Japanese Garden Plants
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My yard project starts in a few weeks. I’m very excited! The layout has been drawn but the individual plants have yet to be selected. It’s not going to an authentic Japanese garden with raked sand and such but there will be a lot of big rocks, a stone path, a weeping Redbud, at least one Japanese maple and a Japanese white pine.
Plants under consideration are:
Japanese box
Azalea
Rhododendron
Mugo pine
Hydrangea
Ornamental grass/es - which ones?
Cherry tree, provided I can find a dwarf.Camellias - are they traditional? They’ve always been a favorite but they’re not available locally. Not sure why - many appear to be cold hardy.
What else should I consider?
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Here’s the layout:
It’s replacing this landscape, which is what I can see from the dining area where I spend a lot of time.
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The specimen tree that's planned on the upper right...are you thinking upright or arching/horizontal? Evergreen or deciduous?
Acer palmatum 'Bloodgood'
Paperbark maple, Acer griseum. Great bark and fall color.
https://www.thespruce.com/growing-the-paperbark-maple-acer-griseum-3269319
I'll do a couple of evergreens I like in another post...
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Tanyosho pine. Starts out looking like a mugo, but ends up like this 40 year old specimen in my yard.
There are also some nice dwarf white pines that could be an alternative to a mugo. The needles are a little softer and longer than on a mugo, so the plant looks a little "fluffier". I also like that there are some blue varieties. They pair well with red-leafed plants like some of the Japanese maples.
I bought this little guy at Lowes three summers ago and just got around to planting it in the area where the big arborvitaes were.
Pinus strobus 'Blue Shag'
Another dwarf white pine. Don't recall the cultivar. This one is probably 30 years old, so you can see it hasn't gotten terribly large.
The white pine from another view. Oakleaf hydrangea on the right, Bloodgood maple in the foreground with a pathetic dwarf blue spruce next to it. All of these are under the ginormous sugar maple in my front yard.
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@Steve-Miller said in Japanese Garden Plants:
Camellias - are they traditional?
Ok I don't know anything about what counts as traditional, but camellias are hugely popular in Japan. There are two basic types (probably tons of varieties though), a winter one and a ... "non-winter" one. I don't know how hardy those winter ones are, but I would imagine you'll be able to find the right info to help you figure it out.
What about some kind of Japanese maple?
Or any and all of the gorgeous trees WTG showed in her photos!
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There's also a dwarf weeping purple beech. Fagus sylvatica 'Purpurea pendula'
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Highly recommended dwarf weeping cherry tree: Prunus pendula 'Pleno-rosea’
https://www.monrovia.com/double-weeping-rosebud-cherry.html -
@wtg This is pretty much the look I want with more rocks.
Nice!
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@DeweyLOU Beautiful!
This is a weeping redbud up the street. It’s probably 20 years+ old. I might like that cherry better!
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@Steve-Miller
Trying to get a sense for the style you like. Does anything here appeal to you? -
I like the first tree you show a lot. The purplish color would work well with the color scheme -pink, purple and white.
The last three pictures are about the scale I want even if it takes a while. I like those plants too!
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Did you have a chance to look at that link that was in my last post?
Here it is again. I mean, I doubt you're going to build a tea house, but who knows?
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@wtg That’s a great article!
The first picture is spot-on. #15 Japanese flower garden looks good too! I’ll have to study it more when I get time.
I’ll use these pictures to help communicate with my designer.
Thanks!
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I just ordered one of these trellises. Don't know if it's something you might consider in your landscape plan. It's a good price, I think. Home Depot is cheaper than anyone else, including the manufacturer Vita.
I've kind of gotten hooked on vertical hardscaping elements like arbors and trellises. They help give some instant height and allow you to define spaces or to provide an "entrance" into a garden room. You can leave them just as they are, or you can plant some annual vines like morning glory or moonflowers. Or some kind of climbing perennial vine.
I have some bird baths near a couple of my backyard structures and after the birdies are finished with their ablutions, they like to fly up and dry off on the nearest perch. Win-win!
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Something we and the birds have really enjoyed for many years. A ground level concrete basin bird bath. Has a gentle slope and the aggregate gives them good footing. The larger birds (blue jays and robins) like to bathe in it. The littler guys often sit on the edge and sip water from it.
I think it would make a great DIY project. I'm guessing that this was just formed into shape by smushing the concrete into a basin-shaped depression on the ground. You can't see them much, but they also pressed some leaves into the inside and they left a leaf impression.
A similar bird bath, but on a pedestal might be a nice element, too.
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That’s going to look really nice.
