Come visit the "Land of the Rising Sun"! 日本

Anemone japonica 'Splendens'

 I am pretty confident that if you join us on our trip to Japan next November, you'll be apt to see some of these--one of the countless gems that stud our gardens that hail from Japan. Japan has almost 6000 species of native plants--40% of which grow nowhere else naturally.. Compare Great Britain, which has only 1692 kinds of plants and few endemics. Japan is twice as species rich per acre than Great Britain.

Of course, it's not merely the plants (Hepatica nobilis var. japonicus in this case) that makes Japan extraordinary--it's the vast history of human-plant interaction. The Japanese have raised the art of pottery to new heights, and the great gardens of Japan are revered for their perfection and sophisticated design. The Denver Botanic Gardens' trip planned for November will be visiting the finest of these in Tokyo, Osaka and Kyoto. Click here for details.

John Shors

I (Panayoti Kelaidis) will be along as Botanical and Horticultural leader (I studied East Asian languages, civilization and culture for 8 years at the University of Colorado and Cornell). We are especially lucky to have the Principal of John Shors travel along: John has lived in Japan for years and has even written a highly regarded novel inspired by Japan: Beside a Burning Sea. Both of us are seasoned travelers who love to share our experience on tours such as this. 

Higo iris at Denver Botanic Gardens' Japanese Garden

A glimpse back in time: these iris have gone--but there was a time when DBG boasted a stunning display of the giant Japanese iris that had been bred for over 500 years! Japanese gardens admit Azaleas and a very few other flowering plants into their gardens. but with such rich biodiversity at hand, Japanese gardens don't even try to challenge nature in the flowery department. Instead, they focus on forms and shapes and an attempt to capture the dynamics of great landscapes in miniature, as it were. The trip is designed to hit fall color at its peak in the regions we visit--it's usually a time of year with great weather. Click here to find out more--and please join us!