The Kyu-Furukawa Gardens in Kita-ku, Tokyo, is a cultural property designated as a national place of scenic beauty, and it is one of only a few precious collections of gardens that were made using the teien gardens of the early Taisho period as models. One unique feature of the Kyu-Furukawa Gardens is how the scenery blends both Eastern and Western styles in splendid harmony. On a small hill stands a Western-style mansion, on the slopes is a Western-style garden, and a Japanese-tyle teien garden spreads out from the base of the hill.
The mansion and Western-style garden were designed by English architect Josiah Conder, and the garden in particular is famous for its roses. The roses and the mansion together make a picturesque scene, and every spring and autumn when the roses are at peak bloom the Rose Festival is held, at which there are music performances and illuminations (*illuminations only take place in spring). The Japanese teien garden that lies at the bottom of the hill is one of only a few gardens in Tokyo that were managed by Ogawa Jihei, a gardener who worked on a number of famous gardens in Kyoto. This particular teien garden features a path around Shin-ji-ike, a pond shaped like the Japanese character for "heart" and named accordingly (shin = heart, ji = character, ike = pond). Nearby, visitors can find Karetaki, a stone arrangement made to look like a waterfall, as well as the Otaki waterfall, which reaches over 10 meters in height.
The gardens offer beautiful scenery that can be enjoyed in any of the four seasons, such as plum blossoms and camellias in spring, the refreshing spray from the waterfall in summer, colorful foliage in autumn, and techniques to protect the trees from heavy snow in winter.