200 pledge price. Keep in mind that not all crowdfunding projects deliver on time or as expected.

只要你在圆梦网的该项目上出资200美元（约合1315元人民币），便可在日后得到基本款空中盆栽礼盒，其中包括种植盆、“能量基座”、垫枕、盆栽盒，以及电源适配器。当然，圆梦网上的项目鱼龙混杂，众筹项目的实施情况需以实际为准。

It's easy to see why these charming trees are attracting so much Kickstarter attention. We may not all have hoverboards yet, but at least we can have hoverplants.

话说回来，空中盆栽小巧别致，无怪乎吸引了众多赞助者的眼球。或许你目前对悬浮滑板兴趣不大，那么买个空中盆栽来把玩一番，也许是个不错的选择。