Project of the month – September 2018 for Boulder Colorado landscapes
SEPTEMBER: The Torii Gate
This month’s subject is a hardscape construction project that Glacier View completed recently. It was a challenge and a lot of fun to come up with a solution to an entrance to a Japanese garden.
A Torii gate is simply the transition from the mundane to the sacred and is typically found at the entrance to a Shinto shrine, whose main purpose is to house a Kami or the spirits who are worshiped in the religion of Shinto. For this customer, the gate provided a transition to their sacred garden.
The Torii gate is a simple structure, though some are elaborate and quite large. For our project, the materials did prove costly because the upright columns were 12’ long 6”x6” rough cedar beams set 3’ into the ground with concrete for stability. The cross member at the top was also 6”x6” rough cedar and the other details were simply rough cedar 4”x4” material. To create the angled top cross member, a triangular section was removed from the cross member and glued and screwed to the top of the cross member. It was a simple process, but cutting 6”x6” material can be tricky. The final product was assembled with 12” galvanized landscape spikes to secure the top cross member to the upright posts, and the 4”x4” details were screwed together with 4” deck screws. It took two people about 5 hours to purchase, assemble and install. The one key element to this project is to get the proportions of height to width correct. The gate must be taller than it is wide to look correct.
Contact Dave at Glacier View Landscape and Design, Inc. to learn more about installing a Torii gate for a gated entrance to your landscape sanctuary—it will add an element of formality and intrigue to any garden.
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Glacier View Landscape and Design, Inc. 
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