Roses are known for their beauty and their thorns. It’s an old cliché that every rose has it’s thorns, but it is also very true. Anyone reaching for the almost perfect beauty of a rose must watch out for the thorns that grow to protect the flowers. Some prefer to enjoy roses just once in a while when perhaps someone buys them for them, or they get them for themselves. Some love to plant many rose plants so that they can enjoy their own each summer.
Rose plants take a lot of care, but many who have rose gardens feel the results are well worth the work they have to do. Gardening can be therapeutic and many with rose plants enjoy the work as much as they enjoy the results. Some choose to have a few roses mixed in with other types of plants and flowers. The most stunning is when they have nothing but roses and perhaps a few accent plants to fill in some of the spaces.
Rose plants require more care than most garden plants. For one things, they must be pruned each year for the plant to produce the most roses possible. This is not something anyone should do unless they are totally aware of what they are doing. Some aren’t sure and they prune too little or they take off way to much. Some just take it off in the wrong spots and then later wonder what happen to their rose plants. When buying, always find out exactly what to do. You can find some great advice online about how and when to prune your plants to keep them as healthy as they can be.
Also remember when buying rose plants that there are many different types and colors of roses. This means you can mix and match to make the rose garden of your dreams. Some prefer different colors and if you only have a few plants, you may want to get just those colors. If you have an entire garden of rose plants, you can mix and match all of the colors, and even the different sizes of buds and flowers. The design is up to you. It’s kind of hard to mess up a rose garden as long as you care for the plants. Whatever colors and sizes you choose will be beautiful.
In Japan, Zen Buddhism informs so much of the Japanese philosophy and lies at the core of all their aesthetic undertakings. The natural world is valued highly and the Japanese rock garden, or Zen Garden as it has come to be known is a large part of that tradition. Named Karesansui in Japanese, meaning dry landscape, these gardens are very prominent in Japan and much copied elsewhere. They are often to be found at temples where they are tended by monks, as in the ancient city of Kyoto. Ordinary households often have them too.
Nothing is accidental in Japanese design and everything has a meaning. A Zen Garden may appear to have random elements to the casual observer, but every aspect will have been deliberately placed. The garden follows a standard form, being enclosed and containing gravel or sand and rocks. Other materials are used occasionally. The rocks are of various shapes and sizes and are sometimes within circles of moss and often placed on a mound of pebbles. The person who looks after the Zen Garden is fastidious in raking the white gravel or sand every day.
It is these elements that are significant and there may be no greenery present at all, in contrast to Western style gardens. Different interpretations exist as to the symbolism within the garden. Most experts agree that the sand or gravel represents the ocean, the raking of patterns being done to signify ripples on the water. The rocks are normally seen, either as specific Japanese islands or Chinese mountains. Some people see animal forms in the rocks. The symbolism is the subject of debate but the purpose of such gardens is clear. They are designed to instill a feeling of calm in the viewer, offering an opportunity to escape the rigors of the outside world. Some people sit for hours, contemplating the garden in a form of deep meditation. The simplicity of the designs evokes an atmosphere of peace and well being.
Even a city apartment dweller can own a patch of Zen Garden, if so desired. There are small, miniature framed gardens of around eight inches square with sand and pebbles. A little wooden rake is also provided to maintain the sand. In a land of crowded cities such as Japan, a garden of any size is a haven to treasure. The simple but meaningful gardens are intriguing and never lose their ability to capture the imagination, no matter what culture the viewer is from.
