How to Use a "Needle-Free Kenzan" for Beginners

Tools for a Life with Flowers

"Ikebana looks difficult..." "I don't quite have the courage to go to an ikebana class..." If you love flowers, you may have found yourself thinking this at some point.

They say all you really need to enjoy ikebana is a pair of hanabasami (flower shears), but for those who'd also like to try using a kenzan (flower frog), we'd like to introduce the "needle-free kenzan" as a friendly starting point. We asked a flower specialist to teach us how to use it, along with some tips for ikebana along the way.

"With ikebana, there's no need to make something grand—it's fine to simply cherish the feeling of wanting to display flowers, and to approach it casually, with a bit of your own creative ingenuity."

So says ikebana artist Tamano-san, who believes that as long as a flower you like is arranged in a way that feels good, you should feel free to do it your own way.

"This 'needle-free kenzan' is a tool that lets you enjoy ikebana while skipping some of its trickier rules—it's something you can use to pick a single flower from your garden or a potted plant and display it in a room."

What Is a Kenzan?

"The kenzan originally started as a bundle of komiwara (straw tightly bound and tied together), using the cut cross-section of the bundle. Since the cross-section of a straw stalk is hollow like a straw, KAMAHACHI's kenzan is close to that origin and has a very natural form."

When we asked whether a tool like the "needle-free kenzan" is commonly used in the flower industry, she said:

"It's not something used for exhibitions, but since it lets you bring in greenery from garden flowers and plants, I'd say it's used more at home."

That day, she had brought some flowers from her garden with her. She told us that when the flowers in a vase start to wilt and become shorter, a needle-free kenzan like this lets you keep enjoying them right to the very end—making it a great recommendation for anyone who wants to enjoy a bit of ikebana at home.

▲The heart-shaped kenzan, which comes with an integrated water container, is small enough to fit in the palm of your hand, making it perfect for displaying flowers in a small bit of space.

Tamano-san arranged a single rose in it, with the leaves removed.

"Since the water container only holds a limited amount, it suits small flowers best."

She suggested imagining it used the way small flowers are displayed on a table at a restaurant or café. It also works well in a small space on a shelf, or in the entryway, bathroom, toilet, or by the kitchen window. Because it has no needles, it's safe to place anywhere, and this ease of use is one of the great charms of the "needle-free kenzan."

How to Use a Needle-Free Kenzan

From here, we'll walk you through the basic way to use it. First, to give you a sense of the kenzan's size, here is an arrangement we made.

▲Heart Kenzan

"Since the amount of water the container holds is limited, I'd recommend arranging small flowers that don't need much water. It's also great for using up cut arrangements or gifted flowers whose stems have become shorter, letting you enjoy the surviving blooms right to the end."

With that advice in mind, we arranged some flowers that had become shorter.

▼Below is the needle-free kenzan, size L. The glass container we used as the water basin is the HOLMEGAARD Old English Vase. We placed the kenzan inside the glass vase. There's also a technique (hanadome, or flower-securing method) for making it stand up straight, which we'll introduce shortly.

Tips for Using the Needle-Free Kenzan Well

"There are many holes, but rather than trying to use all of them, it's better to first complete the arrangement using just one hole."

By gathering the stems into a single hole, the waterline looks clean and the plant appears dignified and composed, so the trick is to prune away any excess branches before arranging.

Flower Materials and How to Insert Them

She also recommended picking flowers from the garden in the morning or evening. This is because during the day, flowers are busy transpiring the water drawn up through their roots, sopicking them in the morning or evening, when the plants are tightly closed up, makes them last longer.

"The key point when cutting is this: once you've checked the front of the flower and decided which way to display it, cut the stem at an angle. By cutting it at an angle with hanabasami, you can then fit the cut surface of the stem against the inner wall of the kenzan's hole, so that the curve of the stem looks natural, as if it were rising up from the earth—and that becomes the flower's most appealing feature."

↓A thick branch like this can sometimes stand upright in a single hole of the kenzan on its own. Cut it at an angle and fit the cut surface against the wall of the hole.

▲Here we used the kenzan from the Needle-Free Kenzan S Plate Set together with the Shirogesho Tokusa 6-Sun Bowl Set.

Pairing it with a Japanese tableware piece that has some depth to it works quite nicely too. The trick is to arrange the leaves so they don't touch the rim of the vessel.

"Rather than looking like it's leaning against the rim, the flower looks much more lively when it stands firmly on its own, don't you think?"

Indeed, arranging it at a slight tilt gives it a natural and understated charm.

About Hanadome (How to Arrange Thin Stems)

She also taught us a technique called hanadome, a method for arranging thin stems. It's a way of stabilizing flowers beautifully in the arrangement—for example, cutting a small branch and wedging it into the gap, or rolling up a firm leaf, like that of a camellia, and inserting it into the hole.

You can either place the kenzan (flower frog) in first and then insert the flowers, or insert the flowers into the holes first and then set the kenzan in place—either way works. It feels like a bit of a craft project, so please give it a try.

Examples of what NOT to do when arranging flowers

She also showed us some "don't do this" examples. With a kenzan that has needles, it's considered bad form for the needles to be visible once the flowers are arranged, so you need to hide them with the natural movement of the leaves. But with this needle-free kenzan, it's fine to let it show.

Being able to show the kenzan itself lowers the barrier to enjoying ikebana. Also, if you use too many holes, the area around the waterline can end up looking cluttered, so apparently one trick is to keep the number of holes you use to a minimum.

▲NG example: This shows the arranged flowers viewed from directly the side. To avoid this look when viewed from the front, when arranging multiple stems, it's better to insert them into the holes toward the back (as seen from the front) rather than scattering them across the side holes.

"It's actually charming when you can see the unused holes of the kenzan—that's part of the appeal and presence of this needle-free kenzan, and it's fine to show it, which makes it easy for beginners to use too."

▲In the OK example, as you can see, the flowers come together as one cohesive form when viewed from the front. You might be tempted to insert stems all over the place, but this is an important point. It doesn't look cluttered, and the water's surface looks beautiful too.

▲The vessel used here is the HORITSUKE tokusa nesting bowl set. It's normally a good vessel for serving udon, but this opened up a new possibility for it—an idea we'd love for you to try with tableware you already have at home.

And when arranging multiple stems, another trick is to avoid making them all the same length—deliberately vary the heights and arrange each flower at the angle that shows it off most beautifully.

We visited on a day at the very start of autumn. To create a sense of scenery, arranging lots of small flowers together brings out the feeling of the season, so susuki (Japanese pampas grass), evocative of autumn scenery, was included as well. In spring you might use new buds or cherry blossoms, in summer morning glories or sunflowers, and in winter pine or nanten (heavenly bamboo)—incorporating plants unique to each season is one of the pleasures of Japanese living. There's also a way of expressing the seasons through water level: filling it generously during the rainy season, and keeping it sparse in winter. Ikebana really is fascinating.

▲She also showed us this use on the spot, improvising as she went.

By placing it on top of a vase with a small opening, you can use it like a single-stem vase. This is another use that wouldn't be possible with a needle-type kenzan—combining the vessel and kenzan created a completely new kind of flower vase. Since the kenzan itself is hard, it's best not to place it on delicate vessels.

After arranging the flowers

Change the water once a day if you can. When changing the water, give the container a quick rinse and re-cut the stems—this will help the flowers last longer. It's also best to display the arrangement somewhere it won't be hit directly by air conditioning or heating, and where the temperature doesn't get too high.

"It's not about arranging flowers according to some 'right answer'—what matters is enjoying it with your own creativity and ingenuity."

This is the approach to ikebana that Tamano-san taught us. Using a needle-free kenzan makes ikebana, which can seem intimidating, something you can enjoy with ease—and through this visit, we really felt how plants can bring even more color to everyday life.

・Unryu willow

・Cockscomb (two varieties)

・Mum

・Rose (Leonardo da Vinci)

・Yukiyanagi (Thunberg's meadowsweet)

・Hibiscus

・Susuki (Japanese pampas grass)

At the end, she gathered all the tools together on the table and told us that even when they're not in use, simply leaving them out as part of the interior can help settle the mind.
The handkerchief printed with seasonal motifs was folded neatly so that the autumn-leaf pattern showed.

The flower shears used here were borrowed, but ZUTTO also carries Banshu Hamono flower shears.

Bonus: Other ways to use it

Beyond ikebana, the needle-free kenzan can be used for all kinds of purposes. Made with traditional Japanese craftsmanship, the kenzan has a quiet presence of its own. Thanks to its striking look as a piece of interior decor and the qualities of its material, it also works well as a paperweight, pen stand, accessory tray, or incense holder. Even when not in use, simply leaving this needle-free kenzan out as part of your décor adds a nice touch to the atmosphere.