Asian Inspirations


	The carved gate in this Pacific Northwest garden creates an attractive entrance to an intimate garden room where visitors can take a relaxing soak in the hot tub. The bamboo screening offers privacy, while plants around the spa enhance the connection with nature.
*An Asian garden: simple yet mysterious, serene yet intriguing, always a continuing source of fascination.* by Janet Loughrey

The aura and mystique those surrounds Japanese style gardening fascinates Westerners but is often misunderstood by them. Noteworthy is the fact that nearly every aspect of a traditional Japanese garden is carefully planned and interrelated, making the gardens more constructed than merely planted. These gardens rely more on structure and permanence than do their Western counterparts. Look for utilization of the basic elements of nature, including water, stone, wood, gravel or sand, as well as moss and other plants. The inherent qualities of these natural materials become integral parts of the garden-the smoothness of a stone, the grain in a piece of wood, the cragginess of a rock formation-and help to create serenity. The strategic placement of each object reflects the strict discipline and structure of traditional Japanese culture.

Home gardeners can incorporate Japanese design into their own yards. It's not necessary to create an entire garden in the Japanese style. A stone lantern, a small patch of raked gravel, or a soothing water feature can offer a focal point that is distinctly Far Eastern.

Successful Asian design incorporates human elements, (such as a lantern), and nature (water, stone and plants). Foliage texture and form is emphasized over bold use of flower color and exemplifies Asian-style gardening.

The moon bridge, a favorite stopping point for garden visitors, straddles the upper pool in the strolling pond garden. This vista changes remarkably in all four seasons.

Water is one of the most important elements in a Japanese garden. The sound created by this waterfall drowns out noises beyond the garden, creating a feeling of solitude. Statuary is commonly featured in Asian gardens. Human figurines are rarely found in Japanese design and are more typical of Chinese style.


	The Flat Garden is a sea of raked white Shirakawa sand with an island of creeping thyme in the foreground. Raked gravel can suggest water and the movement of currents. The garden's single weeping cherry provides a brilliant show of yellow in fall and delicate cascades of pink blossoms in early spring.

The Japanese-style garden is designed to elicit feelings of peace, introspection and personal reflection. While Western gardens are often blatantly obvious in their bold use of color and design, Japanese methods are much more subtle and quietly suggestive. The maxim "less is more" definitely applies here.

Basic Asian design concepts are also enmeshed in symbolism and personal meaning. Although much is open to individual interpretation, while knowing the garden designer's intent gives rise to deeper understanding of the end result. Elements can equally hide as much as reveal themselves to the viewer.

Bridges in Japanese gardens extend a path over real or suggested water. They are positioned to be seen at a pleasing angle from the primary viewing area, rather than looked at head-on or fully sideways. Using different sized plants and focal points draws the viewer into the space and encourages them to contemplate different layers of the garden.

The placement of stones is significant in Japanese design, providing structure and a sense of scale. Stones can be used represent cranes, tortoises or fish.


*A bamboo fence can be used as screening to hide an unattractive feature, or as a backdrop for plants such as this Japanese maple.*

If the garden were used at night, Japanese lanterns would provide the light in the garden and so they are properly placed in locations wherever light would be most useful, such as along a pathway, next to a gateway or by a stairway. But their most magical use is to create a reflection in a pond. Japanese lanterns come in many styles, each with unique symbolism and significance. Those that appear weathered and aged by the natural elements are especially valued by the Japanese.

Still water may run deep, but it also evokes a feeling of calmness. Some waters in Japanese gardens are quiet, but in other gardens water moves more rapidly. The repetitive sound of crashing ocean waves or a rushing stream suggests a meditative contentment, another desirable garden attribute A simple bamboo water flume can bring the element of running water to any garden.

The Japanese Garden in Portland, Oregon, reputed to be the most authentic Japanese-style public garden outside of Japan, was designed by Takuma Tono of Tokyo and built in the 1960's. Considered young by most standards, the five-acre sanctuary is a perfect marriage of Pacific Northwest and Asian influences. As in Japan, water is plentiful in the Northwest, and growing conditions are superb for the azaleas, camellias, and Japanese maples so commonly found in Japanese design.

Cradled in the hills above downtown Portland, the garden's "borrowed view" (shakkei) includes the city skyline and snow-covered Mt. Hood. Five distinct garden spaces portray different elements of traditional formal Japanese design.


	*An elegant wisteria frames the entrance to the strolling pond garden. The five-tiered pagoda lantern was a gift from Sapporo in Japan, Portland's sister city.*

A mild maritime climate provides the garden with year-round beauty. In spring, cherry trees and flowering shrubs offer a sudden burst of fleeting color and green hues come alive with warm spring rains. The lower strolling pond garden provides a cool respite from summer heat, while Japanese iris provide a spectacular show in late June. Fall brings a fiery display of maples and enkianthus. Winter's quiet splendor can be found in raindrops that shimmer like a million tiny diamonds on lacy skeletons of Japanese maples.

This article was first published in Woman's Day Gardening & Outdoor Living, 1999

NOTE: SOME OF THE TEXT IN THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN ALTERED TO ACCOMMODATE THE ABSENCE OF PHOTOS FROM OTHER PHOTOGRAPHERS THAT WERE USED IN THE ORIGINAL ARTICLE.

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