Zen and Greenery: Japan's Gardens

Gardens in Japan are more than just beautiful green spaces; they’re an art form that reflects the country’s history, culture, and philosophical ideas. The history of Japanese gardens is as layered and rich as the gardens themselves, with each style and element symbolizing deeper meanings and serving as a canvas for expressing the natural beauty and serenity of the environment. Influenced by external trends, gardening activity in Japan has been changing shapes, yet they all kept one common characteristic: to combine elements, such as stones, ponds, streams, islands, bridges, sand, and gravels, to create miniature reproductions of nature.

The gardens of Adachi Museum of Art in Shimane prefecture have ranked number one in the "Japanese Garden Ranking,” for 17th consecutive years.

Japanese gardening traces its roots back to the Asuka period (538-710 AD), where the first recorded Japanese gardens were heavily influenced by Chinese and Korean gardening techniques. These early gardens were designed for the aristocracy, intended as spiritual havens for contemplation and reflection, incorporating Shinto, Buddhist, and Taoist philosophies.The earliest recorded were the pleasure gardens of emperors and nobles. According to the annals, the koi (carp) pond gardens were appreciated as early as the First Century.

Aka, the "Monet Pond", this koi pond is located deep in the garden of mountains of Gifu Prefecture.

During the Heian Period (794 – 1185), “Paradise Gardens” were built to represent the legendary “Paradise of the West”, where the Amida Buddha ruled. The best-surviving example of a Paradise Garden is Byōdō-in (below) in Uji, near Kyoto. It was originally the villa of Fujiwara Michinaga (966–1028), one of the most influent courtiers of the time. After his death, his son transformed the villa into a temple, and in 1053 built the Hall of Phoenix, which still stands.

Byōdō-in, Uji, near Kyoto

Many types of Japanese gardens can be appreciated anywhere at any season throughout the country:

Karesansui (Dry Landscape) Gardens

These are Zen gardens meant for meditation, featuring sand, gravel, rocks, and sparse vegetation, representing water and natural landscapes.

Kaiyū-shiki-teien (Stroll Gardens)

Designed for enjoyment through walking, these large gardens feature paths that meander past a series of carefully composed scenes, often around a pond.

Chaniwa (Tea Gardens)

Designed for tea ceremonies, these gardens are path-oriented, guiding visitors to the tea house through a meticulously arranged landscape meant to evoke a journey.

Tsukiyama (Hill Gardens)

These gardens use hills, ponds, stones, and plants to recreate miniature versions of natural scenery, reflecting the beauty of the Japanese landscape.

The Kenroku-en Gardens, located in Kanazawa, Ishikawa Prefecture, was built around the 17th century. The word “Kenroku-en” literally means “Garden of the Six Sublimities,” referring to the spaciousness, seclusion, artificiality, antiquity, abundant water, and broad views, which, according to Chinese landscape theory, are the six essential attributes that make up a perfect garden. Its view can be enjoyed at any time of the year, at any time of the day.

Kenroku Garden in Summer
Kenroku Garden in Autumn
Kenroku Garden in Winter
Kenroku Garden in a Spring night

"Bonsai" is the Japanese gardening technique, which the practitioner attempts to produce miniaturised trees which mimic the shapes of real life trees. Their purposes are primarily contemplation for the viewer, and the pleasant exercise of effort and ingenuity for the grower. The practice focuses on long-term cultivation and shaping of one or more small trees growing in a container.

Underwater gardening is currently a very popular activity. In large cities, where an outdoor space is at a real premium, they turn out to be a perfect solution. Shrunk down into miniature, they give us lush little landscapes that we can spend hours tending to: a piece of a rainforest where it is forever summer even in the darkest days of winter.

This is a kind of aquatic garden you would expect to see more in places like the Amazon Rainforest or in a tropical climate country like Brazil. Yet it is called "Mizunomori Water Botanical Garden" and it is a plant nursery located in Kusatsu, Gunma Prefecture, approximately 200 miles north from Tokyo.

Daigo-ji Temple, Kyoto
Daigo-ji Temple, Kyoto
Shiofuji Kannon-ji Garden, Tokyo
Shiofuji Kannon-ji Garden, Tokyo
Kyorimbo Temple, Shiga
Kyorimbo Temple, Shiga
Mitarashi Pond, Fukui
Mitarashi Pond, Fukui
Ashikaga Flower Park, Tokyo
Ashikaga Flower Park, Tokyo
Ogawa's Kitashirakawa Residence Garden, Kyoto
Ogawa's Kitashirakawa Residence Garden, Kyoto
Sports Park, Yamagata
Sports Park, Yamagata
Bamboo Grove, Nara
Bamboo Grove, Nara
Tsubosaka Temple, Nara
Tsubosaka Temple, Nara

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