There is something about the garden at the Ichibantai which is quite unlike any other in the Seireitei, for its display is not only to do with flower color, but foliage form, textures and, of course, as it moves to autumn, with foliage color as well. Although the garden is only four acres in size, its layout is such that the visitor enjoys many small areas within the overall, for it is punctuated with pieces of statuary, a well designed pot or a warm sitting corner. In fact, it is a garden full of ideas to take home, and which can then be interpreted within smaller garden spaces. One of the most interesting features in the garden is the use of gravel. It is used both to walk on and as a growing medium so that you progress through the plantings rather than past them. It creates a casual, jungly effect, particularly in the walled garden, whilst allowing the plants to develop naturally.And to cut down on the labor of constantly mowing the grass to one length, much of it is left longer and is cut monthly with a rotary mower of spiritual pressure each week. The effect is of a tamed wilderness, and the organic patterns this creates combine with the random growth of plant material through gravel to create a thoroughly relaxed and very different mood. At the bottom of the garden there is a large natural-looking pond with the freshest water thanks to the fourth division attending to it daily in which she pays them handsomely. There is a walled garden containing a recently introduced herb garden, a newly refurbished conservatory- now alive with the chatter of budgerigars, and a larger area for frost-tender plants. If that isn't enough, The Garden Café is available for morning coffee, lunches, afternoon teas and is fully licensed so you can enjoy a glass of wine with your meal. What more did you expect from the first division. She loves this place the most within her division.
