With its spiritual influences from both Buddhism and the native Shinto religion, which worships nature, the art of Japanese flower arranging has historically sought to recreate the natural landscape through not just flowering material but also the incorporation of trees, shrubs, leaves, and stems. In many arrangements, flowers serve as supporting players as an accent for color, shape, and texture while the main actors are the branches, stems, and leaves that serve as the focal point and anchor of the arrangement.
— H. E. Davey, Ann Kameoka, The Japanese Way of the Flower