Stephen Montoya
You can’t help but feel you’ve traveled to another country entirely when entering the already 50-year-old entrance of the Fort Worth Japanese Garden. This lush 7.5-acre garth located on the west side of the Fort Worth Botanic Garden boasts an otherworldly glimpse of bamboo, cherry trees, and ponds filled with koi fish.
In fact, this was my first impression of the garden when I first entered it in 4th Grade during a class field trip. I had that same nostalgic feeling when I walked through the iconic entrance earlier this month for the Japanese Garden's 50th anniversary. And although many things have changed over the 20 plus years since I first strolled through this foliage filled sanctuary, it still brought me back to my youth. And I wasn’t alone on this thought either, Eric Painter, son of Henry Painter, former director of the Botanic Garden says he used to play in the Japanese Garden as a toddler.
Stephen Montoya
“Climbing the Japanese moon deck took several attempts,” he joked while giving a speech on his father’s behalf for the garden's 50th. “The checkerboard bridge and feeding a koi fish named Hot Lips was a must, every time I visited the tea house.”
But long before this space would be transformed into the tranquil garden it is today, it too had to go through several years of changes. In fact, the Japanese Garden sits on what was once a gravel pit and a cavalry unit dump filled with old plumbing and stable contents before plans to change this space into a garden began in the 1960s. The property was purchased in 1963 and designed in 1968 by Kingsley Wu, with the the Fort Worth Park and Recreation Department staff completing the ponds, waterfalls, and spillways.
Former City Parks Director Charles Campbell along with former Garden Director Scott Fikes brought in Fort Worth Architect Al Komatsu to help bring the plans to fruition in 1968. Komatsu said he was immediately drawn to this plot of land because of its unique topography. At the heart of the landscape is a system of ponds, surrounded by hills and enclosed by a network of interconnected paths, pavilions, bridges, and decks. As the name implies, the garden unfolds as an ever-changing series of landscape perspectives to visitors who stroll along those thoroughfares.
The garden itself was built in the tradition of Edo period stroll gardens, which integrates several Japanese styles of garden design into a single landscape. Examples of this include the hill and pond, dry landscape, tea garden and several enclosed gardens. Later editions included the Suzuki Garden, the Moriarty Garden, the Koshi House, the deck treasure tree gift shop, and boardwalk. And although there are several indigenous plants to Fort Worth found in the garden, many of the plants and the architectural design where in fact a gift from our sister city Nagaoka, Japan.
Stephen Montoya
Fort Worth Architect Al Komatsu takes a bow at the Japanese Gardens 50th Celebration Thursday Nov. 2, 2023.
In late 1990, with the guidance and design of Komatsu and support of the Fort Worth Botanic Society a bride room and facilities where added for wedding parties. In the early 2000s, the Japanese Garden greatly expanded its wheelchair access and built an upper boardwalk.
“The Japanese Garden has been and continues to be a distinctive and sacred place for generations of the people of Fort Worth having held countless weddings, engagements, [and] photoshoots creating emotional souvenirs,” says Richard Zavala, parks and community services director for the City of Fort Worth.
The current day-to-day maintenance of the Japanese Garden falls on horticulture manager Nick Esthus, who has been overseeing the garden’s needs for seven years.
“It's a lot of effort,” Esthus says in regard to the daily upkeep he oversees. “It's a lot of thinking seasonally about our calendar and anticipating what weather conditions we're going to have and other events that we're going to host.”
Another aspect that helped give Esthus a better understanding of this garden was his attendance at an actual two-week seminar in Kyoto, Japan.
“[The seminar] covered Japanese garden design theory and looking at old gardens,” he says. “I mean there are some very specific things I’ve learned over the years, but really I also learn from a lot of trial and error.”
When asked what his favorite spot in the garden is, Esthus says the newly refurbished middle island and moon bridge come to mind.
“That bridge is so iconic for the garden and to be able to be a part of the restoration of it and then the pathway on the island and sort of reforming that landscape, that's probably some of the work that I'm most proud of.”
