BBG : A Garden in May

Yesterday was perfect for a stroll through the Birmingham Botanical Gardens. While I couldn't possibly take in all sixty-six acres, I did see some of my favorite areas. Here is a quick tour.

First, a few of the more formal areas:

While I am impressed with the beautiful formal areas, my heart belongs to the woodlands.

There are paths wandering through fern glades, over bridges, and past bubbling streams. The long bridge is in a less frequented area and has always been one of my favorite spots.

The bog garden in the next group of photos has a wild beauty. If our back yards looked like this — and part of mine does! — we might think we needed to get rid of the weeds, but for Native Americans who lived on this site many years ago it was a pharmacy. A lot of the plants were used for medicine, and others were used for food, clothing, or shelter.

And here are some of the flowers blooming in the woodlands:

Finally,  I stopped by the vegetable garden. Volunteers were there, working. The vegetables grown here are used in BBG's restaurant and also are used to feed animals at the nearby zoo. As for the rabbit, he's the kind of rabbit a vegetable garden needs!

Spring is ending. The temperature was in the 80s, and the air was humid. I saw lots of bugs. By the time I finished my walk, I was sweaty and ready for my air-conditioned car! I am reminded there is lots to do in my own garden before the sticky vapors of summer arrive. 

Happy gardening!   Deborah

BBG Japanese Garden, a Stroll in Heaven

Last week I stopped by the Birmingham Botanical Gardens for a stroll through its authentic Japanese Garden. Designed by Mr. Masaji Morai,  the Japanese Garden was opened in 1967 by the Japanese ambassador to the United States. It contains traditional Japanese architecture and garden elements, including a sixteenth century style tea house.

One enters the garden through a red torii gate or "gate to heaven".

The Yoshino cherry trees were blooming, and a gentle breeze brought showers of the white blossoms to the ground around me as I strolled through this piece of paradise.

Here is the Taylor Gate, the entrance to the Cultural Center, where the tea house is located.Toshinan, whose name means the house where those gathered can light a wick of undertanding in each other's heart, was built by one of Japan's finest shrine and temple builders, Mr. Kazunori Tago of Maibashi. He used only traditional tools and techniques in the Sukiya-style tea house, designed with natural materials and rustic but refined simplicity. Maibashi is Birmingham's sister city in Japan, and its citizens donated all of the materials used in construction of the tea house.

I was fortunate to participate in an authentic tea ceremony here some years ago when I worked as a docent at the BBG. A Japanese geisha prepared tea for a group of us in the traditional manner. The green tea was thick and tasted like spinach! 

Here are more scenes from my walk through the Japanese Garden.

You can see more photos of the Japanese Garden by clicking on its photo gallery in the sidebar. Enjoy, and may you feel content and free as a cherry blossom in the breeze.  Deborah