When reserved for private events, guests can enter the garden directly from the parking lot through the Turtle Gate.

The tiles on the top of the gate were imported from Japan and laid with precision.

Similar to the Crane Gate, the Turtle Gate was made entirely without screws in the traditional Japanese fashion, with the exception of the door hinges and metal plaque. The metal plaque was hand-made by Koji and marked with a red square, his signature.

The metal plaque depicts the 12 cherry blossoms representing the 12 months of the year. The red dot is Garden Master Koji Morimoto’s signature and the three stylized lines represent love, life, and harmony. Upon entering either gate, these stylized lines are repeated on the walkway. One can see these lines also by the entrance to the Zen Garden.

Inside the Gallery, one will find a wall acknowledging donors who made this project possible. Directly across from the entrance into the Gallery is a display wall, commemorating the accomplishments of the late Kansas Supreme Court Chief Justice Kay McFarland. The other seven walls explain the nature of a Japanese garden through comparison photography from Japanese and Kansas landscapes. Next to the Gallery is an Event Venue for celebrations and meetings.

Outside the Gallery and Event Venue are two Katshuga lanterns. These lanterns are based upon the dream of a monk in which he saw a Spirit riding a sacred white deer out of the mountains. The lotus leaf topped lanterns have images of the white deer on each side.

This hidden gem can be found on the west side of the event venue. It has an eight-stone grouping representing the immortals (godly spirits that guide one’s life). The dry landscape technique is a combination of stones and sand to suggest water and mountains. Boulders are placed to represent islands (a piece of land in an infinite ocean), an eagle’s nest, and mountains of Japan’s diverse landscape. The largest rock in the entire garden can be found at the far right; it weighs in excess of 7 tons.

In a Japanese Garden, Zen Gardens are intended to be a place for meditation. The dry landscape is based on the art of existential emptiness and nothingness, providing a meditative character to the garden.

Patterns are raked into the stone to suggest a ripple pattern, representing water, or other patterns such as peacocks. This raking is done in the traditional Japanese style with four and eight-tined rakes. These rakes were handmade by Rick Knight, the zoo’s horticulturist and grounds manager.

It will take five to seven years for the plantings in the garden to mature and accomplish their intended purposes, including creating visual barriers resulting in separate experiences on journeys through the garden. These are similar to divisions in a Bento Box or a tackle box, which allow the visitor to appreciate each area without their senses becoming overwhelmed by viewing the garden in its entirety all at once.

The garden flora includes 40-plus varieties of plants. These include flowers, flowering shrubs, grasses, trees, moss, and water plants.

Leading up to the Crane Tea House visitors are greeted with the Rok-kaku-yukimigata lantern and a stone basin and bamboo fountain intended to be used for the ritual bathing of hands and feet done before entering.

The entry to the Tea House is known in Japanese culture as the building’s face. On either side of the face are large smooth stones. These are actually only the top of very tall stones that have been buried vertically in the ground. In addition, specially created classical style vertical round poles sit on both sides of the entryway.

Along with the water element, there are stepping stones, each one further than the next to force one to slow down before entering the structure.

Designed with simplicity and tranquility in mind, the Crane Tea House uses limited materials providing one with a place for reflection as they gaze upon the Crane Pool. The tradition of a tea ceremony dates back to the 9th Century and was brought to Japan from China. Ceremonies would last for 4 ½–5 hours and every aspect of the tea ceremony is steeped in ritual and meaning representing purity, tranquility, respect, and harmony.

Bronze Cranes

Crane Pool

Bronze Cranes

Two Red-crowned cranes in a courtship dance, made by Paul Rimer.

Crane Pool

The Crane Pool consists of a still pool with a lovely waterfall, a small red bridge, vertical standing rocks, and two bronze cranes.

The Small Red Bridge at the overlook above the Crane Pool and Crane Tea House is a beautiful photo opportunity and a lovely place to experience the waterfall that flows beneath it.

The waterfall flowing into the Crane Pool and symbolic vertical rock formation represent ancestors, a male, and a female, with the water flowing through and past them towards the Crane Pool, representing their progeny.

Small Red Bridge

This is where a person goes to sit and wait for their mind and body to prepare to experience the garden.

At the foot of the waiting room, look down, a stepping stone can be found to adhere to the ancient traditions. Stepping stones are used to slow a person’s pace prior to entering a garden structure.