Japanese Gardening

Japanese gardening is very different from gardening in the western world. Japanese gardens are meant to look as close to a natural habitat as possible. Japanese gardens unlike western gardens use a steady green shade throughout the plant life in the garden. In Japanese gardens, the water used is meant to mimic nature. In the US water gardens include fountains and moving water. Japanese water gardens include flat ponds and rivers, which are meant to mimic nature. Japanese gardens mimic larger natural habitat by keeping the plants and trees at a small size. The most famous of these is the bonsai tree. Japanese gardens are meant to project a serene and tranquil place. Different types of Japanese gardens include the Seki Tea garden, Hiraniwa Garden, Shukeiyen Garden, Rojiniwa Garden, Chisen Kaiyo, and the Rojiniwa Garden Garden.

The Seki Tea garden or sand and stone garden is a flat garden with a surrounding wall. The garden symbolizes Buddist mythology and is used for prayer. The garden includes rocks and sand arranged in specific patterns.

The Hiraniwa garden, or flat garden, uses white sand, moss, grass, and evergreens. Hairaniwa gardens focus on round shapes that symbolize happiness or enlightenment. There portray this using round shaped shrubbery, sand and gravel.

The Shukeiyen Garden, or natural garden, is again meant to mimic a natural surrounding. The Shukeiyen Garden includes a pond or two and a waterfall. There are also two buildings, one that is the key house, and the other is a gazebo type building made for people to relax and take in the surroundings.

The Chisen Kaiyu Skiki Garden, or water garden, is made to include ponds or streams and sometimes both. The most often portrayed part of the Chisen Kaiyo Skiki Garden are the arch wooden bridges. They also often include small mounds that represent mountains. Often there are 2 ponds, one upper and one lower pond. The lower pond includes 2 rock representing long life and good health. A flat stream also usually connects the ponds.

The Rojiniwa Gardenn, or tea garden is called the tea garden because it includes a teahouse or pavilion. They have a stone water basin, rocks, and stone lanterns are symbolically placed. They are also meant to portray peace and tranquility.

All Japanese gardens are focused on balance or yin and yang. They use water or gravel to portray water. Some use fences as a boundary and some use hedges. The theme usually seen throughout them all is the idea of shrinking the larger nature around them into a garden of their own. The smaller Bonsai trees are used to represent large trees in nature and are made from trees such as the beech, cedar and maple. They are trained at a young age to keep them small. Most of the objects in a Japanese garden have symbolic meaning. The large rocks often placed as center peaces in the shape of lanterns are thought of as to be living and treated with care. Sand in the Zen garden in various often symbolizes the flow of a stream or nature, a reoccurring thing among the Japanese gardens.

Japanese gardens are a wonderfully serene atmosphere to be in. The Japanese gardens are made to be tranquil getaways. The waterfalls, streams, arch bridges, and trimmed hedges in the Japanese gardens can really bring the outside in. The idea of bringing in large scenery from nature is wonderfully manipulated into a garden able atmosphere. Seeing a Japanese garden for your self does not take a trip to Japan anymore, as there are many in the United States. Seeing a live Japanese garden is not something you will want to miss, odds are there will be one in your area, and taking a trip will not be a disappointment.