A constant fixture of National Geographic Explorer Paul Salopek’s journey through rural Japan was the whirligig, or as he called them, “seismic scarecrows.” Gardeners he spoke to use these ...

"In 1978, when I moved to this property, it already had six trees, each approximately 40 to 50 feet tall," writes columnist Tom Karwin. "They could have been in place since 1936, when the original ...

At Mirukashi Salon in Japan, Prairie Stuart-Wolff and Hanako Nakazato offer a model of hospitality and a way of living that centers seasonality.