Many gardens are designed to serve as sanctuaries from the rigors of daily life. Jim Billings, an Asian art appraiser and gardener, designed his garden to provide exactly this kind of retreat. Modeling his landscape after traditional Japanese gardens, Jim created a space set apart from the everyday world that lets him get in tune with nature. His garden features art and foliage comparable to that of many Japanese landscapes and includes the three basic elements of traditional Japanese gardens: stone, water and plants. Jim's garden features a "stroll-style" design that requires the observer to walk through the garden to fully appreciate it. A cleverly designed path leads visitors through each area, and uneven surfaces prompt them to look down at specific points. When observers look up, they see a new vista or an eye-catching embellishment--a design that reflects the Japanese "hide and reveal" principle, intended to lighten and revive the spirit. Japanese legend holds that stones should be treated with reverence. They give a garden an enduring quality and are used to build the garden's paths, bridges and walkways. Stones are placed in groupings--always in odd numbers--throughout the garden to represent mountains (figure A). Most groupings form triangles. Water symbolizes purity and helps give the illusion of remoteness (figure B). A water source should appear to be part of the natural surroundings: that's why Japanese gardens don't contain fountains. Manmade streams are constructed with turns and irregularities to create a natural appearance. In Jim's garden a Japanese water basin enhances the feeling of serenity. A lantern is displayed beside the basin, representing the female and male elements of water and fire (yin and yang). Dry ponds and streams have as much impact as the water features they resemble. In Jim's garden a manmade dry stream was the solution to the barren ground beneath the overhang of his roof: he covered the area with plastic and placed rocks over it. Plants are the third element of Japanese gardens. The Japanese prefer minimal color, so flowers are used sparingly. Plants that do boast colorful blooms are most suitable for a garden's entrance. The entrance to Jim's garden features asters, dahlias and morning glories. Although red is rarely used in Japanese gardens, Jim contrasts caladiums and hostas in his garden to emphasize their green and red hues. Many plants in Jim's garden are indigenous to Japan, as the climates of Minnesota and Japan are similar. Some plants, however, can't survive in both areas--for instance, the Japanese maple, which can't weather Minnesota winters, when the temperature can drop to 30 degrees below zero. Other plants common to Japanese and Japanese-inspired gardens include rhododendrons, hydrangeas, hostas, ferns and chrysanthemums. The weeping Norwegian spruce, an evergreen, provides color all year, whereas deciduous plants such as sugar maple and firebush splash the garden with seasonal bursts of color (figure C).
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