Meet Shane and Megumi Sanford | Japanese inspired plant artists and growers

We had the good fortune of connecting with Shane and Megumi Sanford and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Shane and Megumi, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
I have always been a plant person and discovered bonsai in my 20’s. Soon after taking a bonsai class I took a Fulbright Teacher trip to Japan and met my wife Megumi there. During our 22 years of marriage, we have lived in Japan for a year and visited countless times. While in Japan I kept encountering kokedama (literally translated as “moss ball”) plants. Kokedama is a style of bonsai plant art dating back to the Edo period in the 1600’s and involves creating a soil ball around a plant encapsulated with moss. Back in America, we started making our own kokedama and over time decided to sell them at the Summerville (SC) Farmer’s Market and other festivals. It was a small way to share Japanese culture with our community. Our business name, Forest River Kokedama, is connected to Megumi’s maiden name in Japanese, Morikawa, which means “Forest River”. It has grown to a range of Japanese inspired plant art and related products to also include bonsai, Japanese maples, and terrariums. Everything we do is handmade and is a true partnership between us. I focus more on the horticultural side of things and Megumi is the creative outlet, but we both share the roles. For example, Megumi makes our signature origami crane plant labels and hand paints characters on the staghorn fern board mounts. She is likely one of the only native Japanese kokdema artists in the Southeast. I grow the Japanese maple trees and the moss. When we visit Japan, we come back not only with new ideas but little scenes and figurines for our terrariums.
Our “day job” is full time educators, so our business allows us to spend time together and provide stress relief. This helps us balance our life and continue to grow stronger as a couple. We also love how people we encounter are able to find out more about Japanese culture and get so geniuinely happy with the plants. Seeing those smiles makes it all worthwhile.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
Japanese culture has been exported to America ever since Commodore Perry and the US Navy opened up trade with Japan in 1853 in Shimoda, Japan. Coincidentally, Megumi and I met in Shimoda! We both really feel like we serve as ambassadors to help bridge the gap between our two countries. Everything we create is in some way inspired or connected to Japan. Through our plant art we are able to teach about Japanese language, customs, stories, and gardening. Our terrariums often are filled with pop culture references (anime characters to Godzilla) and scenes of Japan (shrines and summer festivals). Seeing our customers get excited about these cultural connections and wanting to learn more motivate us to continue. We offer plants in styles that aren’t commonly found in big box stores, garden centers, and other sources. In a small way, we know we are making a difference in our community and world by spreading the love of plants. Our houseplants serve to clean the air in people’s homes, and our Japanese maples planted outside make an impact.
Having a business that isn’t our primary career can be a challenge. It does take up time and keeps us busier with less leisure time to rest and recharge, but the benefits of spending time together doing something we love outweighs the negatives. We get to strengthen our personal relationship, make people happy with plants, and teach others about Japan.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Well, of course we would recommend the Summerville (SC) Farmers Market! We may be biased, but it truly is a unique market that offers homemade art, sustainable products, locally grown fruits/vegetables, and tons of food options. Summerville also has the best Japanese food in the area at Myles and Jun’s Yakitori restaurant. From the skewers of slow cooked meats to the ramen, you can’t go wrong. For drinks before or after, try Accent on Wine at Hutchinson Square.
In downtown Charleston a stroll down Church Street at any time of year is a way to see and feel the history of this amazing city. Walk south and you will end up at Whitepoint Gardens. And of course the restaurants! Hall’s Chophouse, Felix, Rodney Scott’s Barbeque, and Lewis Barbeque are standouts. Don’t forget to hit up a local brewery like Edmund’s Oast in Charleston or Hobcaw Brewery in Mt. Pleasant.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
We would like to shoutout our family in Japan! Megumi’s parents, brothers, aunts, uncles, etc. have taken us to gardens, temples, shrines, forests ,and hidden off the beaten path places that we would otherwise not have been able to experience. The mental images, photographs, and feelings we’ve gathered on these excursions add inspiration to what we do and create.

Instagram: @forestriverkokedama

Facebook: ForestRiverMossBall