Windows open

窓が開いています。

Showa-era house with no roof and intact facade once had charm

正面はまだありますが、窓と屋根がなくなりました。中に空が見えます。

Lovely vine covers street-side window with red and yellow lanterns

花がいっぱい咲いている蔓植物が路地の前の窓にちょっとしたプライバシーを提供しています。濃い青色の陶器タイルもきれいですね。

I love how this easy to grow vine sends its growth down. The owner has trained it over the street-side window so that it provides additional privacy. There’s also two types of bamboo shades, and three spider plants. I also like how the blue ceramic tile adds a decorative element to what is a very functional architecture typical of post-war Japan.

Showa window visible through the fruit trees

歩行者路で、昭和時代風の窓が柿と梨の木の後ろに見えます。中野で。

I pass this house frequently on the way to the station. The metal fence is truly ugly, but somehow from this angle, there is a beauty and mystery to this old home. They’re growing persimmons and pears.

Delicate vine growing outside my friends’ kitchen window

この花が咲いているつる植物は繊細に見えます。友達のイアンとゆきとパットの台所の窓から。

I like this delicate, flowering vine growing outside the kitchen window at my friends Ian, Yuki, and Pat’s house.

Scenic combination of Showa window and Chinese parasol tree with pods

昭和時代の窓と大きいアオギリの木は素敵です。今、薄緑色の花がたくさんついています。東京にはもっと古い建物と熟成した木がいります。

Near our apartment is this older house with a deciduous tree that fills out in the summer. I love the bunches of light green pods it produces. Sadly there are not enough old houses or old trees in Tokyo. When you see this combination in Tokyo, it’s at once nostalgic and perhaps futuristic.

Ever resourceful Jason at Flora Grubb Gardens identified it by photo as a Firmiana simplex, Chinese parasol tree in English or aogiri (アオギリ) in Japanese. A quick visit to Wikipedia taught me that it’s an ornamental tree related to cacao. It’s within the same plant family as cotton, okra, hibiscus, and abutilon.

Old “snack” bar in Hamamatsuchou has simple window garden

この窓にある小さな庭はシンプルで厚みがあります。花やつる植物やしだれている植物やゴヤやシソがあります。浜松町の古いスナックの二階で。

I love the simplicity of this window garden in an old snack near Hamamatsuchou Station, an area better known for sleek new office towers and a port. In almost no space at all, this garden has climbers like bitter melon, pink flowers, herbs, and plants trailing down. It seems like the Hiro snack bar has been long out of business, yet someone is still enjoying living upstairs.

Another bonsai transformed in winter

もう一つ、植物の室内撮影。去年作った変わった盆栽は紅葉で色づいています。今、深紅の枝が三つ残っています。部屋のなか以外に置く時は、台所の窓の近くに置きます。

More indoor plant portrait photography.

I made this strange bonsai last summer with a small bi-colored grass, tall leafy tree, and gravel. It’s fun to watch the leaves turn deep red and fall. When it’s not inside, this plant is close to the kitchen window.

Creative use of sidewalk to grow bitter melon awning

東大の前のレストランはゴーヤを育てています。歩道と車道のあいだの狭いスペースに植わっていて、夏のグリーン・テントのようになっています。一度、ゴーヤが歩道を越えれば、二階の窓のグリーンカーテンになります。ほとんどスペースのないところで、食べ物と日陰を提供します。

Directly across from the University of Tokyo, I was delighted to see this green awning of bitter melon (also known as goya) growing up the guard rail and then over the sidewalk. The restaurant owner or manager is using a very narrow space to grow the vegetable, and then extending it with simple nets into a canopy. Once across the sidewalk, the goya forms a very tidy green curtain for the second floor window, providing some shade in this hot and humid summer.