How to Use Japanese Garden Design for Your Home
Whether you plan a Japanese Zen garden for its aesthetic appeal or for the opportunity to use it as a place of solitary meditation, the design principles are set in an ancient tradition that uses water, stone and living plants to illustrate the universe in microcosm. Koichi Kawana, writing about the Japanese Garden for the University of California website, notes the absence of color, movement and variety typical of Western gardens, and describes the significance of the natural elements that invite quiet contemplation.
- Difficulty:
- Moderate
Instructions
Things You'll Need
- Pencil and paper
- Rocks and stones
- Sand
- Rake
- Gravel
- Plants and trees
- Spade
- Pool mold, pond lining or concrete
- Statue of a heron
- Seat or bench
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Dry Rock Gardens
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1
Sketch some ideas for your garden. If you have the space, site the garden where elements of the rest of your garden, or a distant view point, can act as a backdrop. The design can be square, oblong or free form.
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2
Outline the shape of your Zen garden with string or colored sand, then remove the turf and level the ground, tamping it down firmly. Cover the area with weed control matting, and seal overlaps by pegging them down firmly.
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3
Cover the area with sand or decorative gravel to a depth of at least 1 inch. Rake it smooth and level, but leave the final patterns until the other elements are in position.
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4
Place rocks either singly or in groups of three around the garden. Align the rocks to lead the eye toward a distant view or a focal point in your larger garden. Rock islands traditionally symbolize the insularity of the self: alone-ness rather than loneliness, and the quiet solitariness of meditation.
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5
Install evergreen plants in such a way as not to detract from the overall effect of the garden. Nothing should take precedence and no single element should divert your focus from the holistic design; everything needs to be in harmony.
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6
Rake the sand or gravel carefully to form lines that suggest waves, currents or ripples. Water surrounds Japan and its islands, and is considered to be symbolic of the wide expanse of consciousness, the universe, peace and emptiness of the sea.
Gardens With Water
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1
Follow the steps for a dry rock garden, but before laying the sand or gravel, dig a hole deep enough to accommodate a pond. Use a preformed mold, or line with a non-biodegradable plastic liner or concrete. Kawana suggests that the pond should be the most dominant feature in a water garden; that being the case, it's not necessary to rake gravel to symbolize water.
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2
Place a life-sized statue of a crane next to a pond, and arrange large stones along one side of the water to signify a rocky seashore. The Japanese regard the crane as symbolic of a long life, and its elegant lines fit well with the austerity of a Zen garden.
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3
Use a small water feature to give you the sound of running water. Stone features maintain the natural element, and the water flow can be as gentle and unobtrusive as you like.
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1
Tips & Warnings
Build a wall or plant a hedge of shrubs or trees around your Zen garden to provide an inner area of calm and separation from the everyday. Bring in a comfortable seat or a bench where you can sit and think.
Bring the energy of the wind into your garden with a wind chime made of bamboo or metal, heavy enough to move slowly. Smaller, lighter wind chimes make continual noise in the wind, which you might not find peaceful.
Take your time building the garden. Think about each step and use it as a meditative exercise and to slow you down.
Keep the garden as uncluttered as possible. Bringing in too many elements is distracting and cancels out the significance of the carefully placed rocks and stones.
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