Hello! The heat has finally abated, and the weather has become more comfortable. At the Sasabe Sakura Reference Room in the Sake Museum, the Summer/Autumn Exhibition “Do you know? Secrets of Cherry Blossoms” is being held until November 18. We hope you will visit the museum in this cultural autumn season.
Now, autumn is the season for viewing the autumn leaves. Cherry blossom trees also change their leaves from green to red and yellow in autumn. The “Nishinomiya Gongendaira Cherry Blossom” located in the parking lot of the museum also changes completely in autumn.
Ekiraku Sansou (Takadao, Takarazuka City), the research forest where Sasabe Shintarō experimented with grafting and other methods of growing cherry trees, is planted with various varieties of cherry trees, making it possible to enjoy viewing cherry blossoms for a long period of time in spring. However, spring is not the only time of year to view the cherry blossoms at Ekiraku Sansou.
He cherished cherry blossom trees, and he believed that a landscape with the trees would be enhanced not only by the cherry trees themselves, but also by their combination with other plants.
In 1941, he went to Yunoyama Hot Spring in Mie Prefecture to plant wild cherry blossom trees. Yunoyama is a place where one can enjoy the beautiful scenery of the four seasons, including the autumn leaves and cherry blossoms. He describes the scenery of Yunoyama as a wonderful combination of cherry blossoms and maples, combined with a mountain stream. He liked it so much that he gave it a high ranking in his own ranking of cherry blossom viewing spots.
Looking at the “Ekiraku Sansou Records,” the logbook of his work, we find frequent references to the planting of mountain maples in the records of the first few years of maintenance. One year they prepared and planted more than 500 maple trees of various varieties at one time.
Also, he enjoyed viewing maples with acquaintances in autumn. That record also shows that he loved autumn leaves as well as cherry blossoms.
Today, Ekiraku Sansou is also a popular spot for viewing cherry blossoms as well as for autumn leaves, and many hikers come to enjoy the cherry blossoms and other autumn colors.
In Japanese art, the combination of cherry blossoms and autumn leaves has a special name, “Unkin (cloud brocade).” The term is often used for patterns on ceramics and kimonos, comparing cherry blossoms in full bloom to white clouds and vivid autumn leaves to brocade. Sasabe collected arts and crafts with cherry blossom design, but when it comes to unkin, there were just too many of them so he had left them out of his collection. Nevertheless, several works are included in his collection, perhaps because of the attraction.
When you go out for autumn leaf viewing, why don’t you enjoy it while imagining the combination with cherry blossoms like Sasabe does? Please look forward to the next issue!
Mr. Sasabe was a good speaker!