Japanese Garden Ponds: Anderson Gardens

The Japanese garden ponds at Anderson gardens http://www.simplegiftsfarm.com/japanese-garden-design.html are some of the loveliest I've seen in this style of gardening. While not in the strict definition of Zen gardens (they're quite large with decorative benches) they do reflect a very real, authentic experience. I quite enjoyed the quiet time I spent there wandering the gardens without a plan allowing myself to be surprised at different turns in the path and the views this created for me.

I'm a big fan of the Japanese garden school of design and I believe it has something to teach us even if we don't want to create a Japanese sense of space.

For example, the Japanese garden is a "story" - a metaphor for some aspect of life. This is where small ponds represent lakes, single stones represent mountains and the entire garden is treated as a work of ephemeral art.
I explain this in more detail here at http://www.simplegiftsfarm.com/garden-design.html

Japanese garden design is far more than putting a lantern into a garden; it is creating a sense of space, of peace and harmony in whatever space is presented. It can be large - as in these gardens - or it can be as small as a few square feet between houses. The space is irrelevant, it is the design and story the garden represents that determines its success.

These Japanese garden ponds are examples of what I saw at this amazing garden, complete with a full range of Japanese plants (not gaudy annuals) that equally represent other things in the story these gardens are telling.

Category:

Howto & Style

Tags:

• japanese
• garden
• pond
• design
• waterfall
• ideas
• plants
• gardening
• zen

[lazerflesh]

I love Anderson Gardens, I go there all the time. Should be interesting once the restaurant opens up.