Journal

Arboriculture Knowledge from Japan

Field documentation, research, and insights on Japanese tree culture, tree diagnosis, garden design, urban greening, and landscape stewardship.

Daisugi: The 600-Year-Old Japanese Technique of Growing Trees on Trees

Japan Culture 2026.07.12

Daisugi: The 600-Year-Old Japanese Technique of Growing Trees on Trees

Daisugi (台杉) is a traditional Japanese forestry technique in which a single “mother tree” is kept alive while multiple perfectly straight cedar… Read Article

Midori Tsumi: Reading a Pine Tree’s Future in Its Spring Candles

Japan Culture 2026.06.07

Midori Tsumi: Reading a Pine Tree’s Future in Its Spring Candles

In May, candle-like new shoots begin to extend from the tips of every pine branch. What those candles mean — which direction… Read Article

Japan’s Sacred Giant: The 2,000-Year-Old Camphor Tree of Kinomiya Shrine

Japan Culture 2026.05.17

Japan’s Sacred Giant: The 2,000-Year-Old Camphor Tree of Kinomiya Shrine

In the coastal city of Atami, Shizuoka Prefecture, a single camphor tree has been standing for more than 2,000 years. This is… Read Article

What a Submerged Forest Teaches Us About Landscape Design: Ecology Over Aesthetics

Japan Culture 2026.05.17

What a Submerged Forest Teaches Us About Landscape Design: Ecology Over Aesthetics

Why does a landscape exist where it does? Standing at the edge of Nishiakiko Lake in Iwate Prefecture, Japan, and watching trees… Read Article

From Family Crest to Garden: How Kamon Plants Shaped Japanese Landscape Design

Japan Culture 2026.05.06

From Family Crest to Garden: How Kamon Plants Shaped Japanese Landscape Design

Every plant in a Japanese garden was chosen for a reason. When a paulownia tree stands at the entrance of a historic… Read Article

Japan’s Falling Trees Crisis: When the Postwar Planting Boom Reaches Its Limit

Japan Culture 2026.05.03

Japan’s Falling Trees Crisis: When the Postwar Planting Boom Reaches Its Limit

Japan’s Falling Trees Crisis: When the Postwar Planting Boom Reaches Its Limit Introduction In April 2026, an 18-meter cherry tree with a… Read Article

How to Read Tree Decay Without Technology: Japanese Field Methods

Japan Culture 2026.04.25

How to Read Tree Decay Without Technology: Japanese Field Methods

How to Read Tree Decay Without Technology: Japanese Field Methods Introduction Strike a wooden mallet against the trunk and listen. Press a… Read Article

Karikomi: The Japanese Art of Cloud Pruning Explained

Japan Culture 2026.04.21

Karikomi: The Japanese Art of Cloud Pruning Explained

Karikomi: The Japanese Art of Cloud Pruning Explained Introduction That landscape of rolling green mounds — soft domes and undulating ridges that… Read Article

Miharu Takizakura: Japan’s 1,000-Year-Old Weeping Cherry Tree

Japan Culture 2026.04.15

Miharu Takizakura: Japan’s 1,000-Year-Old Weeping Cherry Tree

In the small town of Miharu, Fukushima Prefecture, stands a single cherry tree that stops people in their tracks every spring. Miharu… Read Article

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