What are the best plants for a Japanese garden?
Common species in Japanese gardens include cherries, plums, pines, maples, bamboo, wisteria, hydrangea, camellia, box, irises, mosses and grasses. But if any of these won’t grow in your conditions, use substitutes — the whole idea is, after all, to recreate a piece of nature. There are three main elements to a Japanese garden. These include stone, which create the structure of the landscape and garden area; water, which represents the life-giving force; and plants, which provide the color and changes throughout the seasons.
What are the five basic rules in the design of a Japanese garden?
The five design principles of Japanese gardens are asymmetry, enclosure, borrowed scenery, balance, and symbolism. Incorporate each of them in a Japanese garden for authentic style. Are Japanese gardens a lot of work to maintain? Japanese garden maintenance is different from other gardens. Zen gardens are structured around seven guiding principles: Austerity (Koko), Simplicity (Kanso), Naturalness (Shinzen), Asymmetry (Fukinsei), Mystery or Subtlety (Yugen), Magical or Unconventional (Datsuzoku) and Stillness (Seijaku). Your Zen garden should promote most or all of these concepts.