THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, October 4, 1995 TAG: 9510040131
SECTION: ISLE OF WIGHT CITIZEN PAGE: 06 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Cover Story
SOURCE: BY ALLISON T. WILLIAMS, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Long : 154 lines
NOT EVEN THE ROAR of airplanes coming and going all day at nearby Norfolk International Airport disturbs the tranquillity of Kitakyushu Park, and that's exactly how Bill Pinkham planned it.
In Japan, gardens are peaceful places where adults go to meditate and everyone, including children, go to pay respect to the natural environment.
At Norfolk Botanical Garden, Kitakyushu Park is a place where anybody can see an authentic Japanese landscape, created by Pinkham over almost a year with stones, plants and water.
A stream meanders gently through the gravel paths that wind in and out of the newly renovated garden, first built in 1962. Granite stones and plants are carefully arranged in a design that mimics the great outdoors - mountains, waterfalls, hills, the sea.
Pinkham hopes visitors will see the re-creation of the serene landscape of Japan as a place to escape the cares of the world, relax and enjoy nature.
That's what the Smithfield Gardens owner, who lives in Carrollton and does business just across the line in Suffolk's Crittenden section, strived to achieve in the $175,000 restoration and expansion.
Traditional Japanese gardens revolve around three elements: plants, stones and water, Pinkham says. And when water is not available, which often happens in the limited space of urban Japan, the Japanese will simulate its presence with patterns of stones or gravel - as was the case with Kitakyushu Park before Pinkham went to work on it.
``Although it's not as structured or stylized as other gardens, you can see a lot of nature in the Japanese garden,'' Pinkham says. ``The Japanese garden leaves a lot for visitors to interpret or contemplate for themselves. My goal was to create the most dramatic elements possible within the given budget, yet still retain the necessary simplicity.''
Ironically, Pinkham says he found retaining the garden's simplicity was one of the project's greatest challenges.
``There is so much going on in the garden that creates the overall effect of simplicity.''
Pinkham's interest in Japanese horticulture stems from bonsai gardening, a hobby he picked up while attending Virginia Tech, and his interest in using rocks in landscape.
``Japanese gardening is a natural marriage between the two,'' he says.
When he first opened Smithfield Gardens in 1972, the landscape nursery had a bonsai division - although it eventually was dropped because sales didn't sustain it.
While Pinkham, an amateur photographer, and his wife, Linda, spent two weeks vacationing in Japan several years ago, he devoted a full week to touring and photographing dozens of Japanese gardens. Back home, he used the pictures to teach himself how to design authentic Japanese gardens.
Under Pinkham's guidance, crews from Smithfield Gardens spent nearly a year working on the renovation, which included installing a pond - with water and a filtration system for koi, a type of Japanese carp - adding plantings, improving walkways and building an authentic, 6-foot-high Japanese stone wall.
Trees and plants from the original garden include the Japanese snowball, the Japanese black pine, the Japanese red maple, the flowering cherry and the Japanese holly. In addition to planting more of these plants, Pinkham added bamboo, dwarf Japanese azaleas and Honoki cypress trees.
Smithfield Gardens raised nearly all the trees and plants the nursery put into Kitakyushu Park, Pinkham says. Some of the trees, including the Japanese red pines, are more than 25 years old.
Norfolk Botanical Garden earmarked $132,000 to fund the restoration project. About $40,000 of that was donated by the Hampton Roads Japanese community, Botanical Garden Executive Director Peter Frederick says. But so far, the actual work has cost $175,000. Pinkham donated the balance.
``Pinkham was incredibly successful in his quest to recreate a typical Japanese garden,'' Frederick says. ``Walking into Kitakyushu Park reminds me of visits I've made to gardens in Japan. Simplicity is very, very important in line and design.''
Dr. Hiroyuki Hamada, a physical education professor at Old Dominion University, says Kitakyushu Park accurately shows all the amenities of a Japanese garden.
``I think the garden itself is very splendid. It tells a story of both beauty and simplicity and permeates the subtle balance of harmony in nature.''
Every member of the Japanese delegation who visited Norfolk for the Kitakyushu Park's opening ceremony in August felt Pinkham had created a ``very high-class and beautifully designed Japanese garden,'' Hamada says.
Frederick considers Pinkham one of only four recognized Japanese garden designers in Hampton Roads. He was selected when the Botanical Garden's executive board decided to invest in the restoration of its half-acre Japanese garden.
``There are so few people in this area with good experience in creating Japanese gardens that we know who they all are,'' Frederick says.
There are very few true Japanese gardens in Hampton Roads' homes, Pinkham says. Although people can hire Smithfield Gardens to build them, he says most people are interested in adding just one feature of a traditional Japanese garden - such as a large granite stone or a fountain - to their existing gardens.
Pinkham says he could design a small but authentic Japanese garden for as little as $5,000.
The Botanical Garden opened its original Japanese garden in February 1962, created by Nancy Timmons, a former landscape designer from Portsmouth.
It wasn't until May 1989 that it was named Kitakyushu Park, in honor of the 30th anniversary of Norfolk's sister-city relationship with that Japanese city.
On Aug. 5, more than 900 people, including about 100 guests from Japan, gathered at the Botanical Garden to celebrate the re-opening of Kitakyushu Park, which had been blocked off from the public for about six months.
The garden also features stone and concrete statues, most of which were donated by delegations from Kitakyushu. Items include two stone lanterns, a 2-foot-deep basin and a monument of KoKara Castle.
The newest donation is a stone bridge that crosses the pond, Frederick says.
The restoration and expansion was timed to be complete for the grand opening celebration of the new, $2.9 million Baker Hall Visitors' Center, which is scheduled to open to the public Oct. 15.
Pinkham and Frederick hope that event also will move Hampton Roads residents an opportunity to visit Kitakyushu Park.
``In Japan, a lot of people go to the gardens because they believe it cleanses their souls,'' Pinkham says. ``It's not just a miniature version of nature, but it's a way to bring you back in touch.
``I worked hard on this. I hope everyone enjoys it.'' ILLUSTRATION: [Cover]
DIFFICULT TO ACHIEVE SIMPLICITY
[Color Photo]
[Bill Pinkham]
Staff photos by VICKI CRONIS
Bill Pinkham strolls up to one of the entrances to Kitakyushu Park.
Pinkham is one of only four recognized Japanese garden designers in
Hampton Roads.
A red lace leaf maple tree shields plants and people alike from the
glare and heat of the summer sun. As more funding becomes
available, the park will get more plants.
A path winds through Kitakyushu Park, part of Norfolk Botanical
Garden near Norfolk International Airport.
A WALK IN THE GARDEN
The Norfolk Botanical Garden is open daily from 8:30 a.m. until
sunset and costs $2.50 for adults and $1.50 for youths and senior
citizens. There is no charge for children under 5 and members of the
Botanical Garden Society.
Train tours through the Botanical Garden cost $2.50 per person
more.
The Norfolk Botanical Garden is on Azalea Garden Road, between
Little Creek Road and Norview Avenue. To reach it, take Interstate
64 to the Norview/Airport exit, turn left on Azalea Garden and
follow the signs.
by CNB