How to Plan a Japanese Courtyard Garden

Plan your Japanese courtyard garden initially with some quiet reflection. A front courtyard garden that includes the entry to a home is a transition space to imbue the traveler with a sense of calm and welcome and ease the passage from the chaos of the public world to the serenity of the inner sanctuary. A back or side garden is a link to nature and a quiet space to think, read, converse or indulge in a little weeding.

Pace off or measure the area and note where it receives sun and where it is apt to get full or partial shade. Mark the path through the space with a garden hose. Use string and stakes or more garden hoses to mark areas for plantings, statues or rock sculptures and any water features, like a pondless waterfall.

Decide on seating -- stone or concrete benches that blend into the stones are one low-maintenance choice. Simple teak chairs will stand out as honey-toned accents and then weather into silver.

Select the plants for your climate. Choose green foliage, bamboo in containers, a plum tree you will train to a beautiful gnarled shape, a triangular pine that stays small, perfect and pruned. Keep plants very spare so they will not compete with the beauty of the rocks.

Design a symbolic fence or gate with a curtain of bamboo plants or build a wooden privacy fence to shield the garden from public view. In other words, don't forget enclosure; your courtyard garden is a private space.

Pick white stones for ground cover to symbolize oceans or raked white sand to symbolize waves. Three boulders set together are a traditional symbol of the Buddha. A curved bridge, even a decorative one, symbolizes rebirth in paradise. The water feature evokes a mountain spring and circulating water mimics the life cycle of birth, growth, death and rebirth.