Japanese garden facts for kids

Saihō-ji (Kyoto) also known as the "Moss Garden", begun in 1339

A rare covered bridge from the Sankeien Garden in Yokohama

The north garden at Ninna-ji in Kyoto, a classic promenade garden

Japanese garden is a traditional kind of garden in Japan. The garden is made to be like a small landscape. The basic principle of a Japanese garden is to create harmony and balance.

History
Types
Garden elements
Images for kids
See also

History

The oldest Japanese text on garden-making is Sakuteiki (Records of Garden Making). The work was based on oral traditions which were published for the first time in the 11th century.

Types

Ginkaku-ji, or the Silver Pavilion, in Kyoto, was (and is) a Zen Buddhist temple (1482)

There are many types of Japanese gardens, for example,

The contemplation or thinking style of garden (kanshō) is designed to be studied and enjoyed from one specific place. An example of a kanshō garden is the rock and raked gravel garden at Ryōan-ji in Kyoto.

The stroll or walking style of garden (shūyū) is intended to be looked at from a path. The garden is discovered as the viewer walks along the path. An example of a shūyū garden is at Ginkaku-ji in Kyoto.

The boating or pleasure-boat style of garden (funasobi) is centered on a large pond. The best views are seen from a boat in the pond. An example of a funasobi gardem is at Byōdō-in at Uji, which is near Kyoto.

Many-pleasure style of garden (kaiyū) has a central pond and many paths. It combines aspects of kanshō, shūyū and funasobi gardens. An example of a kaiyū garden is at Katsura Imperial Villa.

Garden elements

Water

Cascade at Nanzen-ji garden in Kyoto

The ability to capture the essence of nature makes the Japanese gardens distinctive and appealing to observers. The contrast between western flower gardens and Japanese gardens is profound. "Western gardens are typically optimised for visual appeal while Japanese gardens are modelled with spiritual ideas in mind." Japanese gardens have always been conceived as a representation of a natural setting. The Japanese have always had a spiritual connection with their land and the spirits that are one with nature, which explains why they prefer to incorporate natural materials in their gardens. The main purpose of a Japanese garden is to attempt to be a space that captures the natural beauties of nature.

Japanese gardens always have water, either a pond or stream, or, in the dry rock garden, represented by white sand. In Buddhist symbolism, water and stone are the yin and yang, two opposites that complement and complete each other. A traditional garden will usually have an irregular-shaped pond or, in larger gardens, two or more ponds connected by a channel or stream, and a cascade, a miniature version of Japan's famous mountain waterfalls.

Cascade at Keitaku-en garden near Osaka

In traditional gardens, the ponds and streams are carefully placed according to Buddhist geomancy, the art and science of putting things in the place most likely to attract good fortune. The rules for the placement of water were laid out in the first manual of Japanese gardens. According to the Sakuteiki, the water should enter the garden from the east or southeast and flow toward the west because the east is the home of the Green Dragon (seiryu) an ancient Chinese divinity adapted in Japan, and the west is the home of the White Tiger, the divinity of the east.

Water flowing from east to west will carry away evil, and the owner of the garden will be healthy and have a long life. According to the Sakuteiki, another favorable arrangement is for the water to flow from north, which represents water in Buddhist cosmology, to the south, which represents fire, which are opposites (yin and yang) and therefore will bring good luck.

Traditional Japanese gardens have small islands in the lakes. In sacred temple gardens, there is usually an island which represents Mount Penglai or Mount Hōrai, the traditional home of the Eight Immortals.

A cascade or waterfall is an important element in Japanese gardens, a miniature version of the waterfalls of Japanese mountain streams. The Sakuteiki described seven kinds of cascades. It notes that if possible a cascade should face toward the moon and should be designed to capture the moon's reflection in the water.

Lotus pond at Enjo-ji, a Heian period paradise garden (12th century)
A winding stream at Mōtsū-ji garden in Hiraisumi
The spring-fed pond at Suizen-ji Jōju-en garden, (1636) whose water was reputed to be excellent for making tea
Youkoukan Garden in Fukui Prefecture recreates a miniature beach and a mountain
An island of weathered rocks and a single pine tree in Rikugi-en garden in Tokyo represents Mount Hōrai, the legendary home of the Eight Immortals.
An island in Kōraku-en gardens, Tokyo

Rocks and sand

The south garden at Ninna-ji, a zen rock garden

Rock, sand and gravel are an essential feature of the Japanese garden. A vertical rock may represent Mount Horai, the legendary home of the Eight Immortals, or Mount Sumeru of Buddhist teaching, or a carp jumping from the water. A flat rock might represent the earth. Sand or gravel can represent a beach, or a flowing river. Rocks and water also symbolize yin and yang, (in and yō in Japanese) in Buddhist philosophy; the hard rock and soft water complement each other, and water, though soft, can wear away rock.

Rocks are arranged in careful compositions of two, three, five or seven rocks, with three being the most common. In a three-arrangement, a tallest rock usually represents heaven, the shortest rock is the earth, and the medium-sized rock is humanity, the bridge between heaven and earth.

In ancient Japan, sand (suna) and gravel (jari) were used around Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples. Later it was used in the Japanese rock garden or Zen Buddhist gardens to represent water or clouds. White sand represented purity, but sand could also be gray, brown or bluish-black.

The specific placement of stones in Japanese gardens to symbolically represent islands (and later to include mountains), is found to be an aesthetically pleasing property of traditional Japanese gardens. Rock placement is a general "aim to portray nature in its essential characteristics" – the essential goal of all Japanese gardens.

Rocks in the Garden of the Blissful Mountain at Daitoku-ji
Sand in checkerboard pattern at Tōfuku-ji, in Kyoto
Tōfuku-ji garden in Kyoto
Myōshin-ji garden
Shitenno-ji garden. Note the three-rock composition in the center
Ankokuji garden in Hiroshima features rocks of different but harmonious sizes and colors
Rock composition at Tōfuku-ji (1934)
A large flat rock on an island in Korakuen garden in Tokyo, which represents a turtle's head
Carefully positioned stones around the pond in Ritsurin Garden
Negoro-Temple (Negoro-ji), Prefecture Wakayama
The garden at Tokushima Castle (1592) on the island of Shikoku features water and enormous rocks. It was meant to be seen from above, from a viewing pavilion
The zen rock garden of Ryōan-ji (late 15th century)

Garden bridges

The bridge at Byōdō-in temple (1052) represented the way to the island of the immortals, and paradise

Bridges first appeared in the Japanese garden during the Heian period. At Byōdō-in garden in Kyoto, a wooden bridge connects the Phoenix pavilion with a small island of stones, representing the Mount Penglai or Mount Horai, the island home of the Eight Immortals of Daoist teaching, The bridge symbolized the path to paradise and immortality.

Bridges could be made of stone (ishibashi), or of wood, or made of logs with earth on top, covered with moss (dobashi); they could be either arched (soribashi) or flat (hirabashi). Sometimes if they were part of a temple garden, they were painted red, following the Chinese tradition, but for the most part they were unpainted.

During the Edo period, when large promenade gardens became popular, streams and winding paths were constructed, with a series of bridges, usually in a rustic stone or wood style, to take visitors on a tour of the scenic views of the garden.

A bridge at Tokushima castle made of two stones resting on a third stone (1592)
Wood and stone bridge at Suizen-ji garden. The garden was begun in 1636
Wooden bridge in Ritsurin Garden, (Between 1642 and 1745)
The Flying Geese Bridge in Kenroku-en garden (Between 1822 and 1874)
Stone bridge in Koishikawa Kōrakuen
Rustic bridge at Tensha-en garden in Uwajima (1866)

Stone lanterns and water basins

Snow lanterns, have wide brims which catch the snow, to create picturesque scenes

Japanese stone lanterns date back to the Nara period and the Heian period. Originally they were located only at Buddhist temples, where they lined the paths and approaches to the temple, but in the Heian period they began to be used at Shinto shrines as well. According to tradition they were introduced to the tea garden by the first great tea masters, and in later gardens they were used purely for decoration. In its complete and original form, a dai-doro, like the pagoda, represents the five elements of Buddhist cosmology.

Stone water basins, (tsukubai) were originally placed in gardens for visitors to wash their hands and mouth before the tea ceremony. The water is provided to the basin by a bamboo pipe, or kakei, and they usually have a wooden ladle for drinking the water. In tea gardens, the basin was placed low to the ground, so the drinker had to bend over to get his water.

Lantern in Shukkei-en garden in Hiroshima
Lantern in Kōraku-en garden
Water basin at Ryōan-ji, Kyoto
Stone water basin in Kenroku-en garden
Stone water basin in Sakamotu, Ōtsu, Shiga
Water basin at Tenryū-ji Temple in Kyoto

Trees and flowers

Momiji in the temple of Ginkaku-ji, Kyoto

Nothing in a Japanese garden is natural or left to chance; each plant is chosen according to aesthetic principles, either to hide undesirable sights, to serve as a backdrop to certain garden features, or to create a picturesque scene, like a landscape painting or postcard. Trees are carefully chosen and arranged for their autumn colors. Moss is often used to suggest that the garden is ancient. Flowers are also carefully chosen by their season of flowering. Formal flowerbeds are rare in older gardens, but more common in modern gardens. Some plants are chosen for their religious symbolism, such as the lotus, sacred in Buddhist teachings, or the pine, which represents longevity.

The trees are carefully trimmed to provide attractive scenes, and to prevent them from blocking other views of the garden. Their growth is also controlled, in a technique called Niwaki, to give them more picturesque shapes, and to make them look more ancient. They are sometimes constrained to bend, in order to provide shadows or better reflections in the water. Very old pine trees are often supported by wooden crutches, or their branches are held by cords, to keep them from breaking under the weight of snow.

The most common trees and plants found in Japanese gardens are the azalea (tsutsuji), the camellia (tsubaki), the oak (kashiwa), the Japanese apricot (ume), cherry (sakura), maple (momiji), the willow (yanagi), the ginkgo (ichō), the Japanese cypress (hinoki), the Japanese cedar (sugi), pine (matsu), and bamboo (take).

The style of topiary plant sculpture known as o-karikomi in Chionin Garden.
O-karikomi sculpted trees and bushes at Chiran Samurai Residence.
Azaleas at Soraku-en Garden
Bamboo and Japanese maple combined at Tenryū-ji Garden in Kyoto.
Pine trees at Kenroku-en garden supported by braces to support the weight of snow without breaking
Some ancient pine trees at Kenroku-en supported by cords in winter to keep their limbs from breaking

Fish

Nishiki-goi or brocaded (colored) carp, a decorative fish bred for gardens

The use of fish, particularly nishiki-goi (colored carp), or goldfish as a decorative element in gardens was borrowed from the Chinese garden. Goldfish were developed in China more than a thousand years ago by selectively breeding Prussian carp for color mutations. By the Song dynasty (960–1279), yellow, orange, white and red-and-white colorations had been developed. Goldfish were introduced to Japan in the 16th century. Koi were developed from common carp in Japan in the 1820s. Koi are domesticated common carp (Cyprinus carpio) that are selected or culled for color; they are not a different species, and will revert to the original coloration within a few generations if allowed to breed freely.

Images for kids

Japanese Garden in the Tatton Park Gardens, England.
Ise Jingu, a Shinto shrine begun in the 7th century, surrounded by white gravel
A view of the Eastern Palace gardens (東院庭園) main pavilion.
Byōdō-in: Jōdo-shiki garden
Kinkaku-ji, the Golden Pavilion (1398)
The garden of Katsura Imperial Villa in Kyoto (1641–1662), the prototype for the promenade, or stroll garden
The interior of the Geppa Pavilion of the Katsura Imperial Villa, perfectly integrated into the garden
The naka-niwa or courtyard garden of a former geisha house in Kanazawa, Ishikawa. The trees are covered with straw to protect them from the snow.
Shisen-dō, built in Kyoto, in the 17th century, one of the best examples of a hermitage garden
Claude Monet, Bridge over a Pond of Water Lilies, 1899, Metropolitan Museum of Art
Painting of part of Landscape of the Four Seasons by the monk Tenshō Shūbun from the Muromachi period, showing an idealized Japanese landscape, where man was humble and lived in harmony with nature. This ideal landscape was also depicted in Japanese gardens.
"Catching a catfish with a gourd" by Josetsu
Tenryū-ji Garden in Kyoto. (Kaiyū-shiki Garden, completed in the 14th century)
Kōraku-en in Okayama. (Kaiyū-shiki Garden, completed in the 17th century)
Adachi Museum of Art Garden, Yasugi. (Kanshō-shiki Garden, completed in the 20th century)
A spacious Japanese garden, Suizen-ji Jōju-en, near Kumamoto Castle
Drop of Water Memorial Hall in New Taipei City, Taiwan.
This view from the Symbolic Mountain in the gardens in Cowra, Australia shows many of the typical elements of a Japanese garden.
A Japanese zen garden at the Auburn Botanical Gardens, in Auburn, Sydney.
Japanese Garden in the Devonian Botanic Garden, Edmonton, Alberta
Japanese Garden, Tatton Park Gardens
Japanese Garden, Tully, County Kildare. Red lacquered arched bridges are Chinese in origin and seldom seen in Japan, but are often placed in Japanese-style gardens in other countries.
Brooklyn Botanic Garden's Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden (Brooklyn, New York); designed by Takeo Shiota, was one of the first gardens to be created in an American botanical garden and reportedly the first one to be accessible free of charge.
Hakone Gardens in Saratoga, California
The Buenos Aires Japanese Gardens
All seasons close-up of the Tsubo-en (Netherlands) O-karikomi, hako-zukuri topiary
The Japanese Garden in Larvotto, Monaco
The Japanese Garden in Przelewice, Poland
The Japanese Garden in Lankester Botanical Gardens, Costa Rica
The Japanese Garden, Singapore
Osawa lake in Kyoto was part of the old imperial gardens of the Emperor Saga (809–823).
Model of a residence and garden at Heian-kyō (Kyoto), around 1000.
A 19th-century scaled-down reconstruction of the Heian-jingū, the first Kyoto Imperial Palace garden, as it was in 794.
Stepping stones in the garden of the first Kyoto Imperial Palace. These stones were originally part of a 16th-century bridge over the Kamo River, which was destroyed by an earthquake.
Recreated garden of the old Kyoto Imperial Palace
The zen rock garden of Ginkaku-ji features a miniature mountain shaped like Mount Fuji.
The garden of Daisen-in Kyoto (1513).
Nanzen-ji garden, Kyoto, built by Musō Soseki. Not all zen gardens were made of rock and sand; monks here contemplated a forest scene.
Tenryū-ji garden in Kyoto. The Sogen pond, created by Musō Soseki, is one of the few surviving features of the original garden.
Garden at the Tokushima Castle, dominated by rocks
The garden at Daigo-ji (1598) is famous for its cherry blossoms.
Kōraku-en in Okayama, begun in 1700
Ritsurin Garden in Takamatsu, begun in 1625
The hermitage garden of the poet and scholar Ishikawa Jozan at Shisen-dō, built in 1641. It later became a temple.
Koishikawa Kōrakuen Garden in Tokyo, begun in 1629, is now surrounded by office buildings.
The most famous view of Suizen-ji is a miniature mountain resembling Mount Fuji
Kenroku-en in Kanazawa
Chinzan-so in Tokyo
Murin-an in Kyoto
Tōfuku-ji, A modern Japanese garden from 1934, designed by Mirei Shigemori, built on grounds of a 13th-century Zen temple in Kyoto
The moss garden at Tōfuku-ji, Kyoto
A contemporary Japanese garden at the Kochi Museum of Art
The garden at the Naoshima Fukutake Art Museum, using sculpture to imitate the form of island on the horizon
Garden of the Adachi Museum of Art
Awaji Yumebutai, a contemporary garden on the island of Awaji, Hyōgo (2000)
Shell beach garden, part of the Awaji Yumebutai on the island of Awaji, Hyōgo (2000)
Jissō-in rock garden in Iwakura (Kyoto), reformed in 2013.
Japanese garden pond with acer (Japanese maple)
The symmetrical and highly ornamental architecture of the Phoenix Hall in Byōdō-in Garden, Kyoto (1052) was inspired by Chinese Song dynasty architecture.
The Kotoji Tōrō, a two-legged stone lantern that is one of the most well-known symbols of the Kenroku-en garden
A chashitsu or teahouse in Jo-an garden in Inuyama, from 1618. The simple and unadorned zen teahouse style began to be used on all Japanese buildings, from garden pavilions to palaces. This teahouse was declared a National Treasure of Japan in 1951.
The architecture of the main house of the Katsura Imperial Villa (1619–1662) was inspired by the simplicity of the tea house.
A wooden bridge covered with earth and moss (dobashi) at Sorakuen
Stone water fountain and cistern at the Japanese Garden at Norfolk Botanical Garden, Norfolk, Virginia.
The exterior wall of Katsura Imperial Villa, designed, like all the garden, for purity and simplicity
Gate of the Urakuen tea garden, seen from inside
The traditional garden gate of the Adachi Museum of Art
A shishi-odoshi is garden device, made of bamboo and wood, designed to scare away birds. As the bamboo tube fills with water, it clacks against a stone, empties, then fills with water again.
The suikinkutsu is a subtle garden instrument hidden beneath the gravel in some water basins.
Cloud tree at Katori
Landscape in Ritsurin Garden
Ōkarikomi; trimmed bushes in Ritsurin Garden
Nishiki-goi in the Ise Grand Shrine 2005.
Koi in Himeji Koko-en Garden
A large carp in the garden of Suizen-ji
Heian-jingū is a recreation of the old imperial pond garden of Kyoto.
Byōdō-in Temple in Uji, near Kyoto.
Enjō-ji Temple in Nara Prefecture is a good example of a paradise garden of the late Heian Period.
Jōruri-ji, a paradise garden in Kyoto. The pond was dug by monks in 1150.
Rosan-ji garden, Kyoto
Zuihō-in garden, Kyoto
Daisen-in, Kyoto
A teahouse and roji, or tea garden, at Ise Jingu.
Traditional teahouse and tea garden at Kenroku-en Garden
Garden of the Urakuen teahouse
Rustic gate of the Keishun-in garden teahouse in Kyoto
Katsura Imperial Villa, the prototype for the promenade garden
Shugaku-in Imperial Villa, completed in 1659, another classic example of a promenade garden of the Edo Period
Two hills covered with trimmed bamboo grass which represent Mount Lu in China. This feature is in Koishikawa Kōrakuen Garden in Tokyo.
Suizen-ji Jōju-en Garden, begun in 1636, has a miniature replica of Mount Fuji. The trees on the upper part of the hill are trimmed to be smaller, to make the mountain look taller.