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 A Father’s Legacy
July-Aug 2007
When Nobu Sotowa was a boy growing up in Rosemead, he helped his father Ichiro dig holes to plant a number of Japanese black pines around their home. Ichiro was a gardener by trade, but the black pines were his passion, and for almost 40 years he diligently pruned them in a traditional Japanese style. “My father spent a lot of time with his trees,” remembers Nobu. “I could hear him singing while he trimmed; I know they brought him great pleasure.”
After Ichiro Sotowa’s death in 2001, Nobu and his family decided to sell the property. They realized with dismay that Ichiro’s pines could fall victim to a bulldozer. A local nursery suggested contacting The Huntington about the possibility of donating the trees. David MacLaren, curator of Asian Gardens, recalls driving to Rosemead to meet Nobu and finding 29 black pines ranging in size from six to 18 feet tall. MacLaren had grown up in the area, and he remembered seeing them during his youth. Although the trees had suffered some benign neglect since Ichiro’s death, they were still beautiful.
While Japanese black pines are available at many nurseries, trees pruned for 40 years in the Japanese style are extremely rare and valuable. The graceful, tapered forms of their trunks and branches are refinements of age that can take decades to acquire.
Thirteen of the pines have been donated so far, and others may follow. Most will eventually be planted in the Japanese Garden. For Nobu and his wife, Ann, it is a source of great joy to know that their grandchildren and many future generations will be able to stand beneath Ichiro’s beloved trees and take pride in his enduring legacy.
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