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RADLETT HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY

Japanese gardens

Picture
Large pond garden at Narita-san-Shinshaji Temple near Narita airport
In the Spring of 2015 we were fortunate enough to visit Japan and made a point of seeing a good number of gardens as we toured around.

As you may know, Japanese garden design is a very complicated subject and the resulting gardens are quite different from the gardens we are used to here.

The basic principle is that a garden should be a work of art, inspired by nature, appearing to be natural but not wild.  Basic principles include:
  • miniaturisation: the garden is a compact, idealised view of nature – perhaps with rocks representing mountains, and ponds representing seas
  • asymmetry: the garden is laid out as a complex of different scenes
  • concealment: different aspects of the garden are revealed as one strolls
  •  borrowing of scenery: features outside the garden may be incorporated into the scenes revealed within it.
  • There are many different styles of garden which include three main types of plant-based garden:
  • the promenade or strolling garden, originally built for nobles and viewed from a clockwise route (consistent with Buddhist beliefs)
  •  the pond garden, where water takes centre stage
  •  small gardens in courtyards, perhaps devoted to the tea ceremony.

Finally, there are the very special dry rock gardens associated with Zen Buddhist temples.

Here are views of some of the gardens we saw on our trip.
Liz and Mike Bissett

Picture
Courtyard garden in Yanaka, an old suburb of Tokyo
Picture
Strolling garden - a 16th century garden in Nikko
Picture
Borrowing of scenery garden
Picture
Small courtyard garden behind a house in Kyoto
Picture
Large pond garden at Tenryu-ji Temple outside Kyoto

Picture
Dry Zen garden at the Ryoan-ji Temple in Kyoto

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  • Home
  • Diary 2021
    • Diary 2020
    • Diary 2019
  • Exhibition 2020
    • Flower Show 2019 >
      • 2019 Show Winners
      • 2018 Winners
  • Lockdown
  • Spring Plant Sale
  • Feature stories
    • Holehird Gardens
    • Slugs
    • Garden makeover
    • Japanese Gardens
    • Victorian Gardeners
    • Herbaceous Borders
    • Lunar Planting
  • Day Trips
    • Burston visit
    • Day Trips 2020
    • Day Trips 2019 >
      • Beth Chatto Gardens
      • Green Island Gardens
      • Kathy Brown's Garden
      • Southill Park 2019
      • Anglesey Abbey 2019
      • Day Trips 2012
      • Day Trips 2013
      • Day Trips 2014
  • Holidays
    • Holiday 2020
    • Holiday 2019
  • Talks 2021
    • Talks for 2020 >
      • Aphids Talk 2020
    • Talks for 2019
  • Garden Walkabouts
    • Garden Walkabout 2019
  • Allotments
    • Mini Allotments
    • Allotment Blog 2021
    • Allotment Blog 2020
    • Allotment Blog 2019
    • Allotment Open Day 2012
  • Obituaries
    • Obituary - Peter Cushion
  • The Store
  • ART DEMO
  • Publications
  • Gallery
  • Quiz
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  • Contacts and Links