It was one of those pre-Christmas social calls. One Japanese couple from my son’s soccer academy team had invited us over to their Maple Ridge home, so off we went. It was a chance for the kids to unplug, socialize and see a new part of the Lower Mainland.
The view from my friends’ front door was actually really nice; the mountain peaks were covered in white and, later, the sky turned orange. The house inside was also quite nice with high ceilings.
Surprise!
Soon after another Japanese soccer family arrived and I was introduced to a Japanese man bundled up in a West Coast FC winter jacket. His name was Ryo Sugiyama.
I didn’t clue in right away. I vaguely remembered my friend Yoshito mentioning his Japanese gardener friend. Then I clued in. Holy shit! Standing in front of me was Ryo Sugiyama, the curator of UBC’s Nitobe Japanese garden. What a nice surprise.
Normally, the prospect of having to make small talk with strangers frightens me but not on this night. We talked about soccer and about gardening. Lesson 1: listen to Grant Cardone and say yes often. I said yes to our friends’ invitation and a blog was born.
Soccer
If you Google Ryo Sugiyama you won’t see anything about soccer on the first results page. Ryo is actually an extreme soccer fan. He plays on two soccer teams and both of his sons play with West Coast FC. I understand he receives more soccer than gardening periodicals. Lesson 2: gardeners stay physically active.
Nitobe
I took my mother-in-law to Nitobe years ago when she visited from Niigata city, which sits along the Japan Sea on the West Coast of Japan. While we had a nice visit, I wasn’t blown away because I’m spoiled from many visits to ancient Kyoto and its many gardens. But Nitobe ranks very high: it’s in the top five for Japanese gardens built outside Japan and well-worth the visit. Pay the entrance fee and look for Ryo. Tell him Vas from West Coast Landscape Professional sent you.
Dream job
There are lots of posts online about Ryo Sugiyama; he has a dream job and what follows are my key points.
Ryo studied at Chiba University and completed a Master’s in landscape science. Clearly , my kind of guy. That covers schooling but we know well that practical work in the garden is super critical.
Ryo apprenticed with a disciple of the original designer of the Nitobe Japanese garden so he was in good hands. If you want to read more about garden apprenticeships in Japan, I recommend my friend Leslie Buck‘s memoir, “Cutting Back“.
Not very shy, Leslie went straight to the top, spending three months apprenticing with a top Kyoto garden company. She wanted to learn more about pruning and now we have a nice look into the world of Japanese gardening. You can get it in print or as audio. I listened to it at work. Lesson 3: share your knowledge.
Nitobe features
Ryo is the only full-time gardener working at Nitobe, although he does get some help from UBC’s botanical garden students. In Japan, Nitobe would have more gardeners on staff. I remember visiting a huge garden in Kanazawa and seeing five gardeners in one big pine tree alone.
Japanese gardens don’t usually have evergreens so Ryo had to adjust to having lots of them at Nitobe. He’s been working there since 2010 so he’s fine now.
Yet another critical difference is moisture levels in winter. Winters in Japan are dry but Vancouver’s winters are wet so care must be taken with pruning. When I see Ryo next, I will ask him about the timing of his pruning work.
Meeting a Japanese gardener was a nice Christmas bonus!
