Designing a Japanese Zen Garden
Creating a Meditation Landscape Reflecting Middle Eastern Culture
Japanese Gardens Have Simple, Clean Lines
Who hasn't admired the simple beauty of raked sand gardens representing water in a Japanese garden? These meditation gardens are designed with open spaces and clean lines and usually include a large rock or bench for sitting. The contrast of textures is important in a Japanese garden: the smooth sand, a rough boulder, a twisted maple tree and upright iris foliage.
Japanese Gardens Reflect Nature Symbolically
Sand is often included in a Japanese garden, even if only in a small section, and represents water. Rocks, both large and small are used to symbolize land as well as permanence and can actually tell a story in the garden. Running water represents the passage of time, change and transitions and is often included near the sitting area where the visual and aural interest can be best enjoyed. Plants are carefully selected for not only flowering beauty or attractive foliage but their architectural structure as well. Careful placement of each element in the Japanese garden is in and of itself a contemplative process. No two Japanese inspired gardens will look the same because each should reflect something of the creator.
Japanese Gardens are Beautiful and Ornamental
Each plant in the Japanese garden has a beauty on several levels. For example, the Japanese maple (Acer palmatum) has beautiful foliage that is often slightly colorful in the growing season and vibrant in the fall. But the branch structure and silhouette of the Japanese maple tree is also very ornamental and eye-catching – more complex than a gardener might realize at first glance. Plants like this lend themselves to a meditation garden where contemplation is welcome. Each element in the garden is carefully placed to draw the eye and add to the beauty – too much becomes garish and overdone.
Japanese Gardens Rely on Structure, Shape and Silhouette
A Japanese garden will be beautiful in any season because it has a carefully constructed bone structure that never changes. There are always elements of the garden that are attractive at any given time. In the spring the flowering apricot is in bloom with a rose pink color and spicy fragrance. Summer in the Japanese garden brings the foliage of the maple tree and blooms from the Japanese water iris. Fall finds a new focal point in the Japanese garden as the leaves of the maple tree turn bright colors. In the winter the sand garden, rocks and evergreen moss ground cover take center stage and the silhouettes of the trees and shrubs are evident.
Anyone can enjoy a Japanese meditation garden as most of the plants commonly used are small and do not need a lot of space. A small entry way with a wall fountain, raised planter or large container can become a place of contemplation with a little careful planning.
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