Empress Tree Blooms in Late Spring with Large, Pale Purple Foxglove-like Flowers

Paulownia tomentosa is a fast-growing deciduous tree with showy flowers and a long history in Asian folklore, tradition, and medicine. Its common names include empress tree, princess tree, royal paulownia, and foxglove tree.

In the Garden, Japanese Culture, Plants and Blooms, Spring, SummerCorinne KennedyMay 18, 2022Japanese Garden, Japanese Culture, tree, traditional, Art

Haiku in the Air - A Virtual Haiku Writing Event

To celebrate National Poetry Month, the Seattle Japanese Garden will host a virtual haiku writing event, Haiku at Home, for the month of April.

Each week, we will post a spring photograph from the garden on our Facebook page, Instagram, and Twitter. Join us by composing your original haiku to go with the photo and sharing with us!

Haiku, Events, Japanese Culture, SpringChie IidaApril 2, 2020haiku, poetry, Art, traditional

Sakaki: The Shinto Religion’s Sacred Flowering Evergreen

Cleyera japonica is a flowering evergreen shrub or small tree viewed as sacred in Japan’s Shinto religion. Its branches have been used as offerings in Shinto rituals since ancient times.

Events, In the Garden, Spring, Plants and BloomsCorinne KennedyFebruary 18, 2020Japanese Culture, traditional, tree

Heavenly Bamboo is a graceful shrub, not a true bamboo

Nandina domestica, usually called “heavenly bamboo” or “sacred bamboo,” is a fine-textured evergreen shrub, not a true bamboo. In Japan, it’s associated with good fortune, and often planted near residential doorways.

In the Garden, Japanese Garden Design, Japanese Culture, Plants and BloomsCorinne KennedyNovember 20, 2017bloom, Berries, traditional

Hinoki: A Revered Conifer

Among the many conifers in our garden is Chamaecyparis obtusa, known in Japan as hinoki. It's one of Japan's most revered trees for its beautiful, durable wood and bark and fragrant essential oils of its bark, wood and foliage.

In the Garden, Plants and BloomsRumi TsuchihashiDecember 16, 2016Hinoki, tree, Cypress, Seattle, Japanese Garden, Japan, Wood, Fragrant, Northwest, Pacific Northwest, Washington, Western Washington, Shinto, traditional, pagoda, gardening, Bonsai

The Essential Reading List for Fall 2016

For your fall enrichment, Corinne Kennedy, one of Seattle Japanese Garden’s most literary garden guides, recently shared with us her favorite Japan-related books to peruse this fall.