NATURED AND THE JAPANESE GARDEN

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NATURED AND THE JAPANESE GARDEN

In early Japanese history, the garden was no more than an area enclosed by stones, a straw rope, or a fence. The ground inside was sacred; the ground outside, profane. Over time, this garden has been elaborated on, diversified, and refined, but the original concept endures: the Japanese garden remains a place apart, where art and nature collaborate to create serenity. In the ancient Shinto religion, gods were nature spirits, so the Japanese people’s perception of the garden as a place to worship nature is not surprising. Whether it is a postage-stamp-sized court yard or balcony, or a spacious stroll garden, in every hour and season the Japanese garden offers the quietude of the natural world..

In Japan, a garden is neither a slice of raw nature enclosed by a wall, nor an artificial creation that forces natural materials into unnatural forms to celebrate human ingenuity. Instead, it is a work of art that celebrates nature by capturing its essence. By simplifying, implying, or sometimes symbolizing nature, even a tiny garden can convey the impression of the larger, natural world.

To what in nature does a Japanese garden respond? The answer are various. The garden is a response to space and form within nature: to the landscape itself, the sky above the landscape, the sea around it, and features within it , such as stones, plants, and streams. It is a response to natural time: to the shifts in light during the day, the cycle of seasons with their changing charms, and to the enduring aspects of nature. It is also response to people, who, as creators and beholders, are themselves an essential component of nature.

A Response To Nature

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By EdySutio

#Nature seems. To have been touched just lightly by human hands in this garden. A Southern Indica azalea and a flowering plum provide brief seasonal color among black and evergreens. More and more, Americans are looking to the Japanese garden for inspiration in their own garden making. It is not surprising that the Japanese garden-a tranquil sanctuary for contemplating nature-has a strong appeal in our modern world.

THIS chapter is designed to help you conceive, plan, and construct a Japanese-style garden suited to your site and your own needs. You will be introduced to the spirit of the Japanese garden, then led through every process and techniques for conceiving, planning, and building one of your own.

The first chapter discusses the uniquely Japanese concept of the garden’s relation to nature, a concept that has influenced the Japanese garden through its centuries of development, and does, still, today. The five basic styles are described in a historical context. The essential background information supplied in this chapter will prepare you for the lessons of the book and for the challenge of adapting Japanese gardens to American needs.

Later chapters examine key design principles and components of the Japanese garden. Step-by-step instructions are presented for choosing and building the garden and for selecting and maintaining plants, including bonsai. Also included is an examination of a Japanese garden that is beautifully suited to its American context.

Throughout the chapter, the message of this opening chapter will be kept before you: The Japanese garden-or the American garden with Japanese spirit-is a living response to the natural world, which includes people themselves.

Creating Japanese Garden

THE JAPANESE GARDEN :

By EdySutio

A RESPONSE TO NATURE: Introduces the Japanese concept of the garden, the major styles and ways to adapt these styles to your own garden

DESIGNING YOUR GARDEN: Provides step-by-step guidance in analyzing your site and needs and developing a design using essential Japanese principles to create a garden that suits you best.

GARDEN COMPONENTS: In a Japanese garden, earth, provides the matrix for the basic elements: stone, water, and plants. These natural elements, in various forms and combinations, make the garden.

PLANTS : Most Japanese gardens have plants as basic components, but their functions often differ from those in occidental gardens. This chapter offers some basics about plant selection and use.

PROFILE OF A JAPANESE GARDEN : The owners of the garden featured in this chapter have built a sanctuary that is thoroughly Japanese and yet thoughtfully adapted to an American setting and to the homeowner’s needs.