The Roji-en: Garden of the Drops of Dew, The George D. and Harriet W. Cornell Japanese Gardens consists of six gardens representing different periods in the development of the Japanese garden. It occupies of the Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens in Morikami Park in suburban Delray Beach, Florida, USA. The gardens are open to the public, but closed Mondays and major holidays. Access to the gardens is included in the admission fee to the museum.
Today's gardens form one of the largest Japanese gardens in the world. They were designed by Hoichi Kurisu and constructed between 1999 and 2001 in Morikami Park, a 200-acre (80 hectare) site donated by George Morikami to Palm Beach County and Florida in 1973. The Roji-en gardens are part of the Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens, reported to be the only museum in the United States dedicated to the living culture of Japan.
A survey conducted in 2004 by the Journal of Japanese Gardening ranked the Morikami gardens as the eighth highest-quality public Japanese garden in North America.
The Six Gardens
A mile-long path leads through six different Japanese gardens, representing six periods of Japanese garden design between the eighth and 20th centuries. The grounds feature pine trees, bamboo groves, waterfalls and large granite boulders.
- Shinden Gardens Heian period (9th - 12th centuries); aristocratic gardens patterned after Chinese gardens, featuring ponds and islands.
- Paradise Gardens (13th and 14th century); influenced by Buddhist teachings, and incorporating hills, ponds and islands. Similar to the Shinden Gardens but on a smaller scale.
- Early Rock Gardens - abstracted vegetation and water, with rock arrangements to represent waterfalls and streambeds.
- Late Rock Gardens - (15th century) karesansui gardens almost entirely constructed of gravel, stone and sand.
- Flat Gardens - (16th and 17th century) shakkei, or borrowed landscape.
- Modern Romantic Gardens - (Edo period and later) stroll gardens influenced by Western European gardens.
Chie no Wa - Wisdom Ring
As one exits the Museum center to begin the tour, one encounters the Chie no Wa Wisdom Ring—a replica of a 500-year-old stone lantern in Miyazu, Delray Beach's sister city in Japan. The original Wisdom Ring, or Chie no Wa in Japanese, stands at a temple dedicated to the Buddhist deity of wisdom, Monju.
The citizens of Miyazu donated the replica in 1997 to commemorate Morikami Museum's 20th anniversary.
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File:Chie-no-wa toro.jpg|The wisdom ring in Miyasu
File:露時園 Roji-en 2016 (28676884724).jpg|Wisdom Ring at the far right
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James and Hazel Gates Woodruff Memorial Bridge
The James and Hazel Gates Woodruff Memorial Bridge was erected by U.S. Naval commander James G. Woodruff, (a Pearl Harbor veteran) in memory of his wife, Hazel, a lover of Japanese gardens. The bridge stands at the entrance to the gardens and symbolizes the link between Japan and the state of Florida.
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File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - View of Shinden Gardens and Bridge.jpg|Lake, Islands and Bridge
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Shinden Garden Island and Bridge.jpg|Shinden Garden Island and Bridge
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Shinden Garden Island Bridge.jpg|James and Hazel Gates Woodruff Memorial Bridge
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Shinden Garden
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File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Shinden Garden Sign.jpg|Shinden Garden Sign
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Flowering Plant in Shinden Garden Island.jpg|Flowering Plant
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - View of Japanese Tea House across lake from Shinden Garden Island.jpg|View of Japanese Tea House across lake
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - View Towards Tea House 01.jpg|View Towards Tea House
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - View of Museum Center from Shinden Garden Island.jpg|View of Museum Center from Island
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Detail of Garden Trees and Shrubbery in Shinden Island.jpg|Detail of Garden Trees and Shrubbery
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Shinden Garden Pine Tree Root Pattern.jpg|Pattern of Tree Roots Flattened By Continued Human Stepping
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Kodai-mon.jpg|Kodai-mon or "Ancient Gate" at entrance to Bamboo Grove
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Bamboo Grove View.jpg|View of Tea House from Bamboo Grove
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Guava Tree and Green Fruits.jpg|Guava Tree and Green Fruits
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Green Iguana.jpg|Green Iguana
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Tree-Covered Gravel Path.jpg|Tree-Covered Gravel Path
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Paradise Garden
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File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Paradise Garden Sign.jpg|Paradise Garden Sign
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - View of Paradise Garden.jpg|View of Pond and Trees
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Paradise Garden Path.jpg|Garden Path
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Shishi Odoshi Filling Up With Water.jpg|Shishi Odoshi or "Deer Chaser" Filling Up with Water
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Shishi Odoshi Emptying Water.jpg|Shishi Odoshi Emptying
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Early Rock Garden
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File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Early Rock Garden Sign.jpg|Early Rock Garden Sign
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Early Stone Garden Lantern.jpg|Stone Lantern
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Early Stone Garden.jpg|Early Rock Garden
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Karesansui Late Rock Garden
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File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Late Rock Garden Sign.jpg|Late Rock Garden Sign
File:Morikami Museum View of Grounds Garden.jpg|Path Leading from Garden
File:Morikami Museum View of Grounds (Rock Garden).jpg|View Towards Entrance of Garden Enclosure
File:Morikami Rock Garden.jpg|Gravel and Rocks Representing Islands and Ocean
File:Morikami Museum - Late Rock Garden - Tiles on Walls.jpg|View of Tiles Protecting Walls of Enclosure
File:Morikami Museum - Late Rock Garden - View from Ground Level.jpg|View from Ground Level Towards Enclosure Entrance
File:Morikami Museum - Icaco Tree Growing next to Late Rock Garden.jpg|Icaco tree with white fruits growing next to Late Rock Garden
File:Morikami Museum - Late Rock Garden - View from Ground Level Towards Back Wall.jpg|View from Entrance of Enclosure to Back Walls
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Hiraniwa Flat Rock Garden
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File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Hiraniwa - Flat Garden Sign.jpg|Hiraniwa Flat Garden Sign
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - View of Back Wall of Hiraniwa Flat Garden.jpg|View of Back Wall
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Hiraniwa Flat Garden 01.jpg|Stone Lantern and Pine Tree
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Hiraniwa Flat Garden 02.jpg|General View Sunny
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Hiraniwa Flat Garden 03.jpg|View of Flat Garden
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - General View of Hiraniwa Flat Garden.jpg|General View Cloudy
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Modern Romantic Gardens
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File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Modern Romantic Garden Sign.jpg|Modern Romantic Garden Sign
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Modern Romantic Gardens 03.jpg|Creek and Plants
File:Morikami Museum View of Grounds Waterview.jpg|View of Creek and Plants
File:Morikami Museum View of Grounds Water.jpg|Pond Viewed Through Plants
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Modern Romantic Gardens 05.jpg|Pond and Stone Lantern
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Modern Romantic Gardens 04.jpg|Seating Bench and Pond
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Modern Romantic Gardens 06.jpg|Creek Flowing Into Pond
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Modern Romantic Gardens 01.jpg|Wooden Plank Bridge over Creek
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Modern Romantic Gardens 07.jpg|Cascading Waterfall
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Modern Romantic Gardens 08.jpg|View of Plank Bridge from Above
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Modern Romantic Gardens 09.jpg|Stone Lantern and Waterfall
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Modern Romantic Gardens 02.jpg|Flowing Creek and Plants
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Yamato Island
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File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Hotei the Buddha.jpg|Hotei (Buddha) the god of Happiness
File:Morikami Museum Bridge.jpg|Yamato-kan Bridge
File:Morikami Museum View of Grounds Bonzai.jpg|Stone Lantern at Entrance to Bonzai Garden
File:Morikami Bonzai Garden.jpg|Bonzai Garden
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Bonsai 01.jpg|Cypress
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Bonsai 02.jpg|Tamarind
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Bonsai 03.jpg|Bonsai Trees
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Bonsai 04.jpg|Seagrape
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Bonsai 05.jpg|Dwarf Schefflera
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Koi and Turtles in Pond 01.jpg|Koi and Turtles in Pond
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Koi and Turtles in Pond 02.jpg|Koi and Turtles
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Koi and Turtles and Papyrus Reeds.jpg|Koi and Turtles and Papyrus Reeds
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Tamarind Tree and Tea House.jpg|Tamarind Tree and Tea House
File:Morikami Museum and Gardens - Interior Garden of Tea House.jpg|Interior Rock and Sand Garden of Tea House
File:Morikami Tea House.jpg|Interior Garden
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Garden construction phases
Today's gardens were built in two phases. Phase One (completed in 1999) built the Yamato-kan pavilion, an historic stone lantern, a tsukubai (water basin), bonsai display, Allen S. Austin Memorial Waterfall (designed by Carn Reid), a kame shima (turtle island), a Challenger Memorial Lantern, Yamato Island, the Morikami Falls, the Wisdom Ring, a dry creek garden and part of the lake. The ishidoro lantern was originally erected in 1681 at Toshogu Shrine in Edo as a memorial to Ietsuna, the fourth Tokugawa shōgun. The Wisdom Ring is a replica of a stone lantern (ishidoro) located in Delray Beach's sister city in Japan, Miyazu. Phase Two (completed 2001) opened the six gardens.
See also
- List of botanical gardens in the United States