Chrysanthemum


KIKU display at the exhibition

Family: Compositae Latin name: Dendrathema grandiflorum
Japanese name: KIKU
Habitat: China Blooming season: autumn Height: 30cm-1.5m

KIKU (chrysanthemum) is not indigenous to Japan, and was
originally imported as medicine or as a gardening plant from
China. It is said that KIKU came to Japan in the NARA period (710
-793), after which the royal people of the HEIAN period (794-
1191) came to love the flower because they believed it had the
power to lengthen people's lives. Later, KIKU became the emblem
of the Japanese royal family after the KAMAKURA period (1192-
1333). KIKU cultivation was at its height in the EDO period (1603-
1867), various cultivars were introduced at the time, and they
became popular as a pot plant. People devised several display
styles for enjoying the flowers;
SANBON JITATE : three flowers per plant in a pot. Each flower is
called TEN (= heaven), CHI (earth) and JIN (human). The balance
of the three flowers is important. This display style is influenced
by Chinese philosophy.
DARUMA ZUKURI: The display style is same as for SANBON
JITATE, but the total form is small.
FUKUSUKE ZUKURI: One flower per plant, with a very small total
form that is round-shaped like the doll "FUKUSUKE".
SENRIN ZAKI: hundreds to 1,000 flowers per plant. This requires
a professional technique to achieve.
KENGAI ZUKURI: cascade style
BONSAI ZUKURI: use of a tree-type KIKU with small flowers and
made into a Bonsai form.
People bred the following cultivar strains:
ATSUMONO: big flower with thick petals
KUDAMONO: big flower with tube-like thin petals
ICHIMONJI: 14-16 broad petals per flower
SAGAGIKU: erect tube-like petals, bred in SAGA of KYOTO
Prefecture

At the end of the EDO period, some gardener living in EDO
(TOKYO) made a doll of KIKU flowers and displayed them for the
citizen. This display came to be called "KIKU NINGYO"
(chrysanthemum doll). We eat KIKU flowers as a vegetable and
enjoy its good fragrance in autumn.

KIKU Website
This website is created by a KIKU (chrysanthemum) enthusiast. You can enjoy many images of KIKU cultivars in this website. Japanese version only.


SANBON JITATE
of KUDAMONO strain

SANBON JITATE
of ATSUMONO strain

SANBON JITATE
of ICHIMONJI strain

DARUMA ZUKURI
and FUKUSUKE ZUKURI
of ATSUMONO strain

BONSAI ZUKURI

KENGAI ZUKURI

SENRIN ZAKI

SAGAGIKU strain

KIKU NINGYOU

Sour KIKU petals and vegetables

New Cultivars with big flowers
The following images are new cultivars with huge flowers. All the
flowers are 20 -30 cm in diameter.

SENKYOU HINAMATSURI,
KUDAMONO Strain

SEIKOU KINSHI,
KUDAMONO Strain

KOKKAKAIUNZAN,
ATSUMONO Strain

KOKKAKINRYURIN,
KUDAMONO Strain

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The background of this page is a traditional pattern
for KIMONO (Japanese costume)