Nikka Yuko Japanese Garden
Nikka Yuko Japanese Gardens, Lethbridge, Alberta.
Photo by Dr. Van Christou, courtesy of Nikka Yuko Japanese Garden.
It took just 21 months to transform 3.7 acres from flat, grassy field into an elegant Japanese garden. Nikka Yuko Japanese Garden opened to the public for the first time on July 3, 1966.
The official opening was graced by their highnesses Prince and Princess Takamatsu of Japan on July 14, 1967 in celebration of Canada's Centennial and as a symbol of Japanese and Canadian friendship, which is the meaning of the name Nikka Yuko.
The traditional Japanese garden is a scenic composition mimicking nature, a faithful representation of nature imparting a sense of simple unspoiled beauty, interpreted rather than imitated.
Elements include flowing water, ponds, groupings of stones/rocks, trees and scrubs and artificial hills, each in as natural-looking a state as possible to evoke the feeling of artlessness.