ショクダイオオコンニャク

The world's largest flower, the Amorphophallus titanum, which is native to Indonesia's Sumatra island has drawn huge crowds as it bloomed in Tokyo's Koishikawa Botanical Gardens.

At full bloom the plant gives off a terrible smell. The plant has grown from a seed donated in 1993.


The Koishikawa Botanical Gardens open from 9am-4pm and are closed on Mondays.

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アジサイ　紫陽花

The quintessential rainy season flower in Japan is the hydrangea - ajisai in Japanese.



Appearing in gardens and temples throughout Honshu, Shikoku and Kyushu, the hydrangea is at its best in mid-June. The stems should be trimmed in the fall to ensure strong growth.



A number of temple and shrine gardens are well-known for their hydrangeas including Meigetsu-in in Kamakura, Fujimori Jinja Shrine in Fushimi in Kyoto and Tofukuji also in south east Kyoto.

The hydrangea is native to south and east Asia (China, Korea, Japan, the Himalaya region and Indonesia) as well as North and South America. There are over 70 species. The leaves are toxic if eaten and there have been a number of cases of Japanese restaurants serving the leaves as a garnish and unwittingly poisoning their customers!


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菊

The chrysanthemum holds a very special place in Japanese society.

The flower is thought to have been introduced into Japan in the 8th century AD. Later the Emperor adopted the flower for his official seal, and his throne itself is known as the Chrysanthemum Throne.

The chrysanthemum crest (菊花紋章, kiku kamonsho) is often used as a design element, the Imperial Seal of Japan merely being the most famous. For example, chrysanthemum crests are often found in Japanese shrines, and also grace the Self Defense Force's Mikasa battleship.

The Supreme Order of the Chrysanthemum is Japan's greatest honor, given out by the Emperor, and similar to France's Legion of Honor. Past recipients include Prince Charles and President Ronald Reagan.

Unlike France, where the full, bushy flower can be used as an allusion to part of the female anatomy, in Japan the chrysanthemum has been used in poetry to allude to a (different but not so distant) part of the male anatomy and is a metaphor for homosexuality.

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フラワー　オークション　ジャパン

Flowers, more flowers, and things you hardly even realized were flowers. The Flower Auction Japan, in Tokyo, is a veritable zoo of all things floral. It is also features a constant human hubbub of visitors and buyers, milling around the stalls inspecting the wares, or sitting amidst the shouts in the tiered auction room finger poised over the electronic bidding console.

The Flower Auction Japan is in Tokyo’s Ohta ward, only a few minutes drive from Haneda Airport. Officially it is the premises of the Flower and Ornamental Plant Department of Ohta Market, the Tokyo Metropolitan Central Market, a market concern that also includes a separate fruit and vegetable department, and a seafood department, both located nearby. It has been operating since 1988.

I visited it on a public holiday which, because it was a Monday, meant business as usual for the Flower Auction Japan, but, because it was a public holiday, meant less business than usual, too.


Photography was permitted, so long as no flash was used, and it was an atmosphere of complete laissez faire as the idly curious, like myself, and those whose livelihoods depended on it all, browsed, snapped pictures, talked to stall keepers, and participated in the auction.

Flower Auction Japan is about 10 minutes on foot from the Tokyo Monorail Ryutsu Center Station.

Check out the English language Flower Auction Japan website for more details.









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