Japanese Gardens – Serenity in a time of Uncertainty!
May 21, 2020 - POSTED BY Monique Halloran - Gardeners Choice
The first scene captures for me the best of Japanese gardens. Large rock formations, still water, as well as cascading waterfalls, and plenty of colourful Acers {maples}. A place to reflect as you gaze at the reflections in the lake, sometimes disturbed by the Koi carp that are swimming around. And if you look closely, one can see a sculpted stone temple nestled on one of the rocks which is beautifully reflected in the water. Simply stunning!
The sound of gently dripping water in this simple, hand-made water feature, tucked away with another slightly taller stone temple, is very soothing and is a nice surprise as you walk along the path. You see again a couple of large rocks set randomly in front of the shrubs and trees, something that is often done in Japanese Garden Design, to give the viewer a chance to contemplate the natural beauty of rock formations. Then you have a photo that shows how even the birds are entranced and just sit, quietly contemplating the scene!
Just look how cleverly the path to cross the water has been laid, a little to the front of the waterfall. It has a slightly disjointed pattern to echo the jaggedness of the rocks, and isn’t just a straight line from A to B. I couldn’t resist including this puffed up pigeon sitting so contentedly on the edge of the lake amongst this ‘beach’ of cobblestones!
I love the different ways they have sought to edge this lake. We saw the ‘beach’ of cobblestones, which will allow any wildlife to come and go easily from the lake, and now you can see the other side of the lake is edged with little circular, wooden posts. These are again randomly placed with differing heights and not in a straight line. Then a bit further on, beautiful, much larger rocks edge the lake and hold up the shrubs. I love the way these rocks seem almost to be a part of the planting itself! Finally we have a photo of a very small, hidden Japanese corner, below and behind a much larger lake and completely hidden from view, until you turn a corner. The statue of Buddha sits on some moss covered rocks and is surrounded by peaceful woodland planting. Enjoy!
