Fairy Fishing Rods

When I lived in Christchurch I noticed, one summer, these reed like plants with long flower stems that bent and moved in the wind. I thought they would be a suitable addition to my Japanese garden next to the pond and also in some of my other beds.

 

The biggest problem was finding them. None of the Wellington garden shops had them for sale and it wasn't until I was on a visit to Christchurch that I managed to find them again. Dierama pulcherrimum is the scientific name. So far they look like nondescript grassy clumps but I have high hopes for the coming summer.Hopefully I can post a picture of this same specimen in flower. 

Autumn is here

Daylight saving is over and it is dark by 6pm. The japanese lantern has yet to grow any moss and the the pine tree has been severely pruned in preparation for the coming spring.

Moss

In the book "Create Your Own Japanese Garden" (Motomo Oguchi 2007) there are couple of statements that highlight the importance of the lantern. "the stone lantern in the garden is like a necktie on a man: though it is a relatively small part of the overall attire, it stands out above all else. (1)" and "in my opinion most serious gardeners are diligent students of stone lanterns (2)" In an effort to give my Japanese lantern the look it needs to confirm my status as a serious gardener I have been busy in the kitchen.
Some surfing has suggested that painting the lantern with a blended mixture of butter-milk and moss will encourage moss to grow on the lantern giving it a dignified timeless appearance. These are the steps I followed:

1. Find some suitable moss. There are a couple of different varieties here I found them growing next to the stream and beside the water trough in the horse paddock.










2. Pick out all the stones and dirt and place in the food processor















3. Add some butter milk
























4. Blend until smooth
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   





5. Paint onto the lantern and keep moist
   
   

Japanese lantern

Time for some finishing touches, the large "windows" on the light box of the lantern now have little frames with some caligraphy from our class at Minoh High School. These stop the wind extinguishing the candles so quickly. The only thing missing is the time to sit in my new garden and contemplate this busy world.

Lanterns at Nara

These are some of the lanterns at a temple in Nara. They have a nice growth of moss on them and show the openings of the light box covered with paper. These lanterns are made from granite and there were hundreds of them lining the path down from the monastery.

Japanese Garden 7

What do you reckon? I think the Lantern looks much better now it has been assembled. The light box section could be little big in proportion to the base and top. Also I changed the concrete recipe slightly for the pedestal which gives it a more brown colour than the rest of the lantern. But overall it's not to bad for a first attempt.
When it is not too windy I can get a "tea-light" candle going in the light box to give a nice flickering effect. The next things to do are to encourage some moss to grow on the lantern like it was on some of the lanterns in Nara. The other thing is to make a couple of wooden frames for the larger openings of the light box which I can cover with paper to provide some more shelter for the candle.

Japanese garden 6

It won't be a garden gnome but it is made of concrete or to be more precise, Tufta. No Japanese garden is complete until it has a Japanese lantern. The garden shops don't have them so it is necessary to make it myself. The various sections are made using a range of moulds, a plastic bowl, some plywood and and old post. It all looks pretty shoddy but lets see what it is like when it's all put together.