Over the years, Japanese gardeners have fine-tuned a distinctive set of pruning techniques that coax out the essential characters of their garden trees, or niwaki. In this highly practical book, Western gardeners are encouraged to draw upon the techniques and sculpt their own garden trees to unique effect. After discussing the principles that underpin the techniques, the author offers in-depth guidelines for shaping pines, azaleas, conifers, broadleaved evergreens, bamboos, and deciduous trees. Complete with abundant photographs, personal anecdotes and a wealth of advice, this unprecedented resource will inspire gardeners everywhere to transform their own trees into niwaki.
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 4.5 / 5.0
The book I've been searching for.:
I love this book! This book gives all the information a hands-on home gardener needs to try this at home. For years, I've visited and admired Japanese gardens such as the wonderful gardens in San Francisco and at the Chicago Botanic gardens. I could not find any information on how it was done, what type of tree is best, when do you start pruning and all the details. The combination of sketches and photos is particularly helpful. I love the photos of trees in Japan in ordinary streets and homes, not just in... more info
Serene Gardens:
A truly delightful book with lots of information which is helpful in setting our a Japanese style garden within the Western culture.
Great Book:
Having visited a few of the Japanese gardens mentioned in this book..I couldn't wait to start on my own garden here in Sydney but I really didn't know where to begin. My passion is for sculptured matsu (pines) and also for bamboo. This book has lifted my confidence immeasurably and the information and format shown will give me sure-footing on my journey.
Wonderful photos and diagrams (not to mention background). I will use native pines and conifers as well as the Japonicas and even try sculpting my... more info
Niwaki: Pruning, Training and Shaping Japanese:
This is an ok book - not great wich I wish it had been but good. I will definitly try some of the Japanese pruning technicques.
