Rosemoor's Japanese Festival

Celebrate the Japanese Year of Culture
The Royal Horticultural Society Garden Rosemoor will be celebrating the Japanese Year of Culture with generous support from Japan 2001 and The Great Britain Sasakawa Foundation. A Japanese Festival which will be held at Rosemoor on Saturday 12 to Sunday 13 May will celebrate Japanese plants, gardens and other aspects of Japanese life and culture.

Japan has one of the oldest and most important gardening traditions, influencing the style of many gardens in Britain and throughout the world. Bill Tingey will lecture on Japanese Gardens, Design and Context and Christopher Bailes, Curator of Rosemoor Garden, will take you on an illustrated tour from Southern California to New York looking at Japanese Garden Style in the USA.

For centuries Japan has been the source of some of the most popular and commonplace plants in British Gardens. Trevor Wiltshire who has toured Japan on plant hunting trips, will give visitors an insight into his travels and talk about both well-known and exotic plants that will be suitable for any style of garden. This will be followed by a guided walk around Rosemoor, looking at the variety of Japanese plants within the Garden.

Fiona Wilding will show visitors how to get to grips with Origami. This introduction will intrigue visitors with the beautiful abstract forms than can be created simply by folding paper.

Elizabeth Nation and Diana Norman will demonstrate the Japanese art of flower arrangement, known as Ikebana. This focuses in particular on the choice of plant in relation to the container and the surrounding space.

Japanese Tea Ceremonies were developed by Sen no Rikya as a method to achieve inner peace through the simple act of preparing tea. Akemi Solloway will be inviting visitors to take part in this contemplative ritual in the tranquil setting of Rosemoor's Foliage Garden.

Since the earlier adoption of Chinese writing in the 5th Century, Calligraphy has been regarded as a skill essential to every cultivated man and woman in Japan and Eric Bransden from the Devon & Cornwall Japan Society will be on hand to share this ancient skill and guide you, while you have a go.

Throughout the weekend there will be demonstrations of Japanese free style weaving (Saori) Brushing Painting and Language, with exhibitions of photographs of Japanese life and culture and an exhibition of Japanese hand woven kimonos.

Visitors will have an opportunity to sample the delights of Japanese food and a small sushi bar will be set up in the restaurant. Lots of Japanese plants and books will be available from the Plant Centre and Gift shop, so you can take home a reminder of the day.

For more information you can contact the Royal Horticultural Society on Tel:- 020 7834 4333 or email info@rhs.org.uk 

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