Japanese gardens in France

The garden of the Albert Kahn Museum

We find the Albert Kahn museum near Boulogne-Billancourt, on the outskirts of Paris, where some 72,000 color photographs on autochrome plates that the philanthropist has gathered around the world are collected.

This is also where Albert Kahn set up a Japanese garden at the very end of the 19th century, thanks to Japanese artists he had invited.

Renovated in the 80s by Fumiaki Takano, the garden also includes a "village" with two houses, a tea pavilion, and bonsai trees.

And whether it's the azaleas, which form a mountain of red flowers at the edge of the lake, the cherry blossoms that open in spring, or the small traditional wooden bridges, Japan is everywhere in this garden!

Address : 10 Rue du Port, 92100 Boulogne-Billancourt

The eastern park of Maulévrier

The largest Japanese garden in Europe. The eastern park of Maulévrier (Pays de la Loire) extends over 29 hectares, of which about a third is water, and is populated by nearly 300 floral species including gingko, Japanese maple, or the camellia.

Decorative elements typical of Japan such as the torii, or the toro (stone lanterns) have been fitted out to further deepen the Japanese atmosphere.

In 1987, researchers from Tokyo and Niigata officially recognized that 12 hectares of the site were inspired by gardens from the Edo period (1603-1868). And for bonsai lovers, the park houses a permanent exhibition of these dwarf trees.

Address: Place de la Mairie, 49360 Maulevrier

Erik Borja's Zen garden

Erik Borja is one of the greatest designers of Japanese-inspired gardens in the country. In 1973, he began creating a Zen garden in the karesensui (dry garden) style in a sheepfold in Beaumont-Monteux (Drôme), based on the model of the Ryôan-ji in Kyôto.

• Read also: Resources with Zen

A wooden portico opens the garden, which overlooks a stretch of sand. Raked daily, it represents the sea in the middle of which remain two green spaces, which themselves represent islands. In addition, a tea garden has also been laid out, which leads to a tea pavilion where ceremonies take place.

Address: 530 Chemin du jardin zen, 26600 Beaumont-Monteux

Japan at the Botanical Park of Haute-Bretagne

The Botanical Park of Haute-Bretagne welcomes within its 25 hectares 9 thematic gardens, among which we find the garden of the Rising Sun. The latter deploys three facets of the Japanese gardens:

• the promenade garden within particular an alley that crosses the garden from the traditional vermilion bridge to the toro.

• the tea garden

• and of course the Zen garden

Address: La Folletière, 35133 Le Chatellier

The Pierre-Baudis Japanese Garden in Toulouse

And finally for southerners, do not miss the Japanese garden Pierre-Baudis in Toulouse. This 7,000 m2 space is organized around a central body of water, where pretty koi carp swim and adjoined by a tea pavilion.

From this small building built in red cedar, you can see the bridge spanning the watercourse where the pebbles have been scattered. The cherry trees are planted in such a way that during the hanami era, the sakura falls carelessly on the small frame.

Address : Jardin Compans Caffarelli, Boulevard Lascrosses, 31000 Toulouse