Mukai Farm and Garden (Est. 1930s)

The Mukai Farm & Garden celebrates Vashon’s Japanese American and agricultural heritage. With its historic Craftsman house, Japanese Gardens, acreage, and strawberry processing plant, Mukai is “how history lives.”

The Japanese Garden: Designed and installed during the 1930’s by Kuni Mukai, a Japanese immigrant, her “hill garden” features extensive rockwork, plantings and a surrounding pond. The Garden is under restoration; this work will be completed this winter. The Garden will once again be a beautiful setting for all manner of events.

The Mukai Farm & Garden is located in the center of Vashon Island, about a mile west of the town center.

Open houses are held twice a month on weekends. Check the event calendar for the next open house.

The Farm and Garden is typically open to the public from 9:00 to 5:00 daily for self-guided tours of the Japanese Garden and grounds, unless noted on the calendar.

Admission is free. Ample parking is available.

The Mukai house is open for private tours and scheduled open houses. 

History
The Mukai house and garden represents a blending of two cultures: B.D Mukai, a Japanese immigrant became a very successful business owner and entrepreneur while his wife, Kuni, expressed her Japanese heritage by designing and installing a traditional Japanese stroll garden around their very American looking Craftsman home.

The family balanced their Japanese heritage and their newly adopted American home. They became successful and accepted members of the Vashon-Maury Island community. Their house, Japanese Garden, and Barreling Plant became a symbol of their blending together the two cultures they combined.

Today, the Mukai Farm and Garden reminds us of the powerful contributions of the Mukai family and the broader Japanese American immigrant community on 20th century agriculture, business, and community life.

These stories shape us to this day.