The program "Jūnin Toiro ~Ie ni wa Nure Aru Kazoku no Katachi~" (MBS, Saturdays at 5pm, Kansai local broadcast, etc.), hosted by talent Mifune Mika and actor Taro Suruga, will feature a house in Nakano Ward, Tokyo, that, despite being in a residential area, has four gardens and allows residents to enjoy greenery from anywhere.
The residents are a family of three, with a child born just last year. A year ago, they built a new house designed by the architect husband. In front of the house is a winding, steel-framed elevated garden, and below that is a second garden. The living-dining-kitchen area on the second floor is connected and features large windows so that it can overlook the elevated garden outside.
After getting married, the husband, who discovered the joy of growing plants while living in the old house on the same site, came up with the bold idea of raising the garden itself and installed a terrace in the air at their new home. Furthermore, he planted mainly shade-tolerant plants in the garden below, and in the south-facing garden, at his wife's request, he planted fruit-bearing trees such as mandarin oranges, lemons, kumquats, and Nanko plums. To allow them to enjoy the garden from anywhere in the house, they incorporated a four-story skip-floor design without partitions inside.
The husband's meeting space faces the existing south-facing garden. By installing the windows low, 1.3 meters from the floor, the surrounding houses are not visible, and only the garden can be seen. Living in a house where greenery can be enjoyed from anywhere, the wife is delighted, saying, "It's become even more comfortable. I feel soothed by the greenery, and I feel like I can appreciate the richness of life more." The husband also smiled, saying to his young children, "I hope they will actively play in the garden and learn about plants."
"Jūnin Toiro" is a program that visits homes across Japan and introduces the unique features and charms of the homes of their inhabitants. After the broadcast, it is available for streaming on TVer for one week.
