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context: gardens > general points > standard elements
Plants
The first key point is that flowers are not a big element of Japanese gardens - flower beds are not part of any garden. Trees and shrubs and mosses and grasses are commonly used: mostly green, rarely much of other colours (except those caused by the changing seasons). Worn and aged trees (pine, juniper) are good - and if you don't have any of those at hand, you can manipulate and distort trees over the years so they look that way, or so that they have the right shape for your composition.
* Seasons are extremely important in Japanese gardens, for colour changes, for falling leaves and the degree of leaf cover, for snow, and it is vital for any designer to take all such factors into account when designing the garden.