As a distinctive and well known feature of Japanese culture, bonsai trees can play a special role in adding an authentic look to your Japanese themed garden.

Bonsai trees take years to mature, and you may relish the challenge of growing your own bonsai from cuttings or seed, perhaps with a bonsai kit.

However, if you would like to add bonsai trees to your garden now, it is also possible to find ready grown bonsai trees for sale.

Flowering bonsai trees in particular can be a great way to add year round splashes of colour to your Japanese garden design.

Read on for some of the species you might consider to add colour to your garden at different times of year:
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Flowering Cherry Trees for Your Garden

Cherry trees have been grown in England for around 500 years, since they were introduced to Kent during the reign of King Henry VIII. Flowering cherry trees are also a beautiful, symbolic and ornamental feature in Japanese garden design, so you can have your own cherry blossom festival too!

The Japanese have over 200 varieties of cherry blossom, although the most well known is the Japanese Cherry, Prunus serrulata. To the Japanese, the cherry blossoms symbolise clouds, and the ephemeral nature of life, as well as love, affection, friendship and Japan itself. For over a thousand years, they have practised a custom called Hanami, which involves picknicking under a blossoming sakura tree.

Many ornamental flowering cherry trees do not bear edible fruit, however, in Japan the cherry blossoms, which they call sakura, may also be pickled and used to make sweets, cakes and a hot drink called sakuraya.

There are also flowering cherry trees planted outside most Japanese schools and public buildings, and in many areas the first day of work or school often coincides with the cherry blossom season.

The UK has a national collection of Japanese village cherries at Batsford Arboretum in Gloucestershire, and there is another collection of over 150 varieties at Keele University in Staffordshire. Meanwhile, here are some popular varieties of flowering cherry tree for gardeners on a smaller scale:

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Doing a landscape job is really not that easy. A lot of work goes into the making of a good design and landscapers have to sharpen their creativity in order to compete with the best ones out there. There are a lot of tools that they need to use in order to do this but the most important of them all must have to be the landscaping design software program. There are advantages to be gained from this tool and they are mentioned in the following bullets.

• Improved designs

There are a lot of designs that you can possibly make but if you’re only exposed to a small box, you will never get to make the best ones to impress your clients. With this program on board, you can easily mix and match some templates along with the elements as well. This way, you do not need to burn your brains out for the next big thing because the software program can help you with the creative planning process.

• Three dimensional views can be made

Photo editing is a good way for landscapers to start with their work however; a flat image is surely not enough for them to cover tough corners. The 3D imaging of this software program is definitely a good feature that you can go for because it covers almost every area that you can think of. It would make it so easy for your clients to see your designs because the software program can just flip everything easily.

These must be two of the best advantages that you can get from this program.  Landscapers truly need this program in their work because the planning and designing stage does not end until the whole program is finished. The software will definitely aid them with everything and it can also do a lot of adjustments along the way. Try to look for common programs that people are using nowadays and see if they can fit well with your use.
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These beautiful Oriental bridges will add a very special Far Eastern appearance to your Chinese or Japanese themed garden. A bridge brings a sense of connection in Japanese garden design. It should look as if it is there for a reason, inviting visitors to walk across it and explore the garden further on the other side.

All these bridges are sold by UK Water Features, with free delivery to the UK mainland.

Fujian Solid Granite Curved Garden Bridge

Price: £429.00
Shaped to a classically understated Japanese design, this simple granite slab bridge can be used to dramatic effect in your garden. To guide the walker, Japanese garden designers would set stones at each corner.

A simple bridge like this would ideally be placed at an angle to the visitor's first view of the garden to give an impression of greater distance and depth.

Handmade from the finest granite, this oriental bridge spans 130cm and has a huge impact once installed in a Japanese themed garden.

Click here for delivery information and to order this beautiful solid granite garden bridge.

Sizing:

• Total height: 18cm
• Total width: 45cm
• Total length: 130cm

 

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Fujian Solid Granite Oriental Bridge with Fence

Price: £849.00

Is there a corner in your garden for some Oriental elegance?

Handmade from the finest granite, this decorative bridge spans 120cm and adds a sense of permanence and style in a Japanese themed garden.

Click here to order this bridge, with free kerbside delivery to the UK mainland.

Sizing:

• Total height: 35cm
• Total width: 60cm
• Total length: 120cm

 

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Gardens can look unique and unforgettable with a little inspiration flow you can get in the many ideas presented to you on the internet. You just need some free time, old furniture pieces and other type of antique findings in your house to make some really new and exciting garden decorations.

-        Use an old umbrella stand as a garden tool rack. It will be a perfect solution for the garden tools you are often using and need at hand at all times. And it will also make a great decoration in the garden amid the flowers and the plant pots.

-        Paint your wooden deck in the outdoor patio in some original print which will completely transform the atmosphere around it. Match the colors of your chairs and table in the patio with the color of the painted deck in order to achieve harmonious unit.

-        Use some old pots to make a table with a wooden or metal top and paint it to make it look like a brand new piece of furniture.

-        If you have many types of watering cans, old and new, you can place them in some visible spot in the garden and make them look like museum exhibition pieces of the installation: watering cans through time.

-        Place some bird houses around in the garden to treat birds with crumbs and seeds enjoy their singing just in front your house. You can also place a big wooden or terra-cotta saucer and fill it with water so that they can enjoy a bath as well.

-        Use a lot of outdoor seat cushions for different seating surfaces in the garden and the outdoor patio in order to create a cozy and inviting atmosphere for your guests and increase the visual appeal in the garden with some lively and vibrant color tones.

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