They say that that the three most important gardens to see in Japan are Kairaku-en in Mito, Koraku-en in Okayama and Kenroku-en in Kanazawa. So, during our recent trip to Japan, it was our goal to see as many of these gardens as the geography of our itinerary allowed and we managed to see two out of the three – Kairaku-en and Kenroku-en.
My favorite of the two we saw was Kenroku-en in Kanazawa. Kenroku-en literally means “Garden of the Six Sublimities”, referring to spaciousness, seclusion, artificiality, antiquity, abundant water and broad views, which according to Chinese landscape theory are the six essential attributes that make up a perfect garden. The reason this garden is so important is because it contains all of these elements to perfection.
This garden is situated on about 25 acres, but seems much larger than that, owing to the borrowed view of the mountains beyond.
It is unknown when the garden was originally built, but it was in the early to mid 1600s and was always a private garden. Sadly, the entire garden burned down in 1759, with the exception of the Shigure-tei teahouse (built in 1725). Restoration began in 1774 and continued through the 1800s, opening to the public in 1874.
Kenroku-en contains roughly 8,750 trees, and 183 species of plants in total. The mature, majestic trees are a spectacular feature of this garden and many are supported by wooden poles, which I think are beautiful in and of themselves.
The famous Karasaki Pine was planted from seed and was a real highlight of our visit to this garden.
Because we were further north, we managed to catch a glimpse of some of the cherry blossoms still in bloom as they were declining for the season. Additionally, the mosses were much brighter green in this garden, due to the larger precipitation in the north.
The symbol of this garden is the tall (over two meters), unique 2-legged lantern, situated at the edge of the large pond. From every angle, it is simply beautiful.
This garden is a must-see if you’re even in the vicinity of northern Honshu. It was a highlight of our time in Japan and I would go out of my way to see it again.
