June is the time of the year when the hydrangea (ajisai) and irises (shobu) bloom in Japan. Hydrangea can be found most everywhere!
Location: Houkokuji (報国寺）in Kamakura.
Growing wild on the roadside...
In temples and gardens...
Irises are less easier found. We went to a park in Saitama dedicated to irises. It is called the Someya Hana Shobu En (染谷花しょぶ園) and it opens only in June every year, when the irises are blooming.
We feel very lucky indeed to catch the blooms this year! After our walk around the garden, we treated ourselves to some wagashi sweets, appropriately iris-themed!