Asian Garden - Zen Garden
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Zen statuary Garden age: 5 years Susan Broderick CC BY 2.0- Plants in this photo:Plants in this photo
- Description
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Name: Asian Garden - Zen Garden
Open to the public? No
County:
USDA Hardiness Zone:
Extension Demonstration Garden? No
Approximate year the garden/landscape was established:
What to look for: The Zen garden is an important part of Japanese culture. Dating back to the early 6th century, the Buddhist monks created meditation spaces out of sand and rocks. Later the gardens were enjoyed by warlords, emperors and aristocrats, their purpose evolving from meditation to aesthetic pleasure.
The typical elements designated in a Zen Garden include:
- Plants
- Stones
- Water or the suggestion of water
- Paths and bridges
- Ornamentation
- Sensory elements
- Simplicity and asymmetry
The purpose of a Zen garden is to help quiet and focus the mind, awaken the senses and make the viewer more attuned to nature. Each element of a Zen garden holds symbolism.
Plant symbolism:
- Bamboo – strength, growth and living a straightforward life.
- Azaleas – femininity, remembrance of home, elegance and wealth.
- Japanese Maples – grace, balance, calm and peace.
- Weeping Cedar – humility.
- Water – renewal, calm, wonder and continuity in the hereafter.
- Stones – durability, omnipresence of the forces of nature, and stability.
- Paths represent the journey to enlightenment, leading to new opportunities as well as leading the eye to other areas of the garden and sparking exploration.
- Bridges – life changes and transition.
Lanterns represent love, purity, brightness and protection from evil.
Torii are traditional Japanese gates found at the entrance of temples, where it symbolically marks the transition from the secular to the sacred or the mundane to the divine.
Horticulture: No special regimens noted.
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Zen statuary Garden age: 5 years Susan Broderick CC BY 2.0- Plants in this photo:Plants in this photo

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Zen garden torii Garden age: 5 years Susan Broderick CC BY 2.0- Plants in this photo:Plants in this photo

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Statuary, dry river bed, bridge and Tamukeyama Japanese Maple Garden age: 5 years CC BY 2.0- Plants in this photo:Plants in this photo

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Acer palmatum var dissected 'Tamukeyama' with bells Garden age: 5 years Susan Broderick CC BY 2.0- Plants in this photo:Plants in this photo
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Dry river bed, bridge and torii Garden age: 5 years Susan Broderick CC BY 2.0- Plants in this photo:Plants in this photo

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Acer palmatun var. dissectum 'Orangeola' Garden age: 5 years Susan Broderick CC BY 2.0- Plants in this photo:Plants in this photo

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Japanese Zen garden in a small space Garden age: 5 years Susan Broderick CC BY 2.0- Plants in this photo:Plants in this photo

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Path leading your curiosity to the next garden bed Garden age: 5 years Susan Broderick CC BY 2.0- Plants in this photo:Plants in this photo
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Japanese torii Garden age: 5 years Susan Broderick CC BY 2.0- Plants in this photo:Plants in this photo

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Acer palmatum var. dissectum 'Tamukeyama' with Gold Mop Garden age: 5 years Susan Broderick CC BY 2.0- Plants in this photo:Plants in this photo

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Bambusa 'Golden Goddess' clumping bamboo Garden age: 5 years Susan Broderick CC BY 2.0- Plants in this photo:Plants in this photo
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Using a dry bed of rocks to represent water element Garden age: 5 years Susan Broderick CC BY 2.0- Plants in this photo:Plants in this photo

Winter
Winter Garden Garden age: 5 years Susan Broderick CC BY 4.0- Plants in this photo:Plants in this photo
Spring
Zen statuary Garden age: 5 years Susan Broderick CC BY 2.0- Plants in this photo:Plants in this photo

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Zen garden torii Garden age: 5 years Susan Broderick CC BY 2.0- Plants in this photo:Plants in this photo

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Statuary, dry river bed, bridge and Tamukeyama Japanese Maple Garden age: 5 years CC BY 2.0- Plants in this photo:Plants in this photo

Spring
Acer palmatum var dissected 'Tamukeyama' with bells Garden age: 5 years Susan Broderick CC BY 2.0- Plants in this photo:Plants in this photo
Spring
Dry river bed, bridge and torii Garden age: 5 years Susan Broderick CC BY 2.0- Plants in this photo:Plants in this photo

Spring
Acer palmatun var. dissectum 'Orangeola' Garden age: 5 years Susan Broderick CC BY 2.0- Plants in this photo:Plants in this photo

Spring
Japanese Zen garden in a small space Garden age: 5 years Susan Broderick CC BY 2.0- Plants in this photo:Plants in this photo

Spring
Path leading your curiosity to the next garden bed Garden age: 5 years Susan Broderick CC BY 2.0- Plants in this photo:Plants in this photo
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Japanese torii Garden age: 5 years Susan Broderick CC BY 2.0- Plants in this photo:Plants in this photo

Spring
Acer palmatum var. dissectum 'Tamukeyama' with Gold Mop Garden age: 5 years Susan Broderick CC BY 2.0- Plants in this photo:Plants in this photo

Spring
Bambusa 'Golden Goddess' clumping bamboo Garden age: 5 years Susan Broderick CC BY 2.0- Plants in this photo:Plants in this photo
Spring
Using a dry bed of rocks to represent water element Garden age: 5 years Susan Broderick CC BY 2.0- Plants in this photo:Plants in this photo

Winter
Winter Garden Garden age: 5 years Susan Broderick CC BY 4.0- Plants in this photo:Plants in this photo