Tranquility, Simplicity and Harmony are the watchwords in this book, which is made especially relevant by Cha No Niwa — Japanese Tea Garden — designed by Kazuyuki Ishihara, built by Ishihara Kazuyuki Design Laboratory — has been awarded RHS Chelsea Garden of the Year 2025.
“I feel like I’m in a dream,” Ishihara said. “I’ve been coming for 21 years and this is my 17th garden. I never expected such an award. I wanted visitors to see that less is more. Now I’m thinking about coming back next year."
Judges said they liked the calm, simple garden and its perfect proportions and attention to detail.
The book shows examples of temple, private and public gardens in Japan that demonstrate the Japanese style.
Kyoto dominates the temple gardens with the modernity of dry landscapes (karesansui) and stones especially topical with the prominence at Chelsea 2025.
Tokyo and Kanawaza are the main locations of the public gardens, with cherry blossom the characteristic that is most redolent of the design manner.
Somehow, Japanese gardens connect with nature in a spiritual way that no other nation's designs can and this book shows more than 20 gardens that epitomise the harmony of the approach, which will no doubt be seen more and more in garden design in the coming years thanks to Ishihara's rise to fame.
