Roji-en, Morikami Japanese Garden

Roji-en ("Garden of Dew Drops") has six distinct gardens which represent the past 1000 years of Japanese garden design, each garden inspired by a famous garden in Japan. This was the second location Cass and I visited on our garden hopping road trip last week. Morikami is ranked the 13th best Japanese garden in the world outside Japan. If you have opportunity to tour this garden make sure you put your brakes on, slowly stroll, stop and sit on a bench, watch, smell, listen and you will melt into the good vibrations and intentions of its designer Hoichi Kurisu.

The wide gravel pathways meandered from garden to garden with seamless transition. Ample shade and a variety of benches invited us to sit while we watched lizards, turtles and birds. We got there right at opening but people were be filing in steadily,despite that the paths never seemed over crowded. One group we passed was joined by an unlikely companion, an egret who followed them on foot for two thirds of their walk. We watched amused as he stepped off the path, snatched and ate a lizard then actually trotted to catch back up with his new human pals.

The Late Rock Garden is from the 15th and 16th century style, it is a dry landscape with rocks arranged in a bed of raked gravel and plants are secondary. This style was perfected at Zen Buddhist temples.

A design technique known as "borrowed scenery" (shakkei) is used liberally though out the gardens. This method employs incorporating outside elements into a specific space. Being able to view the stone pagoda from the museum terrace and the rock garden.

Pruning is king in all Japanese gardens and Morikami pushes the envelope. All manner of ropes and bamboo are present as the gardeners twist, turn, shape and manipulate their living, green quarry into the stylized, delicate works of art they are or will become. No bush, rock or stone is left untamed.

Several stone lanterns provide focal points through out the gardens the most famous is the Ishidoro Stone Lantern (1681), it made it's way from Kan'eiji temple in Tokyo to a shipbuilder in West Palm and then the South Florida Science Museum before taking permanent residence at Morikami. Other lanterns have various animal silhouettes and represent different elements in Japanese culture. There is also one other special lantern, the one dedicated to the seven challenger astronauts who perished including the first of Asian ancestry.

Green in every shade is present at Roji-en the most prominent flowering plants are azaleas and they were just beginning to bloom. The bonsai ("tray-planting") display of living art emphasizes species that flourish in Florida's climate.

When we decided to visit Morikami I was not aware that the fabulous American Orchid Society garden was just down the street. We missed eating at the Cornell Cafe' which The Food Network rated as one of the top three museum dining experiences in the country. But my next trip I will work that one in between the orchids and Morikami. What a lovely way to spend a day's vacation in Florida.