Commemorating our 45th anniversary

My encounter with Serakogen Farm was nearly 10 years ago. It all started when CEO Yoshimune Seiya suddenly showed up alone at the English Rose Garden in Sennan City, Osaka Prefecture. I had never even heard of the place name "Sera," so to be honest I was a little suspicious (lol), but I was unable to meet him at the time. I ended up meeting Yoshimune at a later date at Serakogen Farm in Sera Town, Hiroshima Prefecture. After several meetings, I was tasked with creating a rose planting plan that would fit the overall concept of the farm.

At that time, I often planned tours to take rose lovers to England, and I felt a strange joy in knowing that the places I took my guests were more excited than any famous rose gardens, and were the fields of David Austin Company, that is, the fields where rose seedlings are grown. Of course, I think the biggest attraction was being able to see new varieties of flowers that had not yet been named. However, since it was a field, the plants had not yet grown large, and even in the peak of rose season, each plant only had a few flowers. However, the large number of plants of each variety created a "flower landscape" like the lavender fields of Furano, Hokkaido, and it was a landscape that impressed rose-loving guests.

At that time, Serakogen Farm's selling point was, for better or worse, the overwhelming volume of tulips and sunflowers used to create a spectacular flower landscape, known as "mass planting," which was actually quite popular. However, the ongoing "gardening boom" in society was roughly speaking about "combining various plants to create a beautiful space," and I felt that it was a little crude to stun the audience with an overwhelming number of plants. I felt that this was a little out of touch with the awareness of so-called gardening fans, or rosarians, the so-called "maniacs" who enjoy the intricacies of combining garden plants and roses.

Needless to say, we had to think of ways to plant roses that would be enjoyable for this "fanatic" demographic, but compared to the number of people who "like flowers" or "like flower-filled scenery," the fanatic demographic is probably less than a tenth of the total. Or, as I discussed with Yoshimune, the percentage of people who are not touched by beautiful flower scenery is probably close to zero.

So, of course we need a plan that will please the enthusiasts as much as possible, but we also need a plan that will resonate with the majority of people with a human heart (lol). My experience on the UK tour mentioned earlier led me to the idea that a certain amount of "mass planting" might be one solution.

Fortunately, the shrub shape (a bush-like growth that can stand on its own without the need for supports) that is characteristic of English roses is well suited to mass planting, and when in full bloom, the roses form arches across the grounds, blooming in rows like a true rose field. With the clear blue sky of the Serakagen Highlands as a backdrop, they delight visitors every year with their rich fragrance. Considering that it takes many years for the roses to grow into a sturdy shape, it can be said that this rose garden has finally reached maturity.

However, I think the main reason why Yoshimune-san was interested in roses in the first place was because roses are not only in season from May to June, but also in autumn, when people enjoy them. In fact, he has repeatedly spoken of a secret plan to add other flowering trees in the future, so that people can enjoy the scenery even outside of the rose season. This plan has been partially realized, and I believe it will continue to develop in the future.

Recently, I found myself wondering why Serakogen Farm attracts more attention than other flower sightseeing spots (of course, I'm being biased). There are many other flower sightseeing spots that display the same types of plants as the farm. When one spot becomes a big hit with a particular plant and attracts attention, they all try to use it to attract more visitors (of course, that's not to say that Serakogen Farm doesn't do this at all), but because they only cut the flower once, it's "over" when the season for that flower ends.

Changing the subject a little, it is said that the two countries in the East and West where horticultural culture has flourished since ancient times are Japan and the United Kingdom. If we ask why horticultural culture flourished in these two countries, which are at opposite ends of the geographical spectrum, one thing they have in common is that they both have four distinct seasons and have cultivated a cultural upbringing that allows them to appreciate the changing of the seasons.

Needless to say, the Japanese are a people who have deepened and felt not only their gardening but also their lifestyle and cultural sophistication in the four seasons. On the other hand, the UK, which can be said to be the home of gardening, also has clear four seasons, and many large gardens have been created within that gardening culture. Most of these gardens require more than a day to look around. The plants in them are diverse, and there are many places where you can feel the change of the seasons within a single garden. Most gardens have cafes where you can relax, and if you stay for a few days, you will often notice, "Oh? That old person was sitting in the same place yesterday?" It would be enough to say that they do it when they have free time, but I think they probably visit a considerable number of days a year. To put it dramatically, I think this person is enjoying the change of the seasons, which they can feel deep in their hearts, within their cultural background. Of course, there are many situations in Japan where we can feel the change of the seasons and be moved by them in our daily lives. However, in many parts of Japan, summers have become longer and longer, and spring and winter seem to pass in the blink of an eye, so perhaps the areas where the traditional four seasons can still be felt clearly are becoming very few and far between.

Serakogen Farm is located at an altitude of 500m, and the temperature changes by an average of 2 to 3 degrees compared to the center of Serakogen Town. When I was a child, the Osaka plains were so cold that when I went outside (especially at night), I felt a tense temperature for several days a year. However, in the past two or three years, the days when it was so cold that it was difficult to work outside have almost disappeared in the Osaka plains.

It has been just under 10 years since the rose project began at Serakagen Farm. The Serakagen region is one of the few areas left in Japan where you can strongly experience the four seasons, and by staying there during each season, I was able to experience for myself.

As the Serakogen Farm Group,

Moss pinks and nemophila, hydrangeas and hollyhocks, heavenly blue, kochia and cosmos at "Kamyu no Sato"

Cherry blossoms, tulips, sunflowers, dahlias and garden mums at Serakogen Farm

Fuji apples and lupines from "Sera Fuji Garden"

Even though we are in Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan, we can feel nature with the original Japanese climate and four seasons, in almost the same place as an English garden. Just like the old man who appears every day at the English garden, we can feel the four seasons. To put it dramatically, it feels like we have spent years creating a place where you can feel "life living in Japan". It is a place that can fill your heart, the soul of Japanese people who enjoy the four seasons, nurtured over thousands of years at the very least. Its existence sets it apart from other one-off flower sightseeing spots. I am very happy to have been able to play a part in it, however small.

I have fun thinking that by the 50th anniversary, we will have reached a level where no one can match us (laughs).

David Austin Rose

Contract Gardener Rose Specialist

Makoto Hiraoka

A rose garden designer with 25 years of professional experience planting English roses, she is one of the few gardeners who knows how English roses grow in a garden. From August 2005, she was dispatched to Kazanlak (commonly known as the Rose Valley) in Bulgaria as a short-term rose strategy expert for the Japan International Cooperation Agency for three years, and then joined David Austin Roses Co., Ltd. in 2006. Since 2011, she has been working as a technical specialist, mainly designing rose gardens in various locations and private rose gardens, and giving lectures on rose cultivation. Since 2021, she has been an external contract gardener due to childcare, and is engaged in the same activities as when she was an employee.