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Japanese Garden Books



A Guide to the Gardens of Kyoto ~ Marc Treib
A Guide to the Gardens of Kyoto ~ Marc Treib

Designed for the layman as well as the professional, this concise yet comprehensive guide provides both practical information and theoretical insights into the design of the Japanese garden. Kyoto, the capital of Japan for over one thousand years, possesses a richness of garden art without equal as a living chronicle of Japanese cultural history and environmental design. Following the introductory essays are individual entries for more than fifty temple and palace gardens. The text is augmented by an excellent selection of photographs, historical prints, maps and color plates.
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A Japanese Touch for Your Garden ~ Kiyoshi Seike
A Japanese Touch for Your Garden ~ Kiyoshi Seike

Here is a concise introduction to the practical aspects of making a Japanese garden. Whether your garden is a spacious suburban lot, an office countyard, or a tiny inner-city backyard, you will find here hundreds of creative but time-honored ways to make maximum use of the space you have. You will learn how to lay stones and pathways and how to create intriguing sand patterns like the ones in Zen temple gardens. You will learn about Japanese lanterns, miniature pagodas, water basins, gates, and walls, and will be shown step by step how to make a bamboo lattice fence. Notes on the care of bamboo, moss, and grass are provided as are names of native North American plants and trees that can be substituted for conventional Japanese varieties. Schematic layout plans, detailed how-to explanations, and over 130 color photographs of Japanese gardens old and new give you ideas for endless variations.
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A Japanese Touch for Your Garden: Revised and Expanded Edition ~ Kiyoshi Seike
A Japanese Touch for Your Garden: Revised and Expanded Edition ~ Kiyoshi Seike

A Japanese Touch for Your Garden is a concise introduction to the practical aspects of making a Japanese garden. Whether it's a spacious suburban lot, an office courtyard, or a tiny, inner-city backyard, here are hundreds of creative but time-honored ways to make maximum use of the available space. Readers will learn how to lay stones and pathways and how to create intriguing sand patterns like the ones in Zen temple gardens. They will learn about Japanese lanterns, miniature pagodas, water basins, gates, and walls, and will be shown--step-by-step--how to make a bamboo lattice fence. Notes on the care of bamboo, moss, and grass are provided as are names of native North American plants and trees that can be substituted for conventional Japanese varieties.
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Create Your Own Japanese Garden: A Practical Guide ~ Motomi Oguchi
Create Your Own Japanese Garden: A Practical Guide ~ Motomi Oguchi

Oguchi, longtime designer of Japanese gardens and author of more than 18 books on the subject in Japanese, offers English speakers both an overview and practical knowledge of this easily recognized but to many Westerners mysterious art form. Oguchi describes the Japanese garden's relation to architecture from the ancient era to the mid–19th century, tracing its evolution from the lavish hills, ponds and waterfalls of early estates to the inward-turning, abbreviated and abstracted gardens of urban townhouses. He calls the guidelines of Japanese garden design naturalness, studied tastefulness, and harmony, tempered by flexibility for site conditions, current needs and desires, and self-expression, and presents essential design devices such as asymmetry, miekakure (hide and reveal).
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Creating Your Own Japanese Garden ~ Takashi Sawano
Creating Your Own Japanese Garden ~ Takashi Sawano

TAKASHI SAWANO was born in Shizuoka, Japan in 1948. His love of nature and the Japanese landscape expressed itself at a very early age, making his choice of career a simple one. He received his degree in ornamental horticulture from Minami Kyushu University in 1972. After traveling throughout the USA and Europe, he finally settled in England where he has lived for the past 25 years. He is the United Kingdom's foremost designer of Japanese gardens and his work can be seen in private homes, commercial developments and public parks.
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Japanese Gardening in Small Spaces ~ Isao Yoshikawa
Japanese Gardening in Small Spaces ~ Isao Yoshikawa

Japanese gardening is the art of arranging plants, rocks, lanterns, and basins in an open or, as here, an enclosed space. According to the aesthetic principles long prevailing in Kyoto, the ancient capital of Japan, even two rocks arranged in a tiny, enclosed space can be considered a garden. This type of garden is called a tsuboniwa, and Kyoto has long being considered its birthplace and home. So it is not surprising that photographer Katsuhiko Mizuno, wishing to capture the best of such small gardens, should turn to Kyoto and its palaces, temples, shrines, and townhouses.
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Landscapes for Small Spaces: Japanese Courtyard Gardens ~ Katsuhiko Mizuno
Landscapes for Small Spaces: Japanese Courtyard Gardens ~ Katsuhiko Mizuno

Japanese gardening is the art of arranging plants, rocks, lanterns, and basins in an open or, as here, an enclosed space. According to the aesthetic principles long prevailing in Kyoto, the ancient capital of Japan, even two rocks arranged in a tiny, enclosed space can be considered a garden. This type of garden is called a tsuboniwa, and Kyoto has long being considered its birthplace and home. So it is not surprising that photographer Katsuhiko Mizuno, wishing to capture the best of such small gardens, should turn to Kyoto and its palaces, temples, shrines, and townhouses.
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Niwaki: Pruning, Training and Shaping Japanese Garden Trees ~ Jake Hobson
Niwaki: Pruning, Training and Shaping Japanese Garden Trees ~ Jake Hobson

Over the years, Japanese gardeners have fine-tuned a distinctive set of pruning techniques that coax out the essential characters of their garden trees, or niwaki. In this highly practical book, Western gardeners are encouraged to draw upon the techniques and sculpt their own garden trees to unique effect. After discussing the principles that underpin the techniques, the author offers in-depth guidelines for shaping pines, azaleas, conifers, broadleaved evergreens, bamboos, and deciduous trees. Complete with abundant photographs, personal anecdotes and a wealth of advice, this unprecedented resource will inspire gardeners everywhere to transform their own trees into niwaki.
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Serene Gardens: Creating Japanese Design and Detail in the Western Garden ~ Yoko Kawaguchi
Serene Gardens: Creating Japanese Design and Detail in the Western Garden ~ Yoko Kawaguchi

With their superbly shaped trees and shrubs, subtly colored foliage, and emphasis on nature in its pure state, Japanese Zen gardens are spaces of beauty and tranquility. Serene Gardens is an exquisitely illustrated introduction to the style and its traditions—and the only book that explains how to use western plants and materials to achieve the minimalist look beloved by Japanese garden designers. Gardeners will find plant lists; climate zone maps; instructions for selecting readily available flora, wood, bamboo, rocks, and pebbles; and gorgeous color photographs showcasing gardens from around the world.
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