Tree Risk
Japan’s Falling Trees Crisis: When the Postwar Planting Boom Reaches Its Limit
May 2026
Japan’s Falling Trees Crisis: When the Postwar Planting Boom Reaches Its Limit Introduction In April 2026, an 18-meter cherry tree with a…
Journal
Journal
Field notes and essays on Japanese arboriculture,
sacred trees, landscape, and urban tree care.
Tree Risk
How to Read Tree Decay Without Technology: Japanese Field Methods
April 2026
How to Read Tree Decay Without Technology: Japanese Field Methods Introduction Strike a wooden mallet against the trunk and listen. Press a…
Japan Culture
Karikomi: The Japanese Art of Cloud Pruning Explained
April 2026
Karikomi: The Japanese Art of Cloud Pruning Explained Introduction That landscape of rolling green mounds — soft domes and undulating ridges that…
Japan Culture
Miharu Takizakura: Japan’s 1,000-Year-Old Weeping Cherry Tree
April 2026
Introduction In the small town of Miharu, Fukushima Prefecture, stands a single cherry tree that stops people in their tracks every spring.…
Tree Risk
VTA vs. Jyumoku-i: Comparing Two Tree Diagnosis Systems — Western Science Meets Japanese Expertise
April 2026
VTA vs. Jyumoku-i: Comparing Two Tree Diagnosis Systems — Western Science Meets Japanese Expertise Introduction How do you decide whether a tree…
Japan Culture
Niwaki vs Topiary: What Western Gardens Get Wrong
April 2026
Introduction “Cloud pruning.” “Pom-pom trees.” “Japanese-style topiary.” When I see these terms used to describe niwaki in Western garden media, I feel…
Japan Culture
Why Do Japan’s Ancient Trees Live for a Thousand Years?
April 2026
Introduction Imagine standing before a tree that was already old when Rome still ruled the Western world. In Japan, this is not…
Urban Landscape
Tokyo Street Trees: Why They Look Beautiful — and Why They’re Struggling
April 2026
Tokyo Street Trees: Why They Look Beautiful — and Why They’re Struggling Introduction Walk through almost any major street in Tokyo, and…
Tree Risk
What is a Jumoku-i? Japan’s Certified Tree Doctor Explained
April 2026
A Jumoku-i is a nationally registered tree specialist in Japan, certified in the diagnosis, treatment, and preservation of trees. The certification was…