Bamboo

heh yes that is a good one =) any others?

Lotus, if you don't have room for a pond, you can grow them in a large plastic bucket and then place it in an Oriental pot.

Pittosporum is often used in Japanese gardens

Chinese fan palm?

Redbud trees bloom before they leaf out in the spring which kinda makes them look like cherry blossoms

Maybe some ferns?

In combination with the bamboo, you might try things like Camellias.

You might also try Osmanthus fragrans (often called sweet olive tree) and Podocarpus macrophylla (locally called Buddhist pine) and Bauhinia purpurea (though the bauhinia does have a habit of freely reseeding itself. Though I love the flowers in bloom all over now).

If you want to go for water features, there are lotus and lilies and the carp/goldfish.

Reserve a spot for a Bonsai. Dwarf Mondo grass as accent or ground cover in between rocks will be good too.

Jasmines, Plumerias and Olianders.

Azadiachta, Alpina, Basil, Lemongrass, Kaffir Lime, Tumeric, Zingiber, Guava and Annona.

Japanese maple (Acer palmatum)

varies of bananas, dawrf bananas. philodenron,caladium,arium, and canas.

Orchids

Just a few suggestions for a typical (subtropical) Asian garden:

Japanese Black Pine (or other variety)
Cycas revoluta
Ginkoo biloba
Fatsia japonica
Camelia japonica
Acuba japonica
Pomergranate (Chinese apple)
Sweet Olive (Osmanthus fragrans)
Potted citrus (kumquats do great in containers)
Tree Peony
Musa basjoo (cold hardy Japanese fiber banana)
Chinese banana (Musella lasiocarpa, cold hardy to 10 F.)
Bamboo (put runners in containers unless you want a grove!)
Podocarpus
Pittosporum

If you have time, come to Houston and pick up a Kumquat plant from an Asian supermarket or Nursery during the Chinese New Year.

Other ones:
Flowering Plum or a peach tree,
Quince,
any type of bonsai (they're actually outdoor plants and you can place them on a table or a rock),
Weeping Willow,
Bougainvilleas,
Azaleas,
Angel Wing Begonias,
Mickey Mouse plant (Ochna thomasiana),

Btw, all of the above are almost native to our SE Texas climate. They all do well with little protection needed in the winter.

Since you're not too far from Houston, I mean well when I invite you to visit Houston. If you do, come to JRN Nursery in NW of Houston. It's located on Breen Rd near SH 249 and Antoine. You can go online and find the address. The owner carries a large variety of exotic plants that do well in SE Texas.

Hi All
about 60 % of plants sold at nusries are came from asia.mainly from Japan and china.

How about Japanease wisteria alba "Texas pride" Monrovia nusery sell it.Hehehe.
Even plant tag don't say koreana chinensis, or japonica, many plants are came from China and Japan.
By the way Musa busjoo (japanese cold hardy banana)is native of china, banana came from China along with Buddhism. Banana is not native plant of Japan.
yama

There is a fantastic Japanese garden at the Ft. Worth Botanical Gardens. What's your e-mail and I'll send you pictures.

How about to plant a Michelia Alba tree (Pat Lang)? It is a very fragent flower tree.

Sanseviera trifasciata (Mother's in Law Tongue)
Sanseviera Hahni
Raphis humilis
Heliconias
Ficus nitida;

And for hard landscape

River washed pebbles and rocks about about 50-70mm in diameter would be fine

Here is a link that might be useful: Landscape, architecture and natures

Some of my favorites. Mostly Japanese, some Chinese.

Higan Weeping Cherry
Flowering Quince
Azaleas
Camelias
Japanese flowering plum/apricot
japanese maples
Tree Peony
Black or tiger bamboo
Golden goddess bamboo
Hayachi Persimmon