UVa Library Etext Center: Japanese Text Initiative

植物【しょくぶつ】 shokubutsu Plants

梅【うめ】 ume （sometimes むめ mume）, plum (blossoms) [technically, the "Japanese apricot", Prunus mume; but this has almost always been translated "plum" for literary purposes] (early spring)

春告草【はるつげぐさ】 haru-tsugegusa sign-of-spring-plant

The ume is a Rosacaeae and a deciduous tree. Because it blossoms early in spring, before all other trees, it has acquired the name of "sign-of-spring-plant" ( 春告草 [はるつげぐさ] haru-tsugegusa ). In China, its place of origin, the ume has been cultivated for more than 2,500 years. The ume blossom has an important place in Chinese literature and its fruit is considered important both as food and medicine. It is commonly thought that the ume came to Japan in the Nara Era when the first Kentōshi (Japanese envoy to the Tang Dynasty) came back with it for medicinal purposes. The name "ume" is thought to have developed before the tree came to Japan from the black Chinese smoked plum fruit "u-mei" (烏梅 [Chinese pronunciation] ウメイ), which was used as medicine. Etymologically, it is also thought that the prefix "m" was added to the Chinese "mei" for plum, or the Korean "mai," creating the Japanese word "m-mei" or "u-me." The ume tree seems to have captured the heart of the Japanese as soon as it arrived; in the Manyōshū anthology, there are more than a hundred poems on the ume. Today, the cherry blossom is recognized as the quintessential flower of haiku, but in earlier times, the ume was the flower. Ever since the legend of Sugawara Michizane's flying ume --- when the plum tree "followed" the banished Michizane from Kyoto to Fukuoka--- the tree has been seen as the sacred tree of the heavenly Gods. Consequently, the flower and the tree have become deeply connected to the Japanese spirituality and culture. On a practical level, in Muromachi era, there were techniques for producing dye from brewing split bits of the tree, or by smoking the plum with straw fire; from mid-Edo era onwards, with the discovery of the importance of preserved "dried ume" (梅干　[うめぼし]), which was used as emergency food, each han-province competed to cultivate plum tree forests. The common "white ume" (白梅　[はくばい]　hakubai) is what has generally been called "wild ume" (野梅　[やばい] yabai), but there are other various kinds, such as "red plum" (紅梅　[こうばい] kōbai), "lying-dragon-plum" (臥竜梅 [がりょうばい], garyōbai), "blue dragon plum" (青竜梅　[せいりゅうばい] seiryūbai), "little plum" (小梅 [こうめ] ko-ume), "Bungo plum" (豊後梅 [ぶんごうめ] Bungo ume), "drooping plum"(枝垂梅 [しだれうめ] shidare-ume). The plum has yet to be brought to Europe or America and retains its tradition as a strictly Far Eastern flower.

白梅に明くる夜ばかりとなりにけり

蕪村

shiraume ni akuru yo bakari to narini keri

on the white ume,
the night has
only to lighten and end

Buson

梅が香やどなたが来ても欠茶碗

一茶

ume ga ka ya donata ga kitemo kakejawan

Oh the alluring scent of plum tree—
And yet was there to be any visitor, [I have] only
a broken tea cup.

Issa

梅の奥にたれやら住んでかすかな灯

夏目漱石

ume no oku ni tareyara sunde kasukana hi

Secluded behind the ume—
Someone must live there,
Faintly, a light. 

Natsume Sōseki

梅が香にのつと日の出る山路かな

芭蕉

ume ga ka ni notsuto hi no deru yamaji kana

fragrance of plums in the air--
in the distance on the mountain path
the morning sun

Bashō

From somewhere distant, the fragrance of a plum tree comes drifting in the mountain path before sunrise. As the poet senses early spring in the fragrance, the way ahead suddenly becomes brighter and at that moment the sun rises.

椿【つばき】 tsubaki camellia(s) (all spring)

大椿【おおつばき】 ōtsubaki large camellia(s)
落椿【おちつばき】 ochi-tsubaki falling camellias
夕椿【ゆうつばき】 yūtsubaki evening camellia(s)

花【はな】 hana (cherry) blossoms [in haiku and haikai the simple word hana 花 refers to cherry blossoms, as do all kigo listed here; but note that in Manyōshū and some other early poetry hana was understood as referring to ume 梅【うめ】plum blossoms, an early spring topic] (late spring)

花影【かえい】 blossom shade
花の雨【はなのあめ】 blossom rain [i.e., rain falling on cherry blossoms, or at cherry blossom time]
花の山【はなのやま】 hana no yama blossoming mountains/hills
花便り【はなだより】 hanadayori blossom news / tidings of blossoms [whether carried in person or by media]
花の昼【はなのひる】 hana no hiru blossoms at midday
花の雲【はなのくも】 hana no kumo clouds of blossoms / blossom clouds [figurative]
花盛り【はなざかり】 hanazakari blossoms in full bloom / blossoms at their peak
花埃【はなぼこり】 hanabokori blossom dust / blossom pollen
花の宿【はなのやど】 hana no yado blossom inn [i.e., an inn where people go to see the cherry blossoms in the region; an inn nestled among blossoming cherry trees]

In the Japanese literary convention, the word flower (花 [はな]) is currently most often associated with cherry blossoms, but such close connection between "flower" and "cherry blossom" only became established around the time of kokin waka shū anthology. Initially, the word "flower" referred to the "plum blossom." It started to signify cherry blossoms in Heian era. During the reign of Emperor Kanmu (桓武 [かんむ]), the cherry blossom of Sakon was planted in front of the main palace Shishinden hall; from around the time of Emperor Saga(嵯峨 [さが]), banquets to enjoy cherry blossom viewing started to be held often. Etymologically, the word sakura is believed to have originated in the mythological times from the phrase "saku-ramu"(咲くらむ) meaning "it must be blooming." This usage of the phrase is seen in a poem composed in Yamato (大和　[やまと]) by Prince Ninigi (瓊瓊杵尊[ににぎのみこと] Niniginomikoto). As in a common idiomatic expression of accolade, "Sakura is to flower, as bushi warrior is to man," the beauty of the falling cherry blossoms began to be more widely praised during the feudal Kamakura and Muromachi era. But this was an aesthetic that did not extend to all classes. Cherry blossoms had to wait until the Edo era to be secularized for the enjoyment of common citizens. In the first half of the seventeenth century, when many cherry blossom trees were planted and "cherry blossom viewing" (花見 [はなみ] hanami) picnics became popular, various new horticultural kinds began to be cultivated. Traditionally, the term sakura refers to the a kind known as yama-zakura (山桜　[やまざくら]), or the "mountain cherry blossom." The kind of cherry blossom seen in Mt. Yoshino (吉野　[よしの]) in Nara（奈良 [なら]）is a white yama-zakura; red yamazakura is more often seen in the Northeastern part of Japan. The sakura one sees often today, including the "eight-layered" yae-zakura (八重桜　[やえざくら]), is also a horticultural variation of the yama-zakura. The cross between the Ōshima-zakura (大島桜　[おおしまざくら]) and the higan-zakura(彼岸桜　[ひがんざくら]), which are both variations of yamazakura, was put on the market by a horticulturalist in Komagome Somei(駒込染井　[こまごめそめい]) in Edo. From Meiji era onwards, this new kind called Somei Yoshino (染井吉野　[そめいよしの]) spread across the country. This kind of sakura was later shipped to various western countries as a mark of friendship and good-will and is also known as the "Japanese Cherry" to distinguish it from the kind of trees cultivated for cherry-picking. The sakura is a Rosacaeae that grows not only in Japan but also in China and in the Himalayas; but no climate allows for such vast varieties of sakura as Japan. Aside from the aesthetic enjoyment of the viewing of its flower, sakura has been put to many practical uses. The tree has been used as material for equipment, shipbuilding, and print; the tree bark has been used for cough medicine and round chip boxes; the flower (especially the yae-zakura) has been pickled in salt water and used in times of celebration as "cherry blossom hot water"(桜湯　[さくらゆ] sakura-yu). Commonly used phrases related to sakura are as follows: "drooping sakura" (枝垂桜　[しだれざくら]), "first sakura"(初桜　[はつざくら]),"first flower"(初花　[はつはな]),"young sakura"(若桜　[わかざくら]) "old (woman) sakura"(姥桜　[うばざくら]), "morning sakura" (朝桜　[あさざくら]), "evening sakura"(夕桜　[ゆうざくら]), "night sakura"(夜桜　[よざくら]), "late sakura"(遅桜　[おそざくら]).

四方より花吹き入れて鳰の海　

芭蕉

shihō yori hana fuki irete Nio no umi

from all directions
the flower blows into
sea of Nio

Bashō

花の雨竹にけぶれば真青なり

水原秋桜子

hana no ame take ni kebureba masao nari

rain of the flower
smoked with bamboo
utterly blue

Mizuhara Shūōshi

夜の桜小川のやうに人の声

飯田龍太

yo no sakura ogawa no yōni hito no koe

sakura at night
as though a little stream
someone's voice

Iida Ryūta

花影婆娑と踏むべくありぬ岨の月

原石鼎

kaei basa to fumu beku arinu soba no tsuki

the flower shadows wavering—
as if to invite stepping on them,
on a mountain path on the cliff, under the moon

Hara Sekitē

The shadows of flowers are described as "wavering,"or "basa"; the choice of this phrase demonstrates the Poet's attention on the sound of the words. A soba is a mountain path that swerves in and out. The author was experiencing struggles as a youth in Yoshino when he wrote this poem. The melodious phrase, "as if to invite stepping on them," displays strong subjectivity and is extremely powerful.

落花【らっか】 rakka （らくくわ）, falling (cherry) blossoms (late spring)

散る桜【ちるさくら】 chiru sakura falling cherry (blossoms)
花吹雪【はなふぶき】 hanafubuki (cherry) blossom blizzard [figurative]
飛花【ひか】 hika flying blossoms
花散る【はなちる】 hana chiru blossoms fall
花屑【はなくず】 hana kuzu blossom litter
花の塵【はなのちり】 hana no chiri blossom dust/dirt

牡丹の芽【ぼたんのめ】 botan no me tree-peony buds [Paeonia suffruticosa] (early spring)

辛夷【こぶし】 kobushi kobus magnolia (blossoms) [Magnolia kobus; see also 木蓮【もくれん】 mokuren] (mid spring)

沈丁花【じんちょうげ】 jinchōge （ぢんちやうげ）, daphne (blossoms) [Daphne odora] (mid spring)

沈丁【じんちょう】 jinchō daphne

R連翹【れんぎょう】 rengyō （れんげう）, forsythia [Forsythia suspensa] (mid spring)

馬酔木【あしび】 ashibi Japanese andromeda (blossoms) [Pieris japonica] (late spring)

躑躅【つつじ】 tsutsuji azalea(s) (late spring)

木蘭【もくれん】 mokuren magnolia (blossoms) / lily magnolia (blossoms) [the most commonly cultivated magnolia, the purple-blossomed Magnolia liliflora] (mid spring)

木蓮【もくれん】 mokuren magnolia (blossoms) / lily magnolia (blossoms)
紫木蘭【しもくれん】 shimokuren magnolia (blossoms) / lily magnolia (blossoms)
白蘭【はくれん】 hakuren white magnolia (blossoms) [Magnolia denudata]

藤【ふじ】 fuji （ふぢ）, wisteria (late spring)

藤の花【ふじのはな】 fuji no hana wisteria blossoms

山吹【やまぶき】 yamabuki yellow rose / wild yellow rose [literally, "mountain breath"; Kerria japonica] (late spring)

桃の花【もものはな】 momo no hana peach blossoms [Prunus persica] (late spring)

梨の花【なしのはな】 nashi no hana pear blossoms [Pyrus species.] (late spring)

杏の花【あんずのはな】 anzu no hana apricot blossoms [Prunus ansu] (late spring)

花杏【はなあんず】 hana-anzu apricot blossom(s)

夏蜜柑【なつみかん】 natsumikan bitter summer mikan / citron [i.e., bitter mandarin orange; some authorities place this in early summer] (late spring)

木の芽【このめ】 ko-no-me buds of trees (all spring)

芽立【めだち】 medachi (trees) begin to bud / (trees) budding
芽吹く【めぶく】 mebuku (trees) come into bud
木の芽張る【このめはる】 ko-no-me haru tree buds swell
芽組む【めぐむ】 megumu (tree) buds sprout / (trees) bud

柳【やなぎ】 yanagi willow(s) / weeping willow(s) (late spring)

Yanagi is a deciduous shrub or a tree belonging to the Salicaceae family. The kind of yanagi frequently invoked in idiomatic expressions, such as "a wind to a yanagi" (yanagi ni kaze) or "slim yanagi waist" (yanagi goshi), are the "weeping willows." But there are other kinds of willows besides "weeping willows"; there are roughly forty other different kinds of willows in Japan, along with over thirty kinds which are natural hybrids. The "pussy willow" (Salix gracilistyla), a waterside shrub, blooms the earliest of all and is known for adding poetic charm to early spring season. As the most other kinds are hard to distinguish from one another, the whole Salicaceae family is simply grouped together and called yanagi. In haiku, yanagi is a symbol for spring since their leaves tend to become dense in the springtime; "summer-yanagi"(夏柳 [なつやなぎ]), a related word that is distinctively summer and not spring, refers to the specific image of the willow leaves turning ever more luxuriant in summertime. Other expressions related to yanagi, all of which are spring season words, include the following: "blue yanagi"(青柳　[あおやぎ]), "river yanagi" (川柳　[かわやなぎ]), "gate yanagi"（門柳 [かどやなぎ]）, "yanagi shade" (柳陰 [やなぎかげ]), "yanagi string" (柳の糸　[やなぎのいと]), "young yanagi“（若柳 [わかやぎ]）. The fluffy cotton-like yanagi seed s are called "yanagi flower" (柳の花　[やなぎのはな]) or "ryūjo" (柳絮　[りゅうじょ]), and this is also a spring haiku theme.

ゆつくりと時計のうてる柳かな

久保田万太郎

yukkuri to tokei no uteru yanagi kana

ever so slowly
the clock strikes—
oh the yanagi willow

Kubota Mantarō

柳垂れ汽艇も青き影ゆらぐ

水原秋桜子

yanagi tare kitei mo aoki kage yuragu

drooping yanagi willow
and the blueness of the Steam launch—
shadows are blurring

Mizuhara Shūōshi

卒然と風湧き出でし柳かな

松本たかし

sotsuzen to kaze waki ideshi yanagi kana

suddenly
the wind sprang up—
oh the yanagi willow

Matsumoto Takashi

糸柳垂れて町並つくるかな

軽部烏頭子

ito yanagi tarete machinami tukuru kana

ito yanagi—
oh how they droop in a row,
lining the streets

Karube Utōshi

"Ito yanagi" ("string yanagi") is a drooping willow; it is the kind of willow referred to in Man'yōshū (万葉集　[まんようしゅう])　as "yanagi no ito"(a string of willows). This kind of willow is often used for aesthetic purposes to line the streets. The streets appear to be in spring attire as the leaves on these willows grow thick and the arbored walk starts to look picturesque.

松の花【まつのはな】 matsu no hana pine flowers (late spring)

松花粉【まつかふん】 matsu kafun pine pollen

猫柳【ねこやなぎ】 neko-yanagi pussy-willow(s) [Salix gracilistyla] (early spring)

川柳【かわやなぎ】 kawayanagi river willow(s) [Salix gilgiana]

竹の秋【たけのあき】 take no aki bamboo's autumn [from the yellow color of new growth in spring] (late spring)

竹秋【ちくしゅう】 chikushū bamboo autumn

黄水仙【きずいせん】 kizuisen （きずゐせん）, jonquil(s) [Narcissus jonquilla] (mid spring)

チューリップ chūrippu tulip(s) (late spring)

シクラメン shikuramen cyclamen [the typical Japanese variety is orange-flame colored] (late spring)

篝火花【かがりびばな】 kagaribibana cyclamen [literally, "bonfire flower"]

菜の花【なのはな】 na-no-hana rape flowers / mustard flowers [technically, Brassica rapa, the plant from which canola oil derives; one may prefer to translate with the closely related "mustard" in English; the image is of a field covered with the yellow flowers] (late spring)

花菜【はなな】 hanana rape flowers / mustard flowers
菜種の花【なたねのはな】 natane no hana rapeseed flowers
油菜【あぶらな】 aburana oilseed (flowers)
菜種菜【なたねな】 natanena rapeseed greens

豆の花【まめのはな】 mame no hana bean flowers (late spring)

豌豆の花【えんどうのはな】 endō no hana green pea flowers
蚕豆の花【そらまめのはな】 soramame no hana broad bean flowers / horse bean flowers

茎立【くくたち】 kukutachi sprouting stalk(s) (mid spring)

茎立【くきだち】 kukidachi sprouting stalk(s)

菠薐草【ほうれんそう】 hōrensō （はうれんさう）, spinach [its growing leaves] (early spring)

独活【うど】 udo udo [a wild asparagus-like plant, Aralia cordata, sometimes cultivated and noted for its edible young shoots] (late spring)

山独活【やまうど】 yamaudo mountain udo [a wild variety, noted for its pungency]
深山独活【みやまうど】 miyama-udo high-mountain udo [Aralia glabra, rare]
芽独活【めうど】 meudo sprouting udo / udo shoots

山葵【わさび】 wasabi wasabi [Japanese horseradish, Wasabia japonica] (late spring)

青麦【あおむぎ】 aomugi （あをむぎ）, green barley (all spring)

麦青む【むぎあおむ】 mugi aomu barley turns green

下萌【したもえ】 shitamoe sprouts/shoots (early spring)

草萌【くさもえ】 kusamoe plant sprouts/shoots
畦青む【あぜあおむ】 aze aomu paddy-ridges turn green [in some instances, "green up" might be used for aomu]
土手青む【どてあおむ】 dote aomu embankments turn green / embankment turns green

ものの芽【もののめ】 mono no me some buds/sprouts (early spring)

物芽【ものめ】 monome (various) buds/sprouts

若草【わかくさ】 wakakusa young grass(es) [Note that the word kusa 草【くさ】in Japanese is not limited to grasses, but includes forbs (wildflowers and herbs) as well] (late spring)

嫩草【わかくさ】 wakakusa young grass(es)
初草【はつくさ】 hatsukusa first grass(es)
新草【にいくさ】 niikusa new grass(es)
草若し【くさわかし】 kusa wakashi the grass is young

菫【すみれ】 sumire violet(s) [Viola mandshurica] (all spring)

花菫【はなすみれ】 hanasumire violet flower(s)

紫雲英【げんげ】 genge vetch/astragalus [Astragalus sinicus] (mid spring)

げんげん gengen vetch/astragalus
五形花【げげばな】 gegebana vetch/astragalus flowers
蓮華草【れんげそう】 rengesō vetch/astragalus

薺の花【なずなのはな】 nazuna no hana （なづなのはな）, shepherd's purse in bloom / shepherd's purse flower(s) [Capsella bursa-pastoris] (all spring)

三味線草【しゃみせんぐさ】 shamisengusa shepherd's purse [literally, "shamisen plant", from the fruit's shape]
ぺんぺん草【ぺんぺんぐさ】 penpengusa shepherd's purse
花薺【はななずな】 hana nazuna shepherd's purse flowers

蒲公英【たんぽぽ】 tanpopo dandelion(s) [Taraxacum spp.] (all spring)

鼓草【つづみぐさ】 tsuzumigusa dandelion(s)
藤菜【ふじな】 fujina dandelion(s)

土筆【つくし】 tsukushi horsetail shoot(s) [the reproductive shoots of Equisetum arvense] (mid spring)

つくしんぼ tsukushinbo horsetail shoot(s)

虎杖【いたどり】 itadori giant knotweed [Polygonum cuspidatum; noted for its fresh maroon leaves; distinguish 虎杖の花 itadori no hana, giant knotweed flowers (white), late summer] (mid spring)

薇【ぜんまい】 zenmai royal fern(s) [Osmunda regalis] (mid spring)

芹【せり】 seri parsley [Oenanthe javanica] (all spring)

田芹【たぜり】 tazeri paddy parsley [location; not a different species]
根芹【ねぜり】 nezeri parsley root
芹摘む【せりつむ】 seri tsumu (to) pluck parsley

いぬふぐり（犬ふぐり） inu-fuguri speedwell/veronica [might be translated "mongrel speedwell"; Veronica didyma, low-growing, four-petalled pale pink to lavender flowers] (early spring)

蕗の薹【ふきのとう】 fuki no tō （ふきのたう）, butterbur stalk(s) [Petasites japonicus; similar to asparagus] (early spring)

春の蕗【はるのふき】 haru no fuki spring butterbur

蓬【よもぎ】 yomogi mugwort / wormwood / sage [Artemisia vulgaris var. indica; used to flavor mochi, soba] (all spring)

艾草【がいそう】 gaisō moxa [the same plant, also pronounced もぐさ mogusa; used in Chinese medicine]
餅草【もちぐさ】 mochigusa mochi-plant [colloquial]

水草生ふ【みずくさおう】 mizukusa ou （みづくさおふ）, waterweeds grow (mid spring)

水草生う【みくさおう】 mikusa ou waterweeds grow
藻草生う【もぐさおう】 mogusa ou duckweed grows

蘆の角【あしのつの】 ashi no tsuno horns of reeds / sprouts of reeds [the first is a literal translation of the metaphorical expression] (mid spring)

蘆の芽【あしのめ】 ashi no me sprouts of reeds

薊【あざみ】 azami thistle (late spring)

若布【わかめ】 wakame wakame [a kelp, Undaria pinnatifida] (all spring)

和布【わかめ】 wakame wakame
にぎめ【にぎめ】 nigime wakame
若布刈舟【めかりぶね】 mekaribune wakame-cutting/harvesting boat

海苔【のり】 nori nori / laver / purple laver / sea lettuce [Porphyra tenera] (early spring)

干海苔【ほしのり】 hoshinori dried nori
海苔舟【のりぶね】 noribune nori boat
海苔採【のりとり】 nori-tori nori-gathering
海苔干す【のりほす】 nori hosu (to) dry nori