Yukitsuri
Yukitsuri or Yukizuri ( Japanese 雪 づ り ; 雪 吊 り ; 雪 吊 ; 雪 釣 り ) are high ties that are used in Japanese horticulture in winter to prevent damage from heavy snowfall . The most famous Yukitsuri are those in Kenroku-en in Kanazawa, Ishikawa Prefecture .
The structure varies depending on the type of plant to be protected. For older trees, it consists of a stake that is set up close to the trunk of the plant and a series of ropes (usually five) that are connected to the stake and the ground, creating a cone or tip-shaped arrangement. This should protect the branches from breaking off under the weight of the snow. A decorative rope is usually hung from the top of the post. This type of structure is the most common and is called Ringo-tsuri ( り ん ご 吊 り ).
A stake is not used for young pines and cherry trees. The ropes are attached directly to the top of the tree and connected to lower branches of the respective tree. This type of structure is called Miki-tsuri ( み き 吊 り , English "trunk suspension").
For bushes and shrubs, all the branches are connected to each other in a bottle-shaped arrangement so that the ground on which the plants are rooted is not too heavily covered with snow. This type of structure is called Shibori ( し ぼ り ).