The following plants are selected as typical of, or commonly found, in Japan or Japanese gardens. They include herbaceous perennials (generally zone 9 and hardier), grasses, ferns, and bamboos and related.
|
Genus |
Japanese name |
meaning |
|
Acorus calamus |
sh ōbu |
|
|
Acorus gramineus |
sekish ō |
|
|
Actaea simplex |
sarashina shōma |
|
|
Adiantum pedatum |
kujaku shida |
|
|
Adonis amurensis |
fukujusō |
weed of wealth and happiness |
|
Ajana pacifica |
iso giku |
|
|
Anemone hupehensis var. japonica |
shūmei giku, Kibune giku |
after Mount Kibune |
|
Aquilegia flabellata |
odamaki |
|
|
Aralia cordata |
udo |
|
|
Asplenium scolopendrium |
ko tani watari |
|
|
Aster tataricus |
shion |
shi=purple, on=garden |
|
Aster spathulifolius |
daruma giku |
|
|
Aster spathulifolius var. alba |
shirobana daruma giku |
|
|
Astilbe japonica |
awamori sh ōma |
awa=tiny bubbles, mori=plenty, sho=unit of measure, ma=floor as woodland floor |
|
Astilbe chinensis var. davidii |
ō chidake sashi |
|
|
Astilbe simplicifolia |
hitotsuba shōma |
|
|
Astilbe thunbergii |
aka shōma |
aka=red as color of roots |
|
Astrantia |
||
|
Athyrium nipponicum var. pictum |
hosoba inu warabi |
|
|
Bambusa multiplex |
h ōrai chiku |
|
|
Bergenia stracheyi |
Himaraya yuki-no-shita |
|
|
Bergenia grandis subsp. evansiana |
shūkaidō |
|
|
Bletilla striata |
shiran |
shi-=purple, ran=orchid |
|
Calanthe discolor |
ebine |
ebi=shrimp, ne=root as in shape of root |
|
Campanula punctata |
hotaru bukuro |
hotaru=firefly, bukuro=bag, as in fireflies entering tubular corolla and illuminating |
|
Carex morrowii |
kan suge |
|
|
Chimonobambusa quadrangularis |
shih ō chiku |
|
|
Chrysanthemum yezoense |
ko hama giku |
|
|
Convallaria keiskei |
suzu ran, kimigakes ō |
|
|
Convallaria majalis |
Doitsu suzuran |
|
|
Crinum japonicum |
hama yū, hama omoto |
|
|
Dianthus superbus var. longicalycinus |
nadeshiko |
|
|
Dianthus superbus var. superbus |
Ezo kawara nadeshiko |
|
|
Dianthus barbatus |
Amerika nadeshiko |
|
|
Dicentra peregrina |
komakusa |
|
|
Dicentra spectabilis |
kemansō, daitsurisō, fuji botan |
|
|
Dryopteris erythrosora |
beni shida |
beni=red, as in covering on sori in spring |
|
Eichhornia crassipes |
hotei aoi |
|
|
Epimedium grandiflorum |
ikarisō |
|
|
Epimedium higoense |
Higo ikarisō |
|
|
Farfugium japonicum |
tsuwabuki |
|
|
Filipendula multijuga |
shimotsukesō |
|
|
Fritillaria thunbergii |
baimo, amigasa yuri |
|
|
Gentiana scabra var. buergeri |
rindō |
|
|
Glaudicium palmatum |
shirane aoi |
|
|
Hakonechloa macra |
uraha gusa, fūchisō |
|
|
Heloniopsis orientalis |
shōjōbakama |
|
|
Hemerocallis |
kanzō |
|
|
Hosta |
gibōshi |
|
|
Hosta montana |
ōba gibōshi |
|
|
Hosta plantaginea var. japonica |
tama kanzashi |
jewel of the hairpiece |
|
Hosta sieboldiana |
Tō gibōshi |
|
|
Hosta undulata |
suji gibōshi |
|
|
Hosta ventricosa |
murasaki gibōshi |
|
|
Imperata cylindrica |
chigaya |
|
|
I. cylindrica ‘Rubra’ |
beni chigaya |
|
|
Iris ensata |
hana shōbu |
|
|
Iris japonica |
shaga |
|
|
Iris laevigata |
kakitsubata |
|
|
Iris pseudacorus |
ki shōbu |
|
|
Iris sanguinea |
ayame |
|
|
Kirengeshoma palmata |
ki renge shōma |
ki=yellow, like Anemonopsis |
|
Lilium auratum |
yama yuri |
yama=mountain, yuri=lily |
|
Lilium lancifolium |
oni yuri |
|
|
Lilium longiflorum |
tepp ō yuri |
|
|
Liriope muscari |
yabu ran |
|
|
Lycoris radiata |
higan bana |
bloom time (bana) during autumn equinox (higan) |
|
Lysichiton camtschatcensis |
mizu bash ō |
|
|
Matteuccia struthiopteris |
kusa sotetsu |
|
|
Miscanthus sinensis |
susuki, obana, kaya |
|
|
M. sinensis ‘Variegatus’ |
shima susuki |
shima=stripe |
|
M. sinensis ‘Zebrinus’ |
taka-no-ha susuki |
|
|
Narcissus tazetta |
suisen |
|
|
Nelumbo nucifera |
hasu |
|
|
Nymphaea tetragona |
hitsuji gusa |
|
|
Ophiopogon japonicus |
ja-no-hige |
|
|
Ophiopogon planiscapus |
ō ba ja-no-hige |
|
|
O. planiscapus ‘Nigrescens’ |
koku ry ū |
|
|
Osmunda japonica |
zemmai |
|
|
Paeonia obovata var. japonica |
shakuyaku |
|
|
Paeonia japonica |
yama shakuyaku |
|
|
Pennisetum alopecuroides |
chikara shiba, michi shiba |
|
|
Petasites japonicus |
fuki |
|
|
Phyllostachys nigra |
kuro chiku |
|
|
Platycodon grandiflorus |
kiky ō ari-no-hi fuki |
|
|
Pleioblastus linearis |
Ryū kyū chiku |
|
|
Polygonatum odoratum var. pluriflorum |
amadokoro |
|
|
P. o. var. pluriflorum ‘Variegatum’ |
fuiri amadokoro |
|
|
Primula japonica |
kurins ō |
|
|
Primula sieboldii |
sakuras ō |
|
|
Reineckea carnea |
kichij ōsō |
|
|
Rodgersia podophylla |
yagurumas ō |
|
|
Sasa veitchii |
kuma zasa |
|
|
Saxifraga stolonifera |
yuki-no-shita |
|
|
Semiarundinaria fastuosa |
Narihira dake |
|
|
Shibataea kumasasa |
okame zasa |
|
|
Symplocarpus foetidus |
zazens ō |
|
|
Tricyrtis hirta |
hototogisu |
resembling spotted breast feathers on a little cuckoo |
|
Viola mandshurica |
sumire |
|
|
Viola odorata |
nioi sumire |
|
|
Viola orientalis |
ki sumire |
|
|
Zephyranthes candida |
tama sudare |
For more information on these plants and other ornamentals, consult Garden Plants of Japan, Yamamori and Taaffe.