Visiting the garden master
As I wrote about the story in this blog a few articles before, I visited Chizanso in Hayama, where the Kanetsuna landscaping office manages the garden. After that, I decided to visit the garden master, Mr.Kanetsuna, to greet him and express my appreciation for teaching me gardening techniques.
His home is located on the mountainside of Tokyo, so I needed to pass a mountain road. Along the way, I discovered blooming wisteria entwined in the trees. The managed wisteria we can see in the garden is also beautiful, but I am moved by how they try to survive in the midst of nature.
After I went further, I found a cluster of Iris japonica along the road. They were also beautifully grown in the middle of an isolated place.
After another two hours of driving, I finally reached Hinode-cho, where my master lives. This is where I learned the basic skill of gardening and met people who share my passion.
While we sipped the delicious tea poured by his wife, we enjoyed talking about the story of mountains. A few years ago, we went to Mt. Tsubame in the Northern Alps in the winter season, and it is still a good memory for us.
After finishing our precious conversation time, I looked at my master’s garden in front of the house. The ferns seem to have grown a little too much, but the trees and the lush moss remain the same as before. Since there are lots of natural-style trees growing here, they would be grown quickly and eventually change the appearance of the garden if this garden were unmanaged. The Japanese garden at Todoroki Gorge, which is said to have been created by Iida Juki, who is well known for his garden of natural style (zoki garden), no longer has the same atmosphere as it was built, where overgrown bushes and shrubs cover the buildings. Once trees grow too much, they will never grow back again, so it is essential to maintain the garden if you have this kind of space.
When I Looked up, the sun is shining through the trees and the leaves of trees are beautifully illuminated. The space of the garden itself is not large, but the view made me feel as if I were in a forest. 
The garden master once told me that this garden was built 30 years ago. It was reminded me that being a gardener is not just about being able to create a garden, it is also about being able to take care of the garden afterward.
It was a fruitful day. It makes me feel that I have to work even harder to deliver more healing space to my future customers’ gardens.
I look forward to working with you in the future.
