If you say 'Japanese garden', what comes to mind for many people is an area filled with fine, raked gravel. It's the most iconic—and photogenic—feature of these gardens.

The Japanese iris is a much-loved flowering plant and one of the best perennials for Japanese gardens. It blooms with lavender colored flowers around June and is generally suitable for zones 4-9.

The Japanese Tea Garden is located at the corner of Hagiwara Tea Garden Drive and Martin Luther King Drive. Take the Nos. 5 and 7 buses or the 44-O’Shaugnessy bus, which stops right at the garden.

Sago palm (Cycas revoluta) is one of the best-known plants in Japanese gardens. Its palmlike appearance adds an exotic quality. Stiff, dark-green leaves fan out from the crown of the plant. In ...