Chanticleer Garden

Chanticleer, A Pleasure Garden, is a 48 acre botanical garden located in Wayne, Pennsylvania and built on the grounds of the Rosengarten estate. The estate was built in 1912 and a foundation established in 1946 to ensure its survival as a public garden. 

Website: https://www.chanticleergarden.org/

Technically, there is no Japanese or Chinese garden on site. Instead, there is an "Asian Wood" area that was first planted in 1995 and contains a large number of plant species from Korea, Japan, and China. 

I was initially hesitant to include this garden in the blog, but I have included other "Asian inspired" gardens in the past. One element that encouraged inclusion was a structure within the Asian Wood that remarkably resembled a Japanese Teahouse. 

Surrounded by bamboo and stylistically Japanese, the structure turned out to be a public restroom! Even the interiors appeared "Japanese."

The surrounding bamboo was impressive and its planting planned with a containment system to keep it from spreading.

Adjacent to the Asian Woods were also a series of garden rooms with stone pathways that were clearly Asian inspired.

An adjacent pond garden was full of lilies and Koi fish and added to the Japanese esthetic of these areas of the garden.

Although not a true Japanese garden, the elements and plantings throughout make it worthy of a visit, and there is no doubt that I have never experienced a more authentic looking public "Japanese garden toilet" outside of Japan.