Oriental Gardens

 

Oriental gardens are steeped in history. The origins of the Chinese garden can be traced back to about the time of the ancient Greeks. The Japanese garden, largely inspired by the Chinese, commenced at about the time of our early medieval period. Both styles contain highly symbolic features and instil a oneness with nature.

Chinese Gardens

The Chinese have a deep affinity with nature and the rocks and water are paramount in a Chinese design with plants supporting the design. Every component in a Chinese garden has symbolic meaning and the placement of each component is critical in creating a garden that reflects the ebbing a flowing of nature which is in balance with the universe.

To the Chinese culture the balance of Yin and Yang - male and female – light and dark – stillness and motion is important. Yang represents light – hard – masculine – rock. Yin represents dark – soft – yielding – female – water. The topography is important as in the study of Feng Shui (wind and water) which has an influence over Chinese garden design. The perfect topographical design is the armchair configuration, which includes hills to the north, west and east with the hills to the west being slightly lower than to the east. A small foothill should be located to the south. It is important to balance the flow of Chi (life energy) and the practice of Feng Shui assists with this. Healthy chi meanders and flows gently, unhealthy chi travels fast and in straight lines.

Chinese gardens are often misunderstood and present as an enigma to the western gardener; this can be observed in the pastiche interpretations often seen in gardens, along with the many sundries often sold in garden retail. Chinese gardens are built rather than planted, the primary components being rock, water and a number of buildings, the quality of the rock being of paramount importance to the designer.

The Chinese garden should present itself as a journey which unfurls in front of the traveller as a series of landscapes, with the play of light and shadow being an important component in the design. Planting is used to support the design; some designs are void of plants. Both Chinese garden design and Feng Shui are vast subjects and good practitioners will put in many years of study.

Japanese Gardens

The Japanese have a deep spirituality stemming from Buddhism and Shinto, two ancient religions. This is reflected in all aspects of Japanese garden design as every component in a Japanese garden has symbolic meaning and the placement of each component is crucial and given great thought. The completed garden should reflect the profound spirituality of the people and their relationship with nature.

The Japanese garden is about control and is as contrived as the many European gardens of the Renaissance. Plants are tightly clipped into clouds or mountains, native trees are trained and the ancient rock, which is highly esteemed, is placed with great thought as to its location, each shape representing a form observed in nature. The Japanese garden provides beauty all year round and its design does not depend on the flowering habits of the plants.

Zen Gardens

One form of Japanese garden is the dry Zen Buddhist garden. Its primary purpose is to provide a space for meditation. The emphasis is on gravel and rock placement and there is no water. Water is represented by the ‘combing’ of the gravel with a rake consisting of equidistant teeth that create parallel lines when dragged through the gravel. There is no plant material to create obvious seasonal changes. The only changes in the garden rely on changing light and the observations of the observer as they meditate using the garden possibly paying particular attention to the rock forms.

The oriental garden is a specialist area. Design Outside is happy to advise on design commissions for an oriental garden or Eileen the designer is happy to incorporate aspects of an oriental garden into your garden design project.