Thank you for rejoining us for the second in a series of the Japanese Garden located on no less than 14 acres at Missouri Botanical Garden in St. Louis. This is the largest Japanese strolling garden in the Western hemisphere.
Traditional Japanese bridges are included in the garden’s design. The central one, referred to as Drum Bridge, alludes to its round shape which completes a circle by its own reflection in the water. Of redwood-construction, it is left unpainted to present a natural appearance. Gardens that have a pond as their main characteristic were popular among the Japanese feudal lords of the 17th and 18th centuries.
 Four islands are surrounded by the pond; however, two are inaccessible to the public. Paradise Island is accented by 3 large boulders. In Japanese design, stones are used to symbolize the five elements of earth, water, fire, wind and sky. They are commonly used in groupings of uneven numbers, generally three or five.
 As part of the southwest lakeshore there is a unique zigzag bridge called Yatsuhashi, meaning ‘eight’ bridges. This is in reference to Mikiwa Province in Japan where a single river branched into eight channels. This is just another location where photographers and artists are compelled to capture the symbolic surroundings.
  We will conclude this trip to the Japanese Garden with the next publication. Hope to see you then!
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And...in presentation everybody makes the same error...In Japan, lake and pond are two different words, just like in English...but in translation, at times, errors abound...I can say that pond (ike) is the name of the water, beacuse it was a space created artificially....while a lake is generally supposed to be a natural feature, less man-made.
If there is a yatsuhashi, this means there are irises, because such s structure is built mostly to be able to walk by or among irises.
And the rocks are - I believe - the best feature of a Japanese garden!
I enjoyed this posting most particularly!
Thanks for sharing Joanne :)
Amitiés de France:CLAIRE
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