THE BEAUTIFUL CALM & COOL OF TEXTURED GARDENS NOW

When we think of beautiful gardens, we tend to conjure up images of eye-popping colors and floral fragrances. Today, we are featuring 10 gardens that have an added sensory element you may not have considered: beautiful texture.

1. MARQUEYSSAC GARDENS -- VÉZAC, FRANCE

The rich shrubbery that lines the paths at Marqueyssac practically begs for you to reach out and touch it. The plants, mainly boxwoods, are carefully manicured into rounded shapes, creating a softly textured landscape.

Located atop a spur that overlooks the peaks and valley of Dordogne Valley, 3 paths lead to the 17th century Belvedere.

2. PORTLAND JAPANESE GARDEN -- PORTLAND, OREGON

The Portland Japanese Garden, in Washington Park, Portland, Oregon run by the Japanese Garden Society of Oregon, was designed to inspire a sense of peace, tranquility, and oneness with nature.

There are 5 gardens, and one of them, the Natural Garden, contains softly textured mosses. The garden is currently undergoing an expansion plan, and a new beautiful hillside moss garden is underway.

3. SAIHO-JI MOSS GARDEN -- KYOTO, JAPAN

The famed moss garden at the Saihō-ji Rinzai Zen Buddhist temple, in Kyoto, Japan, was a beautiful accident.

Moss started appearing around the islands in the 19th century, when the pond flooded, and it flourished over the next 200 years because the monastery didn’t enough funds to maintain the grounds. The result was positively stunning!

There are over 120 gorgeously textured moss types in this garden, as well as a pond, shaped like the Chinese character for “heart” or “mind,” with 3 islands and 3 tea houses. This beautifully textured landscape is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

4. RURIKO-IN MOSS GARDEN -- KYOTO, JAPAN

The temple of Ruriki-In, in the suburbs of Kyoto, has 3 main gardens, 2 of which are moss gardens. Springtime is a beautiful time to visit, with lushest pale greens and yellows of fresh growth. In the fall, the maple trees turn red and add an extra dose of beauty to the the green velveted lands.

5. TOFUKU-JI GARDENS -- KYOTO, JAPAN

The beautifully textured gardens at the Tofuku-Ji Buddhist temple, in Kyoto, Japan, were designed by landscape architect Mirei Shigemori in the 1930s. This temple, built in 1236, is one of the Kyoto Gazan, or “five great Zen temples of Kyoto.”

The gardens highlight a modern revival of Japanese gardening principles. The plush moss looks even more dramatic in the fall with a sprinkling of scarlet maple leaves.

6. GINKAKU-JI GARDENS -- KYOTO, JAPAN

Walk along the wooded grounds of gardens of Ginkaku-Ji, a Zen temple in Kyoto, Japan, and you’ll encounter a gorgeous moss garden.

In addition to displaying many varieties moss, this garden is dotted with ponds, which are in turn, dotted with islands. For a change of texture and color, check out the famed sand garden.

7. SANZEN-IN MOSS GARDEN -- KYOTO, JAPAN

The moss garden at the Sanzen-in Tendai Buddhist temple exudes a sense of peacefulness,. Check out the playful stone sculptures placed throughout.

The Ojo Gokuraku-in Hall, the oldest building at Sanzen-in, is visible through a scattering of maple and cedar trees across the moss garden. 

8. ADACHI MUSEUM OF ART GARDENS -- YASUGI, JAPAN

For a beautiful texture-filled trip, head to the Adachi Museum of Art, located in Yasugi, Japan. Founded in 1980 by Adachi Zenko, there are 165,000 square m. of gardens on view.

The combination of art and gardens is breathtaking. The garden has been named the best garden in the world every year since 2003, by the Journal of Japanese Gardening.

The velvety moss garden is especially magnificent as it covers a hillside, planted in red pines.  

9. GIO-JI MOSS GARDEN -- SAGANO, KYOTO, JAPAN

Gio-Ji temple, a Shingon Buddhist nunnery in Sagano, Kyoto, Japan, may be tiny, but it is brimming with richly textured beauty.

There isn’t much to see inside the small thatched building, though you will see a moss-covered grotto from the main hall. But the thick carpets of moss outside will invite you to spend the day in the garden.

Autumn is the best time to visit, since the crimson color of the changing leaves pops beautifully against the deep green moss.

10. HUNTER VALLEY GARDENS -- POKOLBIN, AUSTRALIA

Hunter Valley Gardens, in Pokolbin, Australia, has 10 beautiful gardens that span over 60 acres. There are more than 6,000 trees, 600,000 shrubs, and 1,000,000 ground covers here, creating a beautifully textured living tapestry.

Each of their gardens is uniquely styled, from an Indian Mosaic Garden, featuring antique gates, bronze elephants, and an Indian tea house, to the Storybook Garden, full of colorful mosaics of classic nursery rhyme characters.

Read more about Beautiful Texture, as it relates to Arts/Design, Nature/Science, Food/Drink, Place/Time, Mind/Body, and Soul/Impact including The Beauty & Necessity of Texture Now, The Science & Beauty of Texture Now, Exotic Delicious Textures Now, The Magnificent Texture of Feathers Now and The Beautiful Texture of Place & Time Now.

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IMAGE CREDITS:

1. Image: by Eric. Marqueyssac.
2. Image: by Radomir Cernoch. Gardens of Marqueyssac.
3. Image: by Sail over. Marqueyssac: Castle.
4. Image: by Michael Wilson. Portland Japanese Garden.
5. Image: by  Laurascudder. Naturalistic Garden at Portland Japanese Garden.
6. Image: by C.K. Tse. Saihoji Moss Garden.
7. Image: by Ivanoff. View from Saihou-ji (Kokedera) Pond.
8. Image: by Christian Kaden. Rurikoin, north of Kyoto.
9. Image: by Christian Kaden. Tofukuji Temple, Kyoto.
10. Image: by jpellgen. Fallen Flowers.
11. Image: by countries in colors. Summer Afternoon in Sanzen-in.
12. Image: by 663highland. Adachi Museum of Art in Yasugi.
13. Image: by Yevgen Pogoryelov. Moss carpet at Giouji Temple.
14. Image: Courtesy of Hunter Valley Gardens. Festival of Flowers.
15. Image: by Michael Dawes. Hunter Valley Gardens_053_January07_2010.
16. Image: by Hiro2006. West garden at Tōfuku-ji. Kyōto, Japan.
17. Image: by BN App - Download now!
18. Image: by phoca2004. Portland Japanese Garden.