Admiring Irises in Japan 日本の菖蒲
Flowery month of June
After the sakura season, flowers continues to bloom. If spring belongs to cherry and plum trees, the month of June is that of strolling between the beds of irises, the flower with drooping petals which scents the air!
Meiji Jingu Park
The Meiji sanctuary, or Meiji-jingu, is home to an imperial park of 700,000 m2 where nearly 170,000 trees and 245 different species grow.
The irises are present in this park in rich diversity since the latter has a field where more than 1,500 of these white and purple flowers grow, belonging to nearly 150 different species! Small wooden plates are thus present everywhere in front of the flowers to indicate the species to which they belong.
Iris flowers in the garden of the Meiji-Jingu
wikipedia
It is advisable to come between mid-June and the end of the month to be able to enjoy all the beauty of the flowering.
- Address : 1-1 Yoyogi kamizono-cho, Shibuya, 151-8557 Tokyo
- Access: Yamanote line, Harajuku station for the South entrance to the park. Yamanote or Oedo line, Yoyogi Station for the North entrance to the park.
Katsushika Ward Parks
Katsushika is one of Tokyo Municipality's 23 wards. It notably hosts two parks, Mizumoto Park and Horikiri Park.
Mizumoto Park is home to around 14,000 flowers for 80 species. It is a garden particularly recommended for those who want to enjoy the flowers at the water's edge since it is the Tokyo park with the largest expanse of water.
Read also : Autumn in the parks of Tokyo
Mizumoto Park Irises
wikipedia
Horiki Park has more than 6,000 iris flowers, for 200 different species! This very old park was originally redeveloped marshland, the ideal environment for irises! It is advisable to come early in the morning to avoid the crowds.
Note that these two parks host the Katsushika Shobu Matsuri, or iris festival, every year in June.
- Address: 5-13-1 Tateishi, Katsushika, 124-8555 Tokyo
- Access: JR Kanamachi or Keisei Kanamachi station
Hakko Park
For those who want to get away from Tokyo and find the irises far from the capital, head for Hakko Park in Sapporo. Due to its northern geographical position, the irises begin to bloom later, from the beginning of July.
The visitor will be well surrounded by flowers in this park, which has more than 100,000 irises for around 450 different species! In addition to the incredible floral crowd of iris, Hakko Park is also strewn with lavender flowers.
Read also : Biei, mountains of flowers
- Address: 3-11 Tsukisamu Higashi, Toyohira-ku, Sapporo
- Access: 10 min on foot from Fukuzumi Station on the Toho Subway Line.
The irises of Hakko Park
wikipedia
Yokosuka Iris Garden
Yokosuka is known as the city in Kanagawa Prefecture that houses the headquarters of the US Navy's 7th Fleet.
Beyond this martial figure, the city also has an iris garden - shobu-en -, which welcomes you as soon as you enter with rows of irises planted everywhere in the middle of the lawns. The garden is dotted with more than 140,000 irises of 412 different varieties and attracts several thousand visitors every year during this period.
- Address: 18-１ Abekura, 238-0033 Yokosuka
- Access: JR Yokosuka Station or Keikyu Shioiri Station
An iris from Yokosuka Park
wikipedia
The Meigetsu-in
Far from the big iris parks, the Meigetsu-in, a temple located in Kamakura, will welcome the visitor attracted by the beautiful purple petals of the iris. Best known as the hydrangea temple, flowers are present everywhere in this temple, the Meigetsu-in also has an interior garden where irises grow.
Read also : Hydrangeas in Japan
- Address: 189 Yamanouchi, 247-0062 Kamakura
- Access: 10 min on foot from Kita-Kamakura station
The irises of Meigetsu-in
wikipedia
