Giant Trees
- Top
- Highlights
- Giant Trees
Japanese Elm
In the midst of the Landscape Garden facing the Old Imperial Rest House stands an eye-catchingly tall and proud Japanese elm. This species is commonly seen in Hokkaido and northern Japan but is rare in the Kanto region. The shape of this particular elm in Shinjuku Gyoen resembles that of the camphor tree. Tiny flowers bloom on the tree in mid-March.
London Planes (Platanus × acerifolia)
The rows of trees at the edges of the Formal Garden are London planes—a type of tree that lines streets around the world. “Plane” is a general term that applies to trees of the Platanus genus of the Platanaceae family, and nearly all of the planes at Shinjuku Gyoen are Platanus × acerifolia. The first London planes in Japan were planted at Shinjuku Gyoen during the late 1800s.
Tulip Trees
The tulip trees at Shinjuku Gyoen are some of the very first on Japanese soil, having been planted back in the late 1800s. The yellow-green flowers, which look like tulips, bloom from late April to mid-May.
Bald Cypresses
The bald cypress woods come into view around 200 meters down the peripheral path from the Shinjuku Gate into the Mother and Child Woods. Also known as “swamp cypresses,” these trees prefer in highly wet areas. They are characterized by the “aerial root” projections that form when the roots spike up out of the ground.