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Resources

While we invite our community to come, relax and meditate in the garden, we would also like to introduce the academic side of the garden. The Seattle Japanese Garden obtains various unique plants and trees, and our volunteer group, Unit 86 Plant Committee, updates plant inventory and publishes the booklet, “Plants of the Seattle Japanese Garden” annually. Partnering with the Plant Committee, we would like to introduce our plant collection to you.

THE UNIT86 PLANT COMMITTEE

The Plant Committee revises the plant inventory and publishes the booklet, “Plants of the Seattle Japanese Garden” annually. The Plant Committee members chair is Kathy Lantz. Aleksandra Monk is the chief photographer. Corinne Kennedy is a frequent contributor to the SJG website.

Download Plants of the Seattle Japanese Garden 2023

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Plants of the Months

 
Featured
May: Paeonia suffruticosa: Elegant, semi-double pink flowers in spring! 
May: Paeonia suffruticosa: Elegant, semi-double pink flowers in spring! 

A lovely tree peony with semi-double pink flowers graces the northwest corner of the Seattle Japanese Garden, blooming in late April or May.

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April: Purity Japanese camellia

Botanical name - Camellia japonica ‘Purity’ Common name – Purity Japanese camellia

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March: Pieris Japonica

With glossy dark green leaves and year-round foliage, Pieris japonica is attractive in any garden. You can enjoy these remarkable plants in several areas of the Seattle Japanese Garden in February.

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Collections

Maple Collection
The Seattle Japanese Garden has many kinds of maples. In the fall, these maples change color to red, orange, yellow, purple and pink. They showcase the stunning beauty of autumn foliage.

 

Fern Collection
Ferns are extremely diverse in habitat and form. The majority of ferns grow in warm, damp areas of the Earth. While it is not tropical weather, Seattle has lots of rain and ferns grow very well. The Seattle Japanese Garden has many kinds as well.

 

Camellia Collection
Camellias were cultivated in the gardens of China and Japan for centuries before they were seen in Europe in 18th century. The German botanist Engelbert Kaempfer wrote that the "Japan Rose", as he called it, grew wild in forests and thickets, but that many superior varieties had been selected for gardens.

 

Rhododendron Collection: April

There are more than 1200 different natural species in the genus Rhododendron. The largest number of wild species is native to Asia, but they also grow in the temperate regions of North America and Europe, as well as in the tropical regions of Southeast Asia and northern Australia.

 

Rhododendron Collection: May

Most of Rhododendrons and azaleas burst in flowers in May. The bright colors of the flowers, massed in such a large planting is unusual in a Japanese Garden.