Gresham Japanese Garden

Introduction to Ikebana - May
2026-05-12 13:00 - 15:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | Kyoudou Center, 219 S. Main Avenue, Gresham, OR, 97080
What to Expect in this Workshop
Instructor Nana Bellerud will lead May’s ikebana workshop with a focus on popular Japanese spring-blooming plants, including their symbolism and seasonal meanings, while maintaining the core principles of ikebana.
Bellerud will also cover fundamental Sogetsu School ikebana concepts, techniques, tools, and equipment, as well as share material selection and design ideas rooted in the Sogetsu approach.
The workshop emphasizes more than simply creating a beautiful floral arrangement, it offers insight into ikebana as an expressive and mindful art form.
Supplies and tools will be available on-site for use during the workshop. After completing your arrangement, participants are encouraged to photograph their work before dismantling it. Plant materials may be taken home. If you would like to take your arrangement home intact, or plan to continue practicing ikebana, kenzan and containers will be available for purchase at the workshop (see details below).
The class will be held at the Gresham Japanese Garden’s Kyoudou Center, located at 219A S. Main Avenue, Gresham, OR 97030. The building is at the south end of Main City Park, closest to the Springwater Trailhead. A parking lot is located adjacent to the building.
Kenzan + Container – $30
In ikebana, the two accessories used is a kenzan, or some people say pin frog, and a container. For basic arrangements a shallow container is appropriate. Because ikebana is a practiced art, owning these accessories is a must to further your practice.
Also, if you’d like to preserve the arrangement you created at the workshop, these accessories are available for purchase at the workshop. $30 includes both. Cash, Venmo or check will be accepted.
NOTE: The cost of the workshop includes the use of the instructor’s kensan and container.

2026 The Art of Bonsai: May-Sat
2026-05-16 13:00 - 15:00
Spring Pine Work
In this hands-on workshop, Bonsai Master Bobby Curttright will teach how to manage pine growth for bonsai this spring. He will cover single and multi-flush species, with a focus on decandling techniques to shape and maintain healthy, beautiful pines. Your take-home project will be a Pinus thunbergii.
This workshop it will be held in the Gresham Japanese Garden’s beautiful Kyoudou Center at 219A S Main Avenue, Gresham, OR 97030.
All tools, soil, and materials will be provided.
Note on Fees: The workshop fee is $40, plus $15 for trees, container and other supplies. To continue offering a high-quality, project-based bonsai program and cover material costs, the Garden has made the difficult decision to adjust the workshop fee. Class size has also been reduced to allow for more individualized instruction.
Gift certificates available here.

2026 The Art of Bonsai: May-Thurs
2026-05-21 18:00 - 20:00
Spring Pine Work
In this hands-on workshop, Bonsai Master Bobby Curttright will demonstrate how to manage pine growth for bonsai this spring. He will cover single and multi-flush species, with a focus on decandling techniques to shape and maintain healthy, beautiful pines. Your take-home project will be a Pinus thunbergii.
This workshop it will be held in the Gresham Japanese Garden’s beautiful Kyoudou Center at 219A S Main Avenue, Gresham, OR 97030.
All tools, soil, and materials will be provided.
Note on Fees: The workshop fee is $40, plus $15 for trees, container and other supplies. To continue offering a high-quality, project-based bonsai program and cover material costs, the Garden has made the difficult decision to adjust the workshop fee. Class size has also been reduced to allow for more individualized instruction.
Gift certificates available here.

Introduction to Ikebana - June
2026-06-09 13:00 - 15:00

2026 The Art of Bonsai: June-Thurs
2026-06-18 18:00 - 20:00
Buxus Forest Planting (Yose-ue)
Join us in creating a Yose-ue. The tree you will be working with is a Buxus sempervirens for the forest planting (Yose-ue) session. The Buxus sempervirens also known as Common Boxwood evokes the quiet feeling of a natural woodland in miniature. By arranging multiple boxwood trees of different heights, the composition creates the illusion of a mature grove with a clear sense of depth and perspective.
Boxwood is well suited to this style thanks to its small leaves, dense branching, and strong tolerance for pruning, allowing the canopy to be refined and maintained at scale over time. Careful placement of the trees—often in odd-numbered groupings with varied spacing—helps create a natural rhythm and visual movement through the forest.
As the planting matures, selective pruning will develop a cohesive canopy while preserving open spaces that suggest light filtering through the woodland. The result is a tranquil landscape that captures the harmony of trees growing together.
This workshop it will be held in the Gresham Japanese Garden’s beautiful Kyoudou Center at 219A S Main Avenue, Gresham, OR 97030.
All tools, soil, and materials will be provided.
Note on Fees: The workshop fee is $40, plus $15 for tree, container and additional supplies.
Gift certificates available here.

2026 The Art of Bonsai: June-Saturday
2026-06-20 13:00 - 15:00
Buxus Forest Planting (Yose-ue)
Join us in creating a Yose-ue. This workshop will be using a Buxus sempervirens for its forest planting (Yose-ue) session. The Buxus sempervirens also known as Common Boxwood evokes the quiet feeling of a natural woodland in miniature. By arranging multiple boxwood trees of different heights, the composition creates the illusion of a mature grove with a clear sense of depth and perspective.
Boxwood is well suited to this style thanks to its small leaves, dense branching, and strong tolerance for pruning, allowing the canopy to be refined and maintained at scale over time. Careful placement of the trees—often in odd-numbered groupings with varied spacing—helps create a natural rhythm and visual movement through the forest.
As the planting matures, selective pruning will develop a cohesive canopy while preserving open spaces that suggest light filtering through the woodland. The result is a tranquil landscape that captures the harmony of trees growing together.
This workshop it will be held in the Gresham Japanese Garden’s beautiful Kyoudou Center at 219A S Main Avenue, Gresham, OR 97030.
All tools, soil, and materials will be provided.
Note on Fees: The workshop fee is $40, plus $15 for tree, container and additional supplies.
Gift certificates available here.

Introduction to Ikebana - July
2026-07-14 13:00 - 15:00
What to Expect in this Workshop
Instructor Nana Bellerud will lead May’s ikebana workshop with a focus on popular Japanese summer-blooming flowers, including their symbolism and seasonal meanings, while maintaining the core principles of ikebana.
Bellerud will also cover fundamental Sogetsu School ikebana concepts, techniques, tools, and equipment, as well as share material selection and design ideas rooted in the Sogetsu approach.
The workshop emphasizes more than simply creating a beautiful floral arrangement, it offers insight into ikebana as an expressive and mindful art form.
Supplies and tools will be available on-site for use during the workshop. After completing your arrangement, participants are encouraged to photograph their work before dismantling it. Plant materials may be taken home. If you would like to take your arrangement home intact, or plan to continue practicing ikebana, kenzan and containers will be available for purchase at the workshop (see details below).
The class will be held at the Gresham Japanese Garden’s Kyoudou Center, located at 219A S. Main Avenue, Gresham, OR 97030. The building is at the south end of Main City Park, closest to the Springwater Trailhead. A parking lot is located adjacent to the building.
Kenzan + Container – $30
In ikebana, the two accessories used is a kenzan, or some people say pin frog, and a container. For basic arrangements a shallow container is appropriate. Because ikebana is a practiced art, owning these accessories is a must to further your practice.
Also, if you’d like to preserve the arrangement you created at the workshop, these accessories are available for purchase at the workshop. $30 includes both. Cash, Venmo or check will be accepted.
NOTE: The cost of the workshop includes the use of the instructor’s kensan and container.

2026 The Art of Bonsai: July-Thursday
2026-07-16 18:00 - 20:00
Bonsai Styling: Prunus emarginata
In this workshop you will style Prunus emarginata, the Pacific Northwest native bitter cherry. Known for its delicate spring flowers, developing bark character, and graceful branching, this species makes an elegant and regionally meaningful bonsai.
Bobby will focus on covering techniques that are useful on various flowering and fruiting trees that are commonly used in bonsai. Participants will learn how to establish the tree’s primary structure through thoughtful pruning and branch selection. Bitter cherry often produces long shoots, making selective pruning an important technique
This workshop it will be held in the Gresham Japanese Garden’s beautiful Kyoudou Center at 219A S Main Avenue, Gresham, OR 97030.
All tools, soil, and materials will be provided.
Note on Fees: The workshop fee is $40, plus $15 for tree, container and additional supplies.
Gift certificates available here.

2026 The Art of Bonsai: July-Saturday
2026-07-18 13:00 - 15:00
