Suihoen Japanese Garden
DETAILS:
Location: 6100 Woodley Ave, Van Nuys, CA 91406
Hours of Operation: Monday thru Thursday; 11AM to 4PM (last entry at 3:15PM) / Sunday 10AM to 4PM (last entery at 3:15PM)
Parking: Free parking lot on site.
Cost: $5 Adults / $3 Seniors and children 12 & under (CASH ONLY)
Time Commitment: 1 hour.
Miscellaneous: Tea service is held every 2nd & 4th Sunday of the month (barring inclement weather or Holiday) where you can enjoy a complimentary cup of tea and a Japanese snack. These Sunday sessions run from 10AM to 3:30PM
Tucked away on the sprawling grounds of the Sepulveda Basin Recreation Area, one of the largest open spaces in the San Fernando Valley, lays the Suihoen Japanese Garden. Situated across six acres, the garden is actually comprised of three smaller gardens that borrow from classic Japanese design. Distinguished by its arrangement of gravel and stone, you’ll encounter the Zen Mediation Garden (“Karesansui”) first before moving onto the Chisen Garden. This region covers the bulk of the property and is fashioned after the “wet strolling” gardens that were fist popularized in pre-twentieth century Japan. Mimicking the large estates that these gardens traditionally resided upon, a bright and open atmosphere is created as the trails in this area meander along various waterways, allowing for unique vantage points throughout the space until it eventually gives way to the garden’s centerpiece; the Shoin Building which includes an authentic teahouse and garden. The Shoin Building is meant to represent the type of dwelling that would’ve housed aristocrats, upper class monks, or samurai during the 14th and 15th century. And while you won’t find any katana-wielding warriors living there today, you can still enjoy tea service in the building every second and fourth Sunday of the month.
Aptly named Suihoen which is Japanese for “garden of water and fragrance”, one of the more interesting tidbits about this garden is that all of its water is 100% supplied by the Donald C. Tillman Water Reclamation Plant that sits next-door. Producing almost 26 million gallons of recycled water each day, the plant treats most of the wastewater created in the San Fernando Valley and is directly responsible for the garden’s existence since the two were established in conjunction with one another in 1984 as a symbol of harmony between nature and industry. The two are so intertwined, in fact, that the plant’s administration building actually serves as the eastern border to the garden and together famously appear as Starfleet Academy in Star Trek: The Next Generation. But rather than boldly going where no man had gone before, why not take your starship of choice to the Suihoen Japanese Garden instead? The milage you’ll save is worth the visit alone.
RESOURCES:
Suihoen Japanese Garden website.
