Extend your garden journey by browsing original articles on a variety of related topics.
In this blog series, Corinne Kennedy writes about three Japanese artists who lived and worked in early 20th-century Seattle. By the 1930s, their paintings were winning recognition and awards. However, World War II upended their lives, and until recently their work was largely erased from American art history. Part Three, the final article in this series, features artist Kenjiro Nomura.
Read MoreDid you know that Japanese people tend to value south-facing rooms more than north-facing ones? Find out why on our blog, and read about how the new Japanese Garden pavilion is being designed to provide a south-facing overlook of the pond. Read More...
Read MoreThis post is the first of the Toro no Akari blog series, an oral history of the Seattle Japanese Garden as told from the perspective of those who know its every inch most intimately: the gardeners. The series reveals a little-known history of stewardship and mentoring—of alighting each other’s paths as a toro lantern would—that’s continued for over sixty years.
In this interview, Jim Thomas, former head gardener, reflects on his long-term relationship with Dick Yamasaki, who constructed the garden with designer Juki Iida in the late 1950s and upheld the garden’s vision through its maintenance for over thirty years. The conversation has been edited for length and clarity.
Read MoreIn November of 2022, Pete Putnicki, Seattle Japanese Garden Senior Gardener, toured Japanese gardens across Japan. The tour was hosted by the North American Japanese Garden Association (NAJGA) and was joined by garden professionals from public Japanese gardens from seven states. This is a diary of the trip by Pete himself.
Read MoreCulturally and aesthetically significant, conifers are an integral part of the Japanese Garden. They bring a feeling of age and stability and help define areas in the garden that refer to natural landscapes of Japan, such as open woodlands, forested mountains, wooded hills and islands, and wind-swept shores.
Juki Iida included existing native conifers in his landscaping. Some remain, and he selections of conifers since the garden’s first decade have been inspired by Juki’s Iida’s design and vision for the Japanese Garden.
Read MoreAs part of the Seattle Japanese Garden’s 60th anniversary celebration, we are excited to announce a new partnership with the Green Legacy Hiroshima (GLH) Initiative. The history of the Seattle Japanese Garden is a beautiful story of collaboration between Japan and Seattle, and we honor that long history with this new project to bring GLH Initiative plants to our garden.
Read MoreOver the course of the coming year, we will be sharing a series of essays written by the principle creators of the Seattle Japanese Garden, translated by Mark Bourne. The series opens with an essay from the book The Gardens of Juki Iida, published in 1980.
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