KOUKOEN
68 Honmachi, Himeji City, Hyogo Prefecture, JAPAN
Filmed on 2022/03
Links to videos of the gardens have BAMBOO PATH
HOUKOKUJI
ENKOUJI
FORMER RESIDENCE OF YOSHIDA SHIGERU
Playlist : Japanese Gardens
website :
https://jgc28.my.canva.site/
#japenesegarden
#gardentour
#koukoen
View from the bridge Kokoen Garden in Himeji City, Hyogo Prefecture, is a Japanese garden adjacent to Himeji Castle, which is registered as a World Heritage site. The garden consists of nine gardens constructed using the ruins of the West Palace, samurai residences, and passageways that were discovered during excavations conducted in 1985.
On the other side of the bridge is a waterfall, and the water flows under the bridge into the pond. The garden of the Himeji feudal lord’s villa is set against the backdrop of the Himeyama primeval forest, with Nishikigoi carp swimming in a pond
Designed to resemble the Seto Inland Sea (the Seto Inland Sea). Kokoen was designed and supervised by Hajime Nakamura, a professor of Kyoto University, who also designed the Japanese garden in Den Helder, Holland and the Dawes Arboretum in the U.S. This garden was opened to the public in 1992.
All gardens are beautifully maintained and are consistently ranked in the rankings of Japanese gardens by The Journal of Japanese Gardening, an American magazine specializing in Japanese gardens. The stepping stones may appear to be properly aligned. However, there are several predefined patterns and combinations of patterns. Even in Japanese gardens overseas,
if they were created by gardeners trained in Japanese garden design, you will find that the stepping stones are arranged in a stylized pattern. To the right is an elevated area, and to the left is a pond with carp swimming in it that you just crossed.
A path passes between the hill and the pond, and when you go to the back, you can walk around the pond by crossing it again. In the back you can see the stone bridge we just crossed. Due to backlighting,
This is a view across the Sawatari from the other side of the pond. The winding water flow is called “Kyokusui,” and Kyokusui gardens were a popular garden style during the Heian period (794-1185). Go to the back of the parkway by the side of the “kyokusui”.
Shrub trimming is a feature influenced by Western gardens, and is very popular and frequently used in Japanese gardens. Carp again. The walled-off structure, with no view of the neighboring gardens, is not traditional, but I think it’s a very good idea.
The Pine Garden is a garden inspired by a red pine forest, a typical landscape of the Seto Inland Sea region. When I walk through the beautifully shaped branches, which are unique to pine trees, it is a moment when I really feel that I am walking through a Japanese garden
The landscape shows that it has been maintained with great care, with walls made of natural materials that are prone to decay, neatly arranged, and in some cases beautifully covered with moss, which is difficult to cultivate. The Tsuiji wall is also beautifully maintained,
And is the reason why this area is chosen as a filming location for both domestic and international dramas and movies. *Tsuiji fences are walls made of muddy soil, and has a roof over the top. Usually, when multiple garden styles coexist, the division of the land is considered
To be the masterpiece of the gardener’s skill. Here, however, the garden is divided by a wall that utilizes the remains of the garden to create a separate space, which gives the garden a unique and distinctive impression. Although it was not in full bloom when I visited,
Garden of Flowers is a garden planted with wildflowers that have been popular since the Edo period (1603-1868). The black stones on both sides are made of Kannabe stone, a lava type mined in the northern part of Hyogo Prefecture. It is a typical Japanese garden decorated with maple trees and black pines,
With a stone bridge across a floating island in the pond. A stone lantern with a round shade is placed in front of the stone bridge. It is a “kakkomi” type lantern without a base and directly embedded in the ground. They have 15 different types of bamboo planted in the bamboo garden.
Here, the combination of overgrown bamboo and the surrounding Tsuiji wall create a typically Japanese landscape. In this Kokoen, you can see all kinds of Japanese garden paths Behind the stepping stones leading into the winter dead grass,
There is an artificial hill, and behind it, the castle walls of Himeji Castle can be seen. If you like this video, please subscribe and give it a thumbs up👍. Thank you for watching!