Creating a Japanese Garden

» Gardening & Hobbies

By Doug White - 2008-08-24

By following these five design elements your Japanese Garden will bring a world of serenity and beauty into your own backyard.

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By following these five design elements your Japanese Garden will bring a world of serenity and beauty into your own backyard.

Simplicity:

Unlike traditional gardens, the Japanese garden creates a place of peace and quiet reflection. The number one design element for your garden should begin with simplicity.

In planning for your new creation, realize that less is more. Begin your design on paper to see how it might look before heading out to your local home improvement store. To speed up the design process, lay out several pictures and other sources of inspiration.

Many Japanese style gardens are created around a bamboo water feature or a heavy stone lantern. Take into consideration the focal point of your garden, and let your creation flow outward from there.

Rock & Roll:

After you have come up with your design and decided on the features that will bring your garden to life.

Begin with the heavy elements first. This will be your rocks and stones, as these are major elements in Japanese gardens.

Stones are carefully arranged together in odd numbers to create a triangular formation. Placing stones together in this fashion is called a "sanson," consisting of three vertical stones. At this point it, you should create an illusion of your rocks growing from the earth by pushing up the dirt around the base of your stones. This step does not have to be perfect, as we will come back later and disguise any imperfections with small plants. After you are happy with your rock placement, move on to the plant phase.

Plant Phase:

Japanese gardens are appealing because they contain elements only found in nature.

As you move to adding the plants you would like to incorporate, keep in mind that you don't find straight lines in nature.

Place your plants to look as though they grew among the rocks. In other words, try not to group the plants together to create sharp edges. Grouping large plants with medium and small ones will create a pleasing silhouette.

If space is not at a premium, consider adding Japanese trees like Japanese pines, maples and junipers to the mix. Adding heavy tree elements provides an outstanding boarder for your garden as well as pleasing shade.

Consider adding flowering trees to add that special touch to your space.

Water Today:

The addition of a water feature is a classic element of Japanese gardens.

Small or mighty the sight and sound of water brings a wonderful song to your backyard. If the idea of gurgling water in your garden is not practical for your area, consider sand or smooth gravel to create your water feature.

To construct a gravel bed, lay landscape fabric and add about 3 to 4 inches of smooth gravel. To create the illusion of moving water, gently create grooves in the gravel with a rack. Be careful not to rake too deep, as you do not want to pierce the underlying fabric.

The gravel or sand bed can represent a small body of water like a stream or an area as vast as the ocean. At this point, add rocks as they would appear in a natural water setting. If adding a water feature to your garden is practical, consider lining the edges of your creation with water plants to break up sharp edges.

The Final Touches:

At this point we have added rock, plants, and water to our garden. They have been placed with simplicity and respect for nature.

Now is the time to add your own personal touch with objects like stone lanterns, wooden or stone Japanese style bridges, and bamboo fences.

Because Japanese style gardens always draw visitors in, consider adding a pleasant bench to allow rest for the weary.

Remember to place your final touches among the natural elements of your new garden. The stone lantern should be something your guests discover as they enjoy the peaceful moments in your beautiful Japanese garden.

"Creating a Japanese Garden"