Barakura English Garden
Free RHS Member days
Daily, 1 January–31 December
About the garden
Opened in 1990 by the Yamada family, Barakura English Garden is the first English-style garden built in Japan. It is located at an altitude of 1,100 metres in the mountainous hot spring resort area of Tateshina, in central Nagano prefecture.
Initially designed by John Brookes MBE, the garden’s planting combines Japanese native plants, often widely used in English gardens, with imported foreign species and hybrids to create a unique gardening experience. Highlights include the blue-flowered Rhododendron augustinii ‘Barakura Blue’ and a sport of Rosa ‘Variegata di Bologna’, named ‘Mrs. Yamada’.
Barakura strives to promote the ethos of British horticulture, with a particular emphasis on container gardening. The Kay Yamada Gardening School, named after the RHS Chelsea Flower Show award-winning gardener Ms Kay Yamada, features online lectures from eminent British gardeners.
Facilities
- Dogs welcome
- Parking
- Refreshments
- Toilets
Key features
- Herbaceous border
- Autumn colour
- Colour themed borders
- Cottage planting
Get involved
The Royal Horticultural Society is the UK’s leading gardening charity. We aim to enrich everyone’s life through plants, and make the UK a greener and more beautiful place.