Known affectionately as Chuitchan, local legend Minamisawa Chuichi cultivated the entire mountain, spending 50 years planting seedlings, trimming, and carefully raising his hydrangeas (called ajisai in Japanese).

The mountain is three kilometers northwest of JR Musashi-Itsukaichi Station, a short walk past Ajisai Bridge in the Fukasawa area of Akiruno City. The ajisai bloom from mid-June to early July, decorating the forest path and mountain face with incredible pinks and blues. The quiet mountain village explodes with color for those few weeks.

Chuitchan is a local resident who owns Minamisawa Ajisai Mountain. Around 50 years ago, he planted 20 hydrangea seedlings to brighten the path to the grave of his mother and father. Then he decided to keep planting every year, eventually raising over 10,000. Along the way, people naturally began visiting to see his ajisai bloom. In April 2018, Minamisawa Ajisai Mountain was recognized by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government as a local tourism resource.

The mountain has many types of hydrangea, including rare varieties like “Dance Party” and “Sumida Fireworks.” Through word of mouth, Ajisai Mountain has even started to draw tourists from outside Japan. When the ajisai are blooming, Chuitchan wakes up at 4:00 each morning to cut grass on the path and get ready for visitors. Then he welcomes them with a smile.

After the blooming season, hard work awaits. The ajisai need to be trimmed, and Chuitchan does it all by himself. “I’m the only one who knows how close to trim the plants so they’ll bloom best the following year.” He trims the plants one by one. His secret to having energy for the work is simple: Keep moving, keep working.

Ajisai Mountain’ s next keeper

Takamizu Ken will guide Ajisai Mountain into the future. He leads the company “do-mo,” which operates businesses geared toward energizing Akiruno, including the restaurant “do-mo kitchen CANVAS.” Born and raised in Akiruno, Takamizu stepped forward with the idea to support and maintain Ajisai Mountain as a business, keenly aware of Minamisawa-san’s long years nurturing it.

A 2017 crowdfunding project successfully raised 1.8 million yen toward holding events like ajisai planting. It even drew coverage from newspapers and TV stations.

Takamizu-san points out that “large numbers of ajisai are usually only found at temples, but Ajisai Mountain is special because you can enjoy the flowers in the natural environment of a mountain. It’s incredible to see their colors coexist with the cedars and other trees.”

Clearly, Ajisai Mountain has its next keeper in Takamizu-san. Akiruno city hall now promotes Chuitchan’s Ajisai Mountain as a great place to visit, and around 10,000 fans come annually to see the flowers.