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The Japanese Zen garden has immense cultural and historical significance, reaching back as far as the 6th century. Nowadays, it has become a popular garden concept, incorporating space for relaxation, improved concentration, mindfulness, aesthetic enjoyment, and connection to nature.
These 5 tips for creating the perfect backyard Zen garden will help you bring these meditative aspects into your outdoor living space.
Design your space
Be flexible and work with what you have when choosing a space for your Zen garden. It could be a small corner, a devoted backyard section, or your balcony or terrace. The most important factor is for your chosen spot to be easy to access and enjoy.
Draw a rough sketch of your space, ensuring you take all elements into account.
Consider the amount of sunlight the area gets to determine what plants you can incorporate. It’s also a good idea to think about landscape lighting such as stone lanterns and uplighting of rocks and plants.
Be mindful of your seating arrangements, color palette, and stone pathways in your gravel or sand base. Thorough planning is essential for those large rocks and stones that are difficult to manoeuvre.
Try to stick to the Japanese Zen garden principles when designing your garden. These include:
- Asymmetry
- Simplicity
- Symbolism
- Balance
- Natural
- Surprise
- Allusion or mystery
- Tranquility
Choose your materials
You’ll need various shapes and sizes of stones, rocks, and pebbles, as well as sand or gravel.
Stones are the key anchors of a Zen garden. Embrace asymmetry to reflect a natural landscape.
Mix and match types of stones (flat stones, river stones, etc.) and place them in odd-numbered balanced groupings to promote a sense of harmony. Scatter pebbles to introduce dimension, or build small piles of stones for delicate focal points.
Large rocks or boulders give your backyard Zen garden an edge or focal point. They can also establish a seating area. Place a simple and gorgeous patio dining set in a comfortable spot where you know you’ll be able to appreciate your garden.
Your sand or gravel will be your base. Gravel is easier to maintain, but either option allows you to create the classic patterns that a Zen garden is famous for.
Choose your plants
A traditional version of a Japanese Zen garden has very few plants. However, this is your garden and you can decorate as you choose. Just keep in mind simplicity.
There are myriad annual and perennial classic Zen garden plants to choose from. Good ones to focus on are moss, cherry blossom trees, Japanese maples, bonsais, and bamboo.
Moss represents beauty and simplicity, bringing cohesion between rocks and plants, absorbing sound, and exhaling moisture. Sakura (cherry blossom) is a prominent symbol of birth and death in Japanese nature.
The Japanese maple exhibits elegance, beauty, and grace. Bonsais symbolise balance and harmony. Bamboo can be used as effective privacy screening to section off your Zen garden.
Prepare your space
Work through these basic preparation steps to build your Zen garden:
- Clear your allocated space of plants, weeds, stones, etc.
- Use a shovel to remove the top layer of existing soil.
- Use stakes and string to determine if the ground is level and rake out uneven spots.
- Tamp down the soil.
- Place stones around the edge of the garden. This border will contain your sand or gravel.
- Dig holes for your rocks and plants.
- Install your rocks and plants. Bury part of your tall rocks in the earth for a natural look.
- Lay landscape fabric over the soil, cutting out shapes for your rocks and plants.
- Apply your sand or gravel, using a rake to distribute it evenly. Then use a wooden Zen rake to create stunning ripples or swirls.
Zen gardens are known to relieve stress. To achieve an uncluttered mind, you need an uncluttered space. Therefore, maintenance is key. Pick up leaves, change the patterns in your gravel, prune, and weed as another form of meditation.
Personalise your garden
This will be your sanctuary, so it’s only natural to personalise it. For example, you could install a meaningful statue as a focal point of meditation and focus. This could be a Buddha statue or something else that holds greater significance for you.
What sounds invoke peace within you? A wind chime or water feature can add gentle background sound.
Water is not a traditional Japanese Zen garden characteristic, but perhaps it’s a characteristic of your Zen garden. You could install a bubbling fountain, a small pond, or a mini waterfall that flows through rocks.
Usually, a Zen garden consists of a muted colour scheme. But contemplate what colours speak to you, and stick to those. If adding a few splashes of colour makes you happy, then there’s no harm in it.
Style your stone path according to your personality. Do you visualise a formal, straight pathway, or something more meandering?
To feel comfortable in a space, you need to make it welcoming. Keep it simple and personal, and you’ll create a backyard Zen garden that’s perfect for you and your home.
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