The Japanese Garden

Japanese gardens and Western gardens are miles apart. A Japanese garden is said to have a very relaxing effect. Japanese gardening is a cultural form of gardening that is meant to produce a scene that mimics nature as much as possible. Trees, shrubs, rocks, sand, artificial hills, ponds, and flowing water are used. The Zen and Shinto traditions are both a large part of Japanese gardening and, because of this; the gardens have a contemplative and reflective state of mind.

Basically, the sceneries in these gardens are in a reduced scale, in symbols, and in borrowed views. Reduced scale is the art of reproducing real nature scenes in a smaller scale. Symbolization refers to the generalization and abstraction of different things. Using white sand to represent the ocean is a good example of this. When we say borrowed views, we refer to the use of something like an ocean or a forest as a background, but even so, it’s actually an important part of the scene.

There are two types of Japanese gardening. The tsukiyami garden is a hill garden and mainly composed of hills and ponds. The second type is the hiraniwa garden, which is flat and involves no ponds.

A Japanese garden would usually contain rocks, gravel, stones, moss, water, fences, and hedges. Rocks are often used as centrepieces, and would bring a feeling of spirituality to the garden. According to the Shinto tradition, rocks embody the spirits of nature. Gravel defines surface and is used to imitate the flow of water when arranged properly. Stones make boundaries, and can be sculpted to form lanterns. Water in any form is ever-present in Japanese gardens. It can be in the actual form of water or portrayed by gravel, but no matter what, it is crucial to a Japanese gardens balance.

Bonsai is one of the plants that are signature of Japanese gardening. Bonsai is the art of training everyday, average plants, such as Pine, Cypress, Holly, Cedar, Cherry, Maple, and Beech, to look like large, old trees just in miniature form. These plants can range from five centimetres to a meter, and are kept small through pruning, re-potting, pinching of growth, and by wiring the branches.

A garden can be a really good place to relax and meditate. Whether it is a Japanese garden or Western world garden, designing, building, and planting is a great family event.

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