These Japanese Homes Make the Most of Cherry Blossom Season
It's sakura season! See homes that revel in cherry blossoms, and get some tips for bringing these lovely blooms inside.
Cherry blossom (sakura) trees have gone into bloom and these homeowners have front-row seats. Check out these Japanese homes’ flowery views, and learn a few tricks to bring the spirit of sakura season indoors.
Sakura House
Design: Minami-no-Shima First-Class Architecture Studio
Design: Minami-no-Shima First-Class Architecture Studio
Sakura-Viewing House
Design: Masaki Tokui Architect Institute
Design: Masaki Tokui Architect Institute
Blooming Sakura Promenade
Design: Akiyama, Inc.
Design: Akiyama, Inc.
Light-Filled House
Design: Earnest architects
Design: Earnest architects
Tosa Timber House
Design: Atelier Rokuyosha, Inc.
Design: Atelier Rokuyosha, Inc.
Ripple House
Design: Kichi Architectural Design
Design: Kichi Architectural Design
Living with a Weeping Cherry
Design: ArchiPlace Architectural Design Studio
Design: ArchiPlace Architectural Design Studio
Not all cherry blossom trees are the same variety. The most well-known are Somei-yoshino (Prunus × yedoensis ‘Somei-yoshino’) trees, which bloom simultaneously. Yet there are many other varieties, including the elegant weeping cherry trees or dark-flowered Kanhi-zakura (Prunus campanulata Maxim.) trees.
To accentuate the spring theme even more, try bringing other touches of sakura colours into the room.
For example, decorate your table with a cherry blossom theme: Select a sakura-patterned tablecloth, or serve each course on clean white plates alongside some sparkling rosé and pink water glasses.
Though not traditionally Japanese, sakura mosaic is becoming popular abroad.
Sakura-flavored treats – like sakura mochi (glutinous rice cakes with a paste filling), sakura sweets, and sakura rice – are another great way to enjoy the season. Salt-pickled yaezakura buds are a special spring treat in Japan.
For indoor flower viewing, a lunch consisting of rice – with specially prepared sakuras, bamboo shoots and separately cooked vegetables as toppings – wild vegetable tempura, and other seasonal dishes sets the right mood.
Indoors or out, nothing says spring like lovely cherry blossoms. Take some time to enjoy them before they’re gone.
The mood at this time of year was captured perfectly by Meiji era (late 19th- to early 20th-century) poet Akiko Yosano, who writes:
“Crossing Gion
on the way to Kiyomizu
on this cherry-blossom moonlit night,
the people I meet this evening –
every one of them is so beautiful.”
Whatever the era, the magic of the days when cherry blossoms bloom remains – and these homes are the perfect vantage point from which to enjoy every minute.