The Persistence of Green

Woodland garden is long on shade and serenity

Rosemarie Howard’s curated spread in Flat Rock took some 24 years to reach peak tranquility. But the art of process is part of the point, as Howard recently told Carolina Home + Garden. Always a fan of Japanese gardens, she hired Masashi “Mike” Oshita, a certified and classically trained Japanese gardener from Weaverville, “[who] also brings his experience and love of the mountains into his creative process,” says Howard. Fifteen years ago, Oshita created structures and implemented rockwork. “He is a master at stone placement – his specialty,” says Howard. “He has touched and help shape my garden over the years.”

Flowers are relatively few, and include Hosta, tropical caladium, and richly delicate fuchsia. Howard has anchored a majority of plants in pots, because the ground itself “is mostly covered in moss … I have tried to keep a natural feel,” she explains. The list of trees is long and leans exotic, although plenty of native hardwoods, including red oak, hickory, sourwood, and white pine, are also numbered in the mix. But it’s the Cascade Falls Weeping Bald Cypress lingering over the pond, ruminating on its own reflection, that somehow stands for the whole. 

Beyond the garden’s distinct parts — the Japanese garden, the pond area, and the woodlands — and other water features, an additional, less measurable component is its distinct sense of whimsy and wonder. An arrowed stack sign directs visitors to famous gardens visited, plus one yet on the “bucket list.” Howard’s chosen planters have eyes — some are shaped like heads, others are rabbits or owls. A figure that suggests a more optimistic version of the Wizard of Oz’s Tin Man patiently supports sprouting fern “hair.”

“And of course [there’s the] fairy garden,” says Howard, her claim backed by the peaceful, playful shadows of a deeply realized woodland oasis.