What Is A Zen Garden Fountain?
As you have seen from the previous articles (listed below the video presentation) there are a great many reasons why you would want to incorporate a fountain or water feature into your garden design and a massive selection of different styles and sizes available. In the following article we will be introducing the Zen garden fountain.
Zen Gardens
When asked to describe a zen garden most of us will bring to mind a large flat area of fine gravel raked into specific patterns with maybe a large rock feature in a corner or other strategic position. In previous articles we looked at how the Japanese used bamboo in their fountains and basically a zen garden is a Japanese rock garden. The correct name for a zen garden is 枯山水 or karesansui.
The Karesansui garden does indeed consist of an area of fine gravel, sand or rocks which have been raked in patterns to resemble the ripples in water. Although plants are occasionally used in the designs it is rare and rock formations are used instead. The overall design is said to resemble the ocean and islands rather like those found in the local area.
Over the years the popularity of zen gardens has spread worldwide and some fine examples can be found in the USA, such as the Japanese Tea Garden, Golden Gate Park, San Francisco. So popular are these types of garden that it is now possible to buy small tabletop zen garden fountains and it is even possible to buy a huge zen garden fountain for use in public places however I can not, no matter how hard I try, find a Japanese example of such a fountain.
So What Is A Zen Garden Fountain?
I have searched online and offline to discover the exact nature of a zen garden fountain but there is little information available and certainly no clear design guidelines for a gardener or architect to follow. Now, at first, you may consider this something of a disaster but as I am an eternal optimist I immediately realized the freedoms this allowed me.
In truth zen fountains are simply a fountain which has been designed with the designs of a typical Karesansui garden in mind. Such fountains should always use natural materials but I am sorry to say that I have seen some rather poor fiberglass monstrosities which should be avoided at all cost! In fact all of the larger examples I have seen that would be suitable for use in a yard or backyard bear little resemblance to a Karesansui garden in any shape or form.
The finest examples I have seen of are tabletop pieces which are literally zen gardens with a water aspect (which actually goes against the ethos of Karesansui). The very best are those which feature a shallow sand pit with a group of stones with water flowing over them and some feature a small bamboo fountain in a corner.
Installing a Zen Garden Fountain In Your Yard
Unfortunately I can not find a large example of the tabletop fountains but some of these can be used outside and can look absolutely beautiful sitting on a very large stone slab, garden table or placed on a small gravel bed backed by garden plants. So, if you want a larger version I suspect that you will face an uphill struggle to source one so I strongly recommend that you buy a small tabletop zen garden fountain that would look great in a larger scale and get it specifically built for you or you could attempt it yourself. A simple solution, especially if you can not afford to have holes drilled into your stones, would be to position your stones exactly how you would like them and then use a bamboo spout (Kakei), placed just a little above the highest stone, so that water can flow freely over the stones. Remember to ensure that the water is directed to a hidden reservoir so that it can be pumped back up to the spout.
See also:
Using A Bamboo Fountain In Your Garden
Adding Interest With Bamboo Garden Fountains
More articles about garden fountains & water features >
