Tilia Miqueliana Maxim 菩提樹

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They're the fruits of tilia miqueliana Maxim in Koishikawa Botanical Garden. Their green color and roundness is so beautiful and cute!

The problem is, however, that tilia miqueliana Maxim is called "Bodaiju" in Japanese, meaning "ficus religiosa" or "sacred fig," under which Buddha is believed to have attained enlightenment.

This confusion occurred due to the mistaking of a tilia miqueliana Maxim tree for a sacred fig tree by Myōan Eisai (1141 - 1215), a Japanese Buddhist priest, and as a result, many temples across Japan have planted tilia miqueliana Maxim trees, calling them "sacred fig trees." But Eisai is believed to have also brought the Rinzai school of Zen Buddhism and green tea from China to Japan. This offsets his misunderstanding!😊 

 

Tilia miqueliana Maxim 菩提樹

Alangium Platanifolium (Siebold et Zucc.) Harms Var. Trilobatum (Miq.) Ohwi 瓜の木（ウリノキ）

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This is the flower of alangium platanifolium (Siebold et Zucc.) Harms var. trilobatum (Miq.) Ohwi. The name is too long, but the curled white petals are so tiny and cute!

Alangium platanifolium (Siebold et Zucc.) Harms var. trilobatum (Miq.) Ohwi 瓜の木

Netsuke "A Tortoise with Hatchlings" 親子亀牙彫根付

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The first photo is of a 3 cm ivory netsuke (sculpture) in the shape of a tortoise with hatchlings, on display at the Tokyo National Museum. It was carved by Mitsuhiro in the 19th century. The second photo is of a real tortoise I saw taking a walk 😜 in the Koishikawa Botanical Garden.

Incense Burner - Lions Smile in Asia 織部獅子鈕香炉 - 獅子はアジアで笑う

Japanese follows English. 英語の後に日本語が続きます。

This is an incense burner with a knob in the shape of a lion on show at Tokyo National Museum. The burner is Oribe style Mino ware made in Japan in 1612. Its green glaze is so beautiful. The Oribe style is a type of Japanese pottery that first appeared in the 16th century under Oribe Furuta’s guidance, and Mino ware is also Japanese pottery produced in Mino Province, an area in the current Gifu Prefecture, central Japan. 

Now, you have basic knowledge about this pottery, so look at the funny face of the lion and compare it with another lion in the third photo!! 

Incense burner with lion-shaped knob, Oribe type Mino ware, 1612 
織部獅子鈕香炉 1612年

Galls on Styrax Japonicus (Japanese Snowbell) are Cute but GROSS😱 エゴノネコアシはキモカワ😱

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Do you know something cute but GROSS? This is a gall of ceratovacuna nekoashi on styrax japonicus or Japanese snowbell. A gall is an abnormal, localized outgrowth or swelling of plant tissue caused by infection from bacteria, fungi, viruses, and nematodes or irritation by insects and mites (Britannica). And galls on Japanese snowbell trees are caused by APHIDS, meaning these green things which look like some fruits or flower buds contain many many aphids😱! I didn't know that, so I almost touched the galls!

Galls on Japanese snowbell trees are called "Cat paws on Japanese snowbell" and I see why. The galls look like cat paws, but the name, which doesn't mention the important fact that they aren't cat paws or flowers but contain bugs😂, bothers me... 

A gall on Japanese snowbell エゴノネコアシ

Netsuke "A Demon Holding A Mask" 面持鬼木彫漆塗根付

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This 3 cm wooden netsuke, in the shape of a demon holding a mask, was carved by Ryukei in the 19th century and is on display at the Tokyo National Museum.

A netsuke is a small carved ornament, especially of ivory or wood, worn as part of Japanese traditional dress as a toggle by which an article may be attached to the sash of a kimono. (Source: Lexico)

Netsuke "Corbicula Gatherer" 蜆採木彫根付

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This 3 cm tall netsuke on display at the Tokyo National Museum depicts a corbicula gatherer; it was carved from wood in the 19th century by an unknown artist named Ryukei.

Netsuke "Daruma" 根付「達磨」

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These are 'Daruma' netsuke on display at the Tokyo National Museum—the first by Hoshu Yamagata and the second by Hosen Miyazara. Both are carved from ivory and stand between 3 and 5 cm tall.

Magnolia Grandiflora 'Exmouth' (Southern Magnolia) 細葉泰山木（ホソバタイサンボク）

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This is magnolia grandiflora 'Exmouth' (southern magnolia) in my neighborhood, one of the cultivars of magnolia grandiflora, which I saw at Tennoji temple a few weeks ago. Magnolia Exmouth has this name because this was developed in Exmouth, Devon.

Magnolia grandiflora 'Exmouth' 細葉泰山木

Hydrangea Changing from White to Blue 白から青に変わる紫陽花

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This hydrangea was definitely white, but the color has been changing, and now like this. The blue is so pale and calm...  

Pale blue now but white in late May 6月中旬は青いけど｡｡｡

Lizard and Bug - Predator and Prey トカゲと虫 - 食うものと食われるもの

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I found the lizard in the first photo, and then the bug in the second... I have no idea what happened next! The lizard noticed me taking photos and bolted. But it made me think about a world where predator and prey live side by side—kind of like a husband and wife living under the same roof! 😁

Feijoa Sellowiana フェイジョア

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This is the flower of feijoa sellowiana or more commonly feijoa or pineapple guava. (It's not guava, though). The gold tips of the red stamens are so beautiful!! 

Feijoa sellowiana フェイジョア

Magnolia Grandiflora (Southern Magnolia) 泰山木（タイサンボク）

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This is a magnolia grandiflora or commonly known as southern magnolia tree at Tennoji temple in Ueno, Tokyo. Can you see how the flowers are big? 

Magnolia grandiflora tree at Tennoji temple 天王寺の泰山木

The flower of southern magnolia is big!! タイサンボクの花って大きい！

Stewartia Pseudocamellia (Korean Stewartia) 婆羅双樹（ホントは夏椿）

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They are the fruit of the stewartia pseudocamellia or Korean stewartia or Japanese stewartia I saw at Tennōji temple in Ueno, Tokyo. It took me two hours to identify the tree for a reason you can see in the third photo...

Stewartia pseudocamellia 沙羅双樹？