Japanese Garden

2021

Bonshaw

Bamboo Screening / Lighting / Tsukubi

Japanese inspired garden with water features in Bonshaw

At the commencement of this landscaping project we were given some directions and idea from the customer for their brief. As landscape designers we were then able to use this information to develop a suitable design for the client. The client requested that they required an area to look out from their newly installed windows on the extension of their home. They were well travelled with frequent visits to Japan and immediately responded well to the idea of a viewing style Japanese garden.

From our past travels to Japan, we were inspired by many famous gardens throughout Kyoto and other areas including The Adachi Museum, Ryoan-ji’s famous rock garden, Kinkaku-ji and many other moss, dry, rock and strolling gardens. Zen style gardens are often relatively small and surrounded by a wall, and is usually meant to be seen while seated from a single viewpoint in the garden. There are certain requirements and features that are required in this style of garden, everything needs to be placed correctly right down to the placement and selection of rocks.

Our ideas solutions for the customer

On the initial site before construction works, there were large Eucalyptus trees with nothing planted underneath, or it had been struggling. We removed many of these large trees and cleared all the areas and then imported soil to create “rolling hills” and berms with smooth edges. Famous viewing gardens like Rynoli and Adachi Museum also use similar techniques in their viewing gardens. Large feature stones were imported from local quarries into the garden and a bespoke water feature was created out of one of the rocks. The boundary of the garden was fenced in with large bamboo screening to enclose the garden so viewing from the dining room would include only the Japanese garden.

Construction of rope fencing was installed around the garden, which is traditional in a Japanese style garden. Paths were paved in a Ashler style and edged with bespoke polished concrete pavers. Some gravel drains, and quartz pebble was installed around the grounds of the garden. Lighting was installed along the newly planted crepe myrtle trees and the water features and tsukabi were lit up at night controlled by a switch located inside the home so the client can turn it on from the comforts of the home.

A beautifully created Japanese style garden was created for the clients to view from their dining and living room areas of their home. Regular maintenance is undertaken within this garden throughout the year and it is kept to its upmost best presentation for its viewers.