Chapter II: Preface

An apology is due to the reader for adding this volume to the long list of books already written on Japan; but, being a lover of flowers myself, I found there was no book giving a short account of the flora of the country which is so often called the Land of Flowers. Hence my excuse for offering these pages, either to those who may be intending to visit, or to those who may wish to recall the memories of a sojourn in the Land of the Rising Sun.

The book does not pretend to furnish a complete list of all the flowers to be found in the country, but rather to give a description of those which are most remarkable for their beauty and profusion, and which are most closely associated with Japan. The pages on landscape gardening have been condensed, partly owing to want of space, and also because I felt that those who take a real and thorough interest in the subject have Mr. Conder’s admirable volumes on “Landscape Gardening in Japan” to help them in the study of the most complicated form of gardening in the world. Being debarred, through lack of sufficient knowledge of the language, from availing myself of original works in Japanese, I have drawn much information from Mr. Conder’s works, and from those of other foreigners; but I wish gratefully to acknowledge the help I received from Mr. Y. Noguchi, who provided me with the flower legends and fairy tales, which are household words in every Japanese home.

FLORENCE DU CANE.

CONTENTS

CHAP. PAGE

1. LANDSCAPE GARDENING 1

2. STONES--GARDEN ORNAMENTS AND FENCES 19

3. LANDSCAPE GARDENS 38

4. NURSERY GARDENS--DWARF TREES AND HACHI-NIWA 55

5. TEMPLE GARDENS 72

6. SUMMER FLOWERS 87

7. PLUM BLOSSOM 104

8. PEACH BLOSSOM 119

9. CHERRY BLOSSOM 127

10. WISTARIA AND PÆONY 146

11. AZALEAS 161

12. THE IRIS 169

13. THE MORNING GLORY 181

14. THE LOTUS 186

15. THE CHRYSANTHEMUM 197

16. THE MAPLE LEAVES 214

17. THE BAMBOO 223

18. THE PINE-TREE 236

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

FACING PAGE

1. Wistaria, Kyomidzu _Frontispiece_

2. Wistaria in a Kyoto Garden 4

3. The Storks 12

4. Azaleas in a Kyoto Garden 22

5. Azaleas, Kyoto 28

6. Tiger Lilies 34

7. An Old Garden 40

8. Satake Garden, Tokyo 42

9. A Tokyo Garden 46

10. A Landscape Garden 52

11. The Old Wistaria 60

12. At Kitano Tenjin 72

13. The Drooping Cherry 74

14. A Shrine at Kyomidzu 78

15. White Cherry at Kitano 80

16. Cherry Blossom, Chion-in Temple 84

17. The Kobai Plum Blossom 92

18. _Lilium Auratum_ 96

19. Lilies on the Rocks, Atami 98

20. An Hydrangea Bush 100

21. Viewing the Plum Blossoms 104

22. The Gate of the Plum Garden 106

23. The Time of the Plum Blossoms 110

24. Plum Blossom and Lanterns 116

25. Peach Blossom 120

26. The Pagoda, Kyomidzu 126

27. A Buddhist Shrine 130

28. The Feast of the Cherry Blossoms 132

29. The Pink Cherry 138

30. Cherry-tree at Kyomidzu 142

31. Wistaria, Kameido 148

32. Wistaria, Nagaoka 152

33. A Pæony Garden 154

34. Wistaria, Kabata 158

35. Azaleas 162

36. Azaleas, Nagaoka 164

37. Azaleas, Awata 166

38. An Iris Garden 172

39. Irises 178

40. Lotus at Kodaiji 186

41. Lotus at Kyomidzu 188

42. Lotus Flowers 194

43. Chrysanthemums, Kyoto 198

44. A Chrysanthemum Garden 204

45. Chrysanthemums 208

46. The Scarlet Maple 214

47. Viewing the Maples 218

48. Irises, Horikiri 230

49. Pine-tree at Matsushima 238

50. Azalea and Pine-tree 244

FLOWERS & GARDENS OF JAPAN