home · Other · Japanese style garden. DIY Japanese garden - photo. Plants and Japanese style in landscape design Creating a small Japanese garden

Japanese style garden. DIY Japanese garden - photo. Plants and Japanese style in landscape design Creating a small Japanese garden

Japanese garden in the country

If you like oriental motifs in garden design, you will certainly not be indifferent to the Japanese garden. If you dare to organize it on your site, then you will have a haven of peace and tranquility, where you can always hide from the bustle of the city.

Japanese garden in the country

However, to be fair, I admit that creating a real Japanese garden is quite an expensive pleasure. Therefore, you should not try to cover large areas; you can simply organize a small corner, no more than 4-6 square meters, in your garden.

Japanese garden at the dacha - paths

Gardeners distinguish two types of Japanese gardens - hilly and flat. You can choose between them in favor of the direction that best suits your landscape.

Japanese garden at the dacha - steps

A flat Japanese garden is located on a flat area, its entire composition is visible from any point in the garden. A hilly garden, on the other hand, can open up differently from different vantage points, with the hills forming the main part of the landscape.

Typically, a Japanese garden has five hills, one of which is higher than the surrounding ones. It symbolizes Mount Fuji, which the Japanese consider sacred.

Lantern in a Japanese garden

Five Principles of Japanese Garden Design

When organizing your garden, use five fundamental principles that will make it truly Japanese.

First principle- asymmetry landscape design. This is the basis of the nature around us, from which the Japanese try to take all their design ideas.

Pond in a Japanese garden

Second principle- the absence of random details that will cause confusion in the organization of the garden. Any element of the site must be placed meaningfully and carry a certain symbolism.

Pine tree in a Japanese garden

Third principle- plants and stones chosen for the garden should be discreet in color, but expressive. They should be selected according to their shape; usually the elements of a Japanese garden have a clear, regular and slightly rounded structure. The arrangement of plants and stones should create a contemplative mood.

Fourth principle- usually the ground around the plants is either compacted or covered with fine gravel. In recent years, they have begun to plant lawn grass, and the Japanese are trying to avoid large green lawns. They always have something stuck in the middle of the green carpet - a bush, a stone composition, etc.

Fifth principle- try not to compact the plantings, leave a little free space between all the elements. Stop yourself from wanting to make a lot of flower beds, flower beds and plant a lot of trees.

Trees in a Japanese garden

Selection of plants for the Japanese garden

Especially important for the Japanese garden correct selection trees and shrubs. Japan has a unique climate and many plants are simply not grown here. But there is a selection of plants adapted to Central Russia that can be planted in a Japanese garden.

For example, known to everyone for its beautiful flowering Japanese cherry- sakura can be replaced with decorative plum varieties, steppe almonds or felt cherries.

Cold-hardy rhododendron varieties can also add beauty to your Japanese garden. Japanese maple, unfortunately, is not entirely suitable for our climate, but instead you can plant black elderberry with beautiful leaves and crown shape.

Bonsai in a Japanese garden

A little about bonsai trees. Ready-made bonsai is not cheap, but you can grow it yourself, for example from pine. It is enough to pinch the pine shoots every year and in 5-7 years you will have an elegant tree.

The most important thing is that when you are faced with a choice of plants, remember that less is more. Leave more free space in the garden in order to emphasize the laconicism of the landscape.

Space Japanese kindergarten

Video from a Japanese garden

We recently visited a real Japanese garden. IN Botanical Garden Prague, in the Czech Republic, has a corner of Japan. It is very beautiful and contemplative there. I invite you to take a walk with us!

Harmonious combination human influence and natural elements is the goal of every park complex. This harmony is most fully reflected in the traditions of the Land of the Rising Sun, which is why the Japanese-style garden has survived centuries of change and is popular even today.

Deep into history

The first written sources in which the hieroglyph “niva” (garden) is found date back to the eighth century AD. At first, this term meant a certain space, without natural or artificial fences. Later, man-made elements appeared - fences, pebbled paths, small architectural structures.


The concept of the Japanese garden is related to painting. Amazing color schemes gardens of the Heian period coincided with the emergence of the Yamato-e school. The appearance of Buddhist monasteries and temples occurred during the era of samurai - pomp and decorativeness gave way to laconicism and monochrome, and the era of dry landscapes began.

The combination of incongruous elements also marks the so-called tea garden - another direction of Japanese park art, which arose already in the 16th century.

Japanese garden - principles of creating style

Three pillars on which the park complexes of temples and palaces are based:

  • the indispensable combination of water and stone, symbolizing the masculine and feminine principles in Eastern philosophy;
  • naturalness of plants, stone blocks, decorative design;
  • asymmetry of the landscape with an emphasis on one or more individual details of the composition.

Additional conditions for the structure of a Japanese corner include the presence of an open area and the use of restrained, harmonious color shades.

Photo: landscape design of a summer cottage

Garden design styles

In modern landscape design, there are four types of Japanese-style garden design. These variations are successfully used to organize space.

  1. - a small part of a yard or house with open roof.
  2. - a site with a minimum of plants. It is not difficult to create such a site, but the decorative effect of the design will be relatively small.
  3. . This landscape complex differs from the European park tradition that is familiar to us. Characteristic– maximum use of natural plants and forms, as well as following the seasons.
  4. – characterized by the combination of two types of green spaces with different landscapes. In the shady corners there is certainly a pavilion - wabi, in which the tea ceremony - tyanoyu - takes place.

Let's take a closer look at each of these green corners and highlight the principles of their creation.

The garden appeared during the development of urban architecture in the early Middle Ages. The name itself speaks of miniature landscape composition– the word “tsubo” means a small area, 3.3 square meters. m.

Such a garden is also located in tiny areas of the yard under open air, and indoors.

Photo of a classic tsubo:


The main goal of laying out a miniature garden is to let light and nature into a limited urban space. Plantings for a green corner are selected depending on the cardinal directions. For example, in the northern part sun-loving plants are not planted, and the lack of flowers is compensated for with moss.

The tsubo territory is lined with stones, leaving a small piece of land for planting. In the center of the composition are several plants that match the style of the building. The easiest way to create such a Japanese garden at your summer cottage is to install a tsukubai lantern, make paths from “flying stones” - tobiishi, and harmoniously arrange several plants.

Thematic material:

The lack of light is compensated by lamps, lanterns or an ingenious gallery of mirrors, which saturate the boring walls of a city house with bright and warm sunlight. Decorative lighting will be a small touch that completes the tsubo composition.

This is a poetic interpretation of an archaic motif - the search for islands eternal youth and immortality. Ancient legends are reflected in the structure of the rock garden. Although landscape design does not pay enough attention to Japanese philosophy, it continues to use the age-old principles of constructing stone gardens.


For the Japanese, stone has never been a building material - only an object of worship and admiration. Echoes of the cult attitude towards stone blocks are presented in classical methods arrangement of compositions. When creating an oriental design, boulders are placed in the following ways:

  • Mount Horai is a single stone in the middle of a pond as a symbol of this distant peak.
  • Mount Sumi is a composition of three stones located in a pond or on a small hill.
  • The Three Jewels is an arrangement method based on Buddhist traditions.
  • Crane and turtle islands - repeated in the garden landscape folk tales and legends.

The Japanese attach great importance to the choice of stones. Since boulders are often used in groups, it is not the shape that is important separate subject, but the harmony of the composition. The design of the Japanese garden welcomes interspersed ancient stones covered with mosses and lichens, with rounded outlines. According to the beliefs of the Japanese, such blocks bring peace and harmony to the house; without them it is impossible to decorate a garden in the style of the Land of the Rising Sun.

When creating a composition, they adhere to clear principles for arranging stones. The difficulty lies in the correct placement of the main boulder that crowns the entire landscape design. The remaining elements naturally frame the central stone block, creating miniature compositions symbolizing islands or mountain ranges. A Japanese-style garden gives free rein to imagination, but at the same time dictates its own rules.

It is not customary to place stones in an ascending or descending line - the Japanese do not like artificial symmetry. River, mountain and sea stones are not combined in one composition.

To keep the boulders stable, they are dug in. To hide defects and chips, they plant low growing shrub or grass. Plants for a Japanese rock garden are chosen in wild, modest colors.

The appearance of this territory is most familiar to the European view: open space, water flow and a lot of green spaces. Both evergreen and deciduous trees grow in shady corners - this is how the alternation of flowering of each seedling is achieved depending on the season.

A good addition to trees are trimmed bushes of boxwood, rhododendron, cotoneaster, etc. Such plants, if necessary, hide the walls of houses, garbage containers or composting facilities (if the garden is planned to be located in the country). Conversely, decorated bush caps serve as a natural frame for the view of a river bank or an endless field.


Great importance in a tree garden is given to decorative elements - hedges, bridges, lanterns, gates... As a rule, internal barriers are made light and airy using wooden picket fence or bamboo. But external fences are made of stones and decorated with tiles.

Part of a traditional Japanese tea ceremony. Its main purpose is to create the necessary atmosphere of peace and tranquility. Its area is not large and imitates a fragment of a mountainous area where eastern sages settled.


At the far end of the garden there is a hut for the tea ceremony - chashitsu. This is a small ascetic house, reminiscent of the home of the sages. Both the appearance and interior decoration of this building are very laconic. It is believed that this is the only way to achieve true harmony and tune in to contemplation.

The garden itself seems to prepare a person for the ceremony, being the border between the busy world and the territory of spirituality.

It is decorated in a discreet style, close to nature. Plants and stones are arranged in a natural, seemingly chaotic order. The lighting should be low, barely enough to see the path.

Lanterns are an indispensable attribute of a Japanese garden; they are used both for decoration and for lighting the area. At first, decorative lamps were present only in tea gardens, but later they became the hallmark of any Japanese-style landscape design. As a rule, only one lantern made of stone is installed. Pedestal models - tachigata - brightly illuminate the surrounding area. The luminous flux of hidden lanterns - ikekomigata - is directed downwards.

Photo: the bridge serves a decorative function

Bridges in a Japanese garden do not always serve as a means of crossing to the other side; rather, they are used as another design element. Unlike Chinese or European designs, the Japanese bridge is flat, sometimes not intended for walking at all. The Yatsuhashi bridge is extremely decorative, composed of eight elements - stones or wide boards.

The parts of the structure are laid in a zigzag pattern, so walking along it can be difficult. Such bridges fit well into landscape park, are installed above artificial ponds, depressions with wet soil, or directly above the lawn.


Japanese gardens can tell a lot about the character of the inhabitants of the Land of the Rising Sun. And for Europeans it is a magnificent combination of light, greenery, stone and water, a kind of door to understanding the culture and traditions of the East.

Video: miniature Japan on site

What kind of Japanese garden can you make with your own hands? What nuances need to be taken into account when creating a Japanese garden with your own hands? What plants in the Japanese garden style will take root here? How to make a Japanese lantern with your own hands?

The Japanese garden is not only original version design of a suburban area, but also an important part of the philosophy of the East. Such a corner helps to restore strength, plunge headlong into the fabulous world of wildlife and blissful relaxation. Often the garden in oriental style is called a miniature of the whole world: each of its elements has a special meaning. Anyone can create a Japanese garden with their own hands. Our article will tell you how to do this.

What type of Japanese garden can you create with your own hands at the dacha?

The Japanese garden was first mentioned in the literature of the 11th century. However, already in the 16th century it became the most favorite technique in landscape design among eastern residents. Such gardens were filled with vegetation, had an excellent appearance and decorated the territory of every monastery or imperial palace. Only surviving ancient images and pictures tell us about their magnificence, since, unfortunately, the gardens have not survived to this day in their original form.

Today, many people have already appreciated the atmosphere of peace of mind and primitive peace that Japanese gardens give us. That is why this option for DIY landscape design is incredibly popular all over the world.

A Japanese garden, decorated with your own hands, is a unique place where each of us can feel harmony and beauty, feel the aromas and colors of nature. This effect magically helps you find peace of mind and detach yourself from life’s problems. This corner is ideal for those who noisy companies prefers peace and solitude, and, in addition, it does not require special care and always looks stylish.

Creating a Japanese garden with your own hands in our region is a rather difficult task, because not all plants can survive in such weather conditions. But setting up a small Japanese-style corner on your site is a very feasible and interesting task. We should not forget that the fundamental principle of landscape design in the oriental style is the uniqueness of the compositional solution.

A Japanese-style garden is a fragile and multifaceted work of art, closely connected to the history and culture of its country of origin. It reflects all the symbolism and features of the Eastern mentality.

In the minds of many of us, a DIY Japanese garden is associated with the sight of stones and a variety of vegetation, as well as the sound of rushing water. Design elements can be combined in different ways, which gives rise to several styles of Japanese garden:

  • Walking Japanese gardens

This corner encourages visitors to take walks, contemplate the mysterious nature and understand its secrets. There are original bridges over streams and cozy benches. The composition contains both small foot-sized stones and larger specimens. When creating a walking Japanese garden with your own hands, the paths are laid out from flat stones of various shapes, placing them at the same level as the surface of the lawn.

  • Japanese flower garden

The vegetation of such a garden has a calming effect and brings joy to others. all year round because it is evergreen. Creating a Japanese flower garden with your own hands is the optimal solution for those who want to emphasize unique style small space.

  • Japanese miniature garden

A Japanese miniature garden is created with your own hands in order to demonstrate the vastness of the world in a limited space. Paths of varying widths gradually become more winding and narrower. The foreground of the garden is decorated with large plants and large stones.

  • Japanese tea garden

Every detail is here - a leaf or blade of grass, the splash of water in a stream, the beauty of stones unusual shape– gives a feeling of peace and prepares for the tea ceremony. The DIY Japanese tea garden has a unique idea: to show how the beauty of nature changes in each season.

  • Japanese rock garden

Gardens of this type, which are usually located on a flat space, are intended primarily for contemplation rather than for walking. Using pebbles or fine gravel, they depict a pond, and with the help of a wooden rake, they form straight and winding lines with their own hands, which symbolize swells, waves and circles on the water. Large gray stones that rise above the rest serve as a prototype of rocks washed by water.

When arranging a Japanese rock garden with your own hands, you do not need to follow strict rules or copy a specific design. It is enough to give free rein to your imagination and bring into reality your own idea of ​​what the site should look like. The philosophy of such a garden reminds us that each of us should strive to achieve harmony with nature.

Each style of Japanese garden, created with your own hands, is characterized by certain features:

    Plain type It is a perfectly flat area on which trees, stones, ponds and water sources are located. Garden sculptures and stone lanterns serve as design elements.

    Hilly type- this is a combination of bodies of water and hills (for example, a pond with a waterfall; streams flowing from hills, etc.).

    Crossed Gardens are a miniature illustration of the mountainous part of Japan. The exhibition is based on a body of water with an island in the center. Here you can also see artificial mountains, many lanterns, bridges and paths. Among all this splendor, tea houses with a traditional bowl for washing hands - tsukubai - are secluded, surrounded by a bamboo fence.

What to consider when creating a Japanese-style garden with your own hands

A Japanese garden is not just stones and plants arranged in a certain order. This is a whole universe in miniature, which pacifies and reminds that everything is transitory, and the beauty of nature is eternal. Therefore, creating a Japanese garden with your own hands requires special inspiration.

The Japanese garden not only decorates the interior, but also serves as a real place of relaxation and relaxation. For this reason, it is better to place it in a secluded part of the house, where you can admire the discreet but perfect splendor of “little Japan,” collect your thoughts and think about the eternal.

Recreating a Japanese garden with your own hands is an art that takes years and decades to master. However, to arrange such a corner in your home, you don’t have to master all the intricacies. It is enough to know the main components of the design and the basic rules for their location:

  1. Stones

In Eastern philosophy, stones symbolize incorruptibility, the infinity of time and the constancy of nature. Therefore, they are certainly present in the arsenal of every Japanese gardener.

The main goal is to create an image of a dilapidated mountain range. In this case, stones of different sizes and colors can be placed individually or in several pieces. When creating a Japanese garden with your own hands, it is recommended to use mossy stones covered with moss and lichens. They will make the composition harmonious and natural. Large stones, dug into the ground are also appropriate, but do not overdo it with their number.

  1. Reservoirs

In a Japanese garden, you can recreate various types of reservoirs with your own hands - streams, ponds, multi-stage fountains. If we are talking about a pond, then it is preferable to make it irregular shape, and place the water level at the same height as the shore. To depict a rock, it is enough to place a large stone in a pond.

  1. Paths

Winding paths made of artificial or natural stone are fully consistent with the concept of a Japanese garden and give it maximum naturalness.

  1. Small architectural forms

Stone lanterns framing a stream or pond are important attributes of a Japanese-style garden. They contain candles that can be lit in the evening to create a special mood. To shade the lantern, you can plant a tree behind it.

When creating a Japanese garden with your own hands, do not forget about such an important attribute as tsukubai - a stone bowl of water made in the form of a small barrel, in which hands are traditionally washed before the tea ceremony.

  1. Bridge

When decorating a garden in the Japanese style, it is appropriate to use stone bridges over a pond or stream, which can be made in the form of a flat block. They create harmony in space and are a symbol of the transition from one world to another. In Eastern philosophy, bridges are the personification of the path of life. Traditionally they are made from valuable wood species bright colors and randomly decorated with stones. A curved path may lead to the bridge.

  1. Plants

Following the example of the Japanese, use evergreen plant species to frame the garden - rhododendron, spruce, boxwood, pine, etc. This approach will allow your corner to look attractive at any time of the year.

  1. Bamboo

Benches, fences, fences and other elements made of bamboo are very appropriate when decorating a Japanese garden with your own hands. They will make your corner cozy and add oriental flavor to it.

5 principles for creating a Japanese garden with your own hands

Principle #1. Since nature itself serves as the source of inspiration when creating landscape design, the corner should have an asymmetrical shape.

Principle #2. Every detail must be placed meaningfully. The use of random elements is unacceptable, as they can cause confusion in the overall concept of the garden.

Principle #3. When decorating a Japanese garden with your own hands, leave more free space and try not to plant the plants too densely.

Principle #4. Plants and stones should be discreet in color, but at the same time expressive. Don't forget that Japanese style predominantly uses rounded elements.

Principle #5. Traditionally, green lawns are not used when creating a Japanese garden with your own hands, although you can deviate from this principle if you wish. In a classic eastern corner, the soil around the plants is either covered with gravel or compacted.

How to make a Japanese garden with your own hands: step-by-step instructions

Step 1. Planning a Japanese garden

Before you start creating a Japanese garden with your own hands, decide what type of suburban area you have. It can be:

    Hiraniwa (flat area).

    Tsukiyama (area with slopes and hills).

Flat terrain is ideal for creating a magnificent harmonious landscape. If your site consists of uneven areas, then do not be discouraged. It is within your power to decorate it with your own hands in the form of an oriental garden, as close to natural as possible. If the area allows this, combine both types of oriental design, and the result will be amazing!

Before you start decorating a Japanese garden with your own hands, you should draw up a rough plan and carefully think through all the elements. If you have the opportunity to entrust this work to a professional landscape designer who is well versed in all the intricacies of the philosophy of the East, then this is wonderful. However, you can create an original landscape with your own hands. It is enough to understand the main principles. If your first attempt is unsuccessful, don’t lose heart! Remember that the ability to create masterpieces and harmoniously combine design elements comes only in the process of work.

Step 2. Select stones

When arranging a Japanese garden with your own hands, you should take the choice of stones as the main decorative element responsibly. You can use any stones you like, the main thing is to do it carefully and select samples of a uniform color scheme.

Whatever stones you prepare - round or with sharp edges - you need to install them in the central part of the composition. To keep your piece of paradise from looking cluttered, try not to pile rocks on top of each other.

You can fill the voids formed between the stones using the sute-ishi technology - using sand and fine gravel. The play of contrasts, for example, dark boulders and light sand, will help emphasize the natural splendor of the materials used.

Step 3. Select plants

Another the most important detail A DIY Japanese garden is definitely about the vegetation. In a changing climate middle zone In Russia, creating a fragrant garden in an oriental style is quite problematic. Therefore, you should choose a more ascetic option. When looking for plants for your site, give preference green plants with discreet flowers and small leaves.

When decorating a Japanese garden with your own hands, you can use not only most coniferous crops, but also creeping bushes and ground cover vegetation. Create original design will help dwarf plants, bonsai, as well as climbing vegetation.

In our conditions the following take root:

Trees:

    Cherry (it can also be sakura or the Raksa variety, which is optimal, for example, for the Moscow region).

    Pine (conifers, which often serve as the center of the composition, personify strength, longevity, courage. To make the crown more expressive, it is enough to slow down the growth of the tree).

    Maple of any variety that goes well with conifers.

Perennial flowers:

    Peony (most often, double or semi-double species of the tree-like variety are chosen; the diameter of the flower reaches up to 25 cm).

    Chrysanthemum (this flower is national in Japan and has many types).

    Rhododendron (the plant is not characterized by large flowers, but lush inflorescences, as well as glossy leaves).

Shrubs:

    Barberry ( best option for hedges, has many varieties).

    Hawthorn (the shrub blooms picturesquely in spring and produces fruits of various colors in summer).

Cereals, ferns, bamboo:

    Miscanthus (ornamental herbaceous grasses, which are divided into many varieties and can delight the eye from the very beginning of spring until frost).

    Saza (the only variety of bamboo that grows wild in local latitudes. When decorating a Japanese garden with your own hands, it serves as an excellent decoration for a gazebo, often placed against the backdrop of a stream).

    Adiantum foot-shaped (plant with openwork leaves exotic species, which takes root well in the Moscow region and sits in a prominent place in an oriental garden).

To emphasize the naturalness of your corner, in a separate area you can design a so-called moss garden.

It is desirable that the shape of the plants used to decorate a Japanese garden with your own hands be uniform. Such a simple technique will fill the area with harmony and give visitors to your corner positive emotions. And if you want your composition not to freeze in winter and with the arrival of spring to delight again with its original appearance, use frost-resistant vegetation when creating it.

Step 4. Thinking through additional elements

The symbol of an oriental-style garden is moving water, which clears the mind, regulates energy flows and helps to relax. The calm surface of a pond, the murmuring of streams, the cheerful splashes of fountains - you can use any of these elements when decorating a Japanese garden with your own hands. Such details will organically complement the design of your piece of paradise, highlight its natural origin and give it a finished look. To preserve the spiritual idyll of the eastern garden, refrain from using a cascade and other noisy compositions.

If you want to create a Japanese garden with your own hands in the best traditions of the East, then you cannot do without a tea house. Since ancient times, most gardens have been laid out around such structures, and the people of Japan have not abandoned this idea to this day.

If building a tea house is not part of your plans, consider a simpler option - making a garden bridge, which is a kind of symbol of a person’s life path. You can build a bridge for your site with your own hands or buy it ready-made.

The melodic ringing sound heard from the slightest breath of wind will harmoniously complement the concept of your garden. On sale you will find many devices that will fill your corner with mesmerizing sounds.

Step 5. Install lighting

It is difficult to imagine a true Japanese garden without lanterns, because without them at night it will look somewhat intimidating. Correct lighting will help you and your guests enjoy the charming atmosphere of the eastern corner at any time of the day. Lanterns used to decorate a Japanese garden with your own hands are classified into several types:

    Pedestal(tachigata). This type represented by lanterns such as kasuga, nuresagi, haruhi, etc. Their height on average reaches 150-180 centimeters, so such lanterns are used more often in large gardens, located in their center.

    Installation(okigata). Characterized by small in size(height is usually no more than 100 centimeters) and deliberately rough asymmetrical shapes. Such lanterns are easy to install; they are usually installed in secluded dark corners, as well as along paths and near ponds.

    Hidden(ikekomigata) lanterns come in many varieties and are used to decorate a small Japanese garden with your own hands. In this case, the support stone is not used, and the base is installed vertically and buried in the ground.

    Yukimi. Such lanterns are created specifically for contemplating snow covers and are considered the most beautiful among similar devices of other types. They have four legs that are buried in the ground or resting on a stone, as well as a wide lid of a round or hexagonal shape. You can install Yukimi with your own hands next to bodies of water, which will allow you to admire their reflection.

How to make a Japanese lantern for the garden with your own hands

Let's look at the algorithm for making Japanese lanterns with your own hands for the garden, which, regardless of the type of lamp, comes down to several main steps.

For work we will need stone, candles and clay. The choice of stone depends on the style of your site. The simplest standard garden option involves the use of flat stones.

The procedure for creating a lantern from stones for a Japanese garden with your own hands:

    Preparing the foundation. We place one of the flat stones on the territory of our lamp and securely fix it.

    We build two columns from small stones and fasten them together using cement mortar or clay. While working, we carefully form cavities for candles in the columns.

    After the structure has been secured and the mixture has dried, we place on it roof.

So, your DIY Japanese lantern for the garden is ready.

Video on how to make a Japanese stone lantern for the garden with your own hands:

5 Tips for a Stunning Japanese Garden Design

Tip 1. Use a heptagonal-shaped structure, which is rightfully considered the most popular element of an oriental-style corner. It’s easy to make, and you can be guided by photographs of a Japanese garden with your own hands from the Internet. As a base for the future structure, use the most flat surface possible. To assemble a heptagonal composition, it is enough to place the stones on the site in a certain order.

Tip 2. Choose stones that are not too large in size. Use no more than three pieces for each composition. Round stones, personifying the seashore, will fill the corner with an aura of calm, and boulders with sharp edges will emphasize the natural origin of the composition. If you have decorated a Japanese garden with your own hands according to all the rules, then all its elements will be visible from any angle.

Tip 3. Adopt the trick of eastern gardeners, who design paths to “nowhere” and disguise them with greenery. To create unique design Japanese garden with your own hands, try to feel the philosophy of the East and accept the life principles of its inhabitants. This approach will help you create a harmonious corner in a modern city.

Tip 4. The final touch when creating a garden in an oriental style will be a tea house and a special stone bowl in the form of a barrel of water, necessary for washing hands. In addition, you can install a small bridge (yatsuhashi) and a gazebo in your garden. Yatsuhashi should be zigzag, as it symbolizes complexity life path person in the world. Gazebos are usually made multi-tiered with an odd number of levels.

Tip 5. Having finished decorating your Japanese garden with your own hands, carefully examine it: any vantage point should offer you a unique view. To make the composition look original and fresh, leave as much space as possible between its elements.

Preface

Rock gardens that imitate the natural landscape of mountain slopes are a popular landscaping technique. personal plots, gardens and park areas.

Rocky gardens, imitating the natural landscape of mountain slopes, are a popular method for arranging personal plots, gardens and park areas. Sometimes they may be constructed retaining walls or constructed from wild stone steps overgrown with greenery. The special skill of the landscape artist is to ensure that the compositions created in this way seem abandoned and become a natural part of the mountain landscape.

The Japanese rock garden in landscape design is often combined with artificial waterfall, pond or stream. However, this option for arranging a garden is used not only as an aesthetic element, but also helps to cope with the problem complex solution space.

Creating a cozy, secluded corner small area, dividing the garden into separate zones and disguising unattractive objects - all this is the prerogative of rock gardens. At the same time, you can not only build artificial constructions, but also to use the natural unevenness of the terrain, which are often considered disadvantages of the site.

A beautiful stone garden can be created even in the most unsuitable area. A ditch or the slope of a ravine, which spoils the entire area with its appearance, will become the basis for a beautiful rock garden or rock garden, which is not difficult to create if you adhere to some rules.

There are several types of rocky gardens, but they are all united by the main idea: plants and flowers are planted on a mountain slope, among stones. The beauty of the plant world and the beauty of the stone material are harmoniously combined, effectively complementing each other.

Watch how to make an alpine slide with your own hands in the video:

One of the most popular and widespread types of rock gardens is a rock garden or alpine slide. Such a do-it-yourself rock garden is a natural slope or an artificially created hill with stones, between which bushes and herbaceous plants. The main element of such a natural corner is, and the vegetation only complements, emphasizing their texture and color.

Initially, low-growing perennials and various bulbous plants were used to create alpine slides. Today in rock gardens they grow the most different plants and flowers, guided solely by their taste. Creating a rock garden is not a difficult, but long-term task. Unlike classic flower beds with annuals, rock gardens last for several years, becoming more beautiful every year.

Japanese rock garden - traditions of the Land of the Rising Sun

The Japanese rock garden conceals a special philosophy that carries the idea of ​​striving for Nature as one of the main ideals of human life. The traditional Japanese stone garden is the embodiment of naturalness, symbolism and minimalism, which is so fashionable now. In addition, the space requirements of such site arrangement are also minimal. Therefore, for those who are tired of the riot of colors and diversity, or such core already furnished, it is recommended to allocate a corner for Japanese-style stone arrangement, where you can come to relieve stress, relax, calm down and reflect.

The construction of a Japanese garden area begins with the choice of location and layout of the site. The most important characteristics for it are good soil drainage, optimal sunlight and ventilation.

The most important elements of a Japanese garden are water and stones. However, you should not build a square pond on the site, since such a pond cannot be found in nature. In order for the creation of a Japanese corner to go right and the result to please you, you need to be attentive to all the little things and maintain a special harmony when choosing these or these elements. You shouldn’t clutter up the space, but you also shouldn’t leave it “soulless” - everything should be symmetrical and harmonious. If you want to arrange a site in Japanese style, it is important to decide what it should be: Japanese winter Garden or plants that grow only in the warm season.

When choosing material for a Japanese recreation area, you must comply with a number of certain rules. For a Japanese garden, it is advisable to take stones of the same variety. It is better to take 2-3 large cobblestones than a mountain of small stones. Large material is used for the base, and small material is used to emphasize it. There is no need to bury cobblestones deep into the ground - everything should be natural. Therefore, the stone should stand straight, without going too deep into the ground.

Approximately in the center of the site, you can place one main boulder, and a little less along the edges. This arrangement is identified with the triad in Buddhism. Among all the other rocky gardens, the Japanese one serves not only as a landscape decoration, but also as a place for meditation. You can show it off to your friends, relax in it, relieve stress, achieve inner harmony and find peace of mind.

Rockery - rock garden at the dacha

When deciding to build a rock garden at your dacha, the easiest way to start is with a rock garden. From alpine slide it is characterized by a flat area. As a rule, few plants are planted in rockeries. The entire decorative effect here is achieved through the beauty of the stone. The space that has formed between the individual stone fragments is filled with a layer of gravel, effectively shading the stone. Dark cobblestone and light gravel combine very well. And light limestone effectively combines multi-colored river pebbles. It is recommended to place a fertile layer of soil under the pebbles to provide nutrition for plant roots.

Sometimes a rockery can have architectural form. In this case it will represent steps made of flat stones big size framed by creeping plants characteristic of mountainous areas.

If the natural topography of the territory already contains a slope with rock outcropping, then you can create a complex terraced rock garden that will combine everything natural objects: brought and available stone material, planted plants and shrubs.

Watch how to make a rock garden with your own hands in the video:

Retaining wall in the form of a rock garden

Natural stone retaining walls are among the most common elements of rock gardens. Most often, the walls are equipped specifically as a support for the terrace. Therefore, decorativeness is the second purpose, functionality comes first. In the cracks formed between the stones, they plant unpretentious plants. With the help of such structures it is carried out vertical gardening plot, dividing it into separate zones. Almost always, a retaining wall is part of a rock garden.

Terraced rock garden

The terraced slope is more complex look rock garden. This is a kind of system of horizontal terraces, which are strengthened by retaining walls of different heights. Most often, such arrangement of a site includes all the elements of stone gardens: retaining walls, an alpine slope, steps made of stones, etc.

A terraced garden is created on the slope of a ravine, on a slope or on a river bank. The choice of plants and planting combinations are very diverse. The most common option is dwarf shrubs, trees, herbaceous plants planted on terraces. climbing plants. Very often you can find low-growing rhododendrons, Ericas, and heathers.

Miniature rock garden

A miniature rock garden is a relatively new word in landscape design. This innovation has become widespread in small areas, as well as in cases where the garden is being built for a short time. Sometimes, for the foundation of such a mini-garden, a strangely shaped stone with a natural depression is used. Sometimes even an old basket, trough or other specially created depression in the ground is used. Such a fancy structure can be made in portable containers and placed wherever your heart desires, even on the terrace of your house.

Watch how to make a rocky mini-garden with your own hands in the video:

Ryoanji - rock garden

The Ryoanji Rock Garden, located in the Japanese city of Kyoto, is also called the Fifteen Stone Garden. This is one of best examples stone gardens that appeared at Japanese temples in the 14th - 16th centuries. It is rightfully considered the greatest masterpiece of Japanese culture. On a flat surface covered with white gravel there is a group of stones. There are fifteen of them in total. Each group is surrounded by brown-green moss, which has partially covered the cobblestones themselves. The moss simultaneously acts as both a frame and a pedestal. This is the only color note in the ascetic monochrome of the garden. The surface of the gravel is “combed” with a special rake so that the furrows are parallel to the long garden side, and around each of the stone groups the furrows are located in concentric circles.

It is believed that the white gravel in this composition symbolizes the sea, the cobblestones symbolize the islands, and the moss symbolizes the forests. Although, each visitor sees something different in this.

Seeing Ryoanji for the first time, there is a feeling of purity and severity. Freely arranged elements come into view gradually. At the same time, every now and then, the gaze returns to the starting point.

The garden is designed in the style of kare-sansui, the so-called “dry landscape”. The mystery of Ryoanji lies in the fifteen rock fragments arranged so that no matter which direction visitors look at, they can only see fourteen stones at a time. It is believed that only through meditation, spiritual cleansing and the right attitude can one achieve enlightenment and see the fifteenth invisible stone.

Before you make a rock garden, you need to understand some aspects: choosing a suitable location, selecting suitable stones and their proper installation. The beauty and harmony of the rocky composition will depend on this. Equally important is the correct selection of plants and planting. Wrong decisions can ruin even the best and most original idea.

Watch how to make a Japanese rock garden with your own hands in the video:

There is something innate, deep, soothing about Asian style with oriental overtones, in Japanese design, and architecture in particular. Perhaps it is the influence of a pro-life philosophical outlook that has shaped design principles for several centuries; or it may be a combination with a lifestyle that is closely connected to nature and topography, offering them a unique insight into every aspect of existence.

(from MARPA Design Studio)

One way or another, the confluence of all these factors shaped Japanese culture, aesthetic and natural, pleasant forms, which the West generously borrowed in the last century. The best gardens in the world It is precisely this people who have another wonderful gift, especially considering that many modern houses have a calm and serene atmosphere.

Here you can get some inspiration that will (hopefully) help you add a compact yet vibrant garden to your property. Each design has a unique combination of elements, which in turn demonstrate a unique difference. Enjoy!

(from Richard Kramer)

(by Gaile Guevara)

Miniature landscapes with centuries-old traditions

(from New Eco: Urban Landscape Design)

Initially, Japanese parkas adopted Chinese models, and this continued for several centuries. They developed their unique flavor and features only after for a long time, and now all this is an integral and important part. Basically they are all small, but have a grandiose garden landscape design.

(from Grace Design Associates)

No one will understand a Japanese garden until they walk through it and hear the crunch under their feet, smell it, and you will only gain the experience years later. Now there is no perfect photo or video that can give you complete knowledge as it is more than just visual brilliance.

(by Debra Prizing)

(from Angelina Landscape)

(from SRM Architecture and Interiors)

(from Charles McClure)

Aesthetic mastery in naturalness

Balance, balance and a sense of natural beauty, which is not forced, not contrived - this is the essence of the design of the land of the rising sun. By creating a lively and invigorating hub at the center of your home, an open interior will take on a whole new meaning, and walking there will allow you to get lost in your thoughts, and maybe even make an important decision.

One of the main things is symmetry, which should not be forgotten. This is a carefully planned feature that will make the place more attractive and inviting.

(from Kikuchi & Associates)

Japanese gardens derive their beauty from mixing and blending different elements in a symbolic and natural manner, creating a welcoming environment. Stones, sand, water, bamboo, trees, flowers and even bridges are placed with precision to achieve an exceptional sense of organic asymmetry.

(from Garden Mentors)

(from Garden Architecture)

Balance of symbolic elements

(from Eco Minded Solutions)

The most seductive aspects of them are those elements that have a specific meaning. Water is one of the main components, it can still be small ponds, decorative pool, running streams and even cascades; You can also include any functions you need in them.

Water and stone are Yin-Yang, therefore, they balance each other and their location should be appropriate. For those who are not thrilled with its consumption, sand can be a substitute, since they have similarities, and in the Japanese context it represents clouds.

(by HartmanBaldwin Design)

Rocks are just as important. But their meaning depends on how they are placed and what they are made of. They can even be tall, washed by water. Ponds with water lilies, stone lanterns, garden bridges and washbasins - all these components will create the perfect landscape.

Inventing and creating a Japanese garden is a task for a creative home owner, or for a specialist who knows this craft. With the right imagination and technique, you can truly recreate a piece of paradise draped in greenery.

(by Huettl Landscape Architecture)