“Lantern and Wash Basin”
Portland Japanese Garden
A lantern and wash basin typically greet visitors before they enter a Japanese garden tea house. This one in the Portland Japanese Garden is tucked into a little shaded cove just inside the gate leading to the tea house.
At Heatherwood, we do not have a tea house but are attempting to create a small cozy secluded sitting area to peacefully view the pond, stream, and water fall. In addition to an occasional cup of tea, it is a nice place to have a morning cup of coffee or afternoon glass of wine or other refreshing beverage. At the entrance of the sitting area, we have installed a small Japanese lantern and wash basin to simulate the feeling of Japanese garden tea house.
“Oribe Lantern, Tetsu Bachi Basin, & Kakehi Water Spout”
Heatherwood Japanese Garden
As you can see, the vegetation has not grown up around the water feature and it is not covered with moss. We patiently wait for surrounding plants and Japanese maples to grow and create a shady canopy for the wash basin.