The Pacific Bonsai Museum, Federal Way, Washington
Pacific Bonsai Museum in Federal Way, Washington, is a place where nature and art converge through the exquisite practice of bonsai. Nestled amidst a sprawling forest, Pacific Bonsai Museum offers a peaceful and contemplative experience unlike any other. As one of the few public collections worldwide solely dedicated to bonsai, Pacific Bonsai Museum showcases contemporary exhibitions, hosts docent-led group tours, provides educational programs, workshops, and much more.
National Bonsai and Penjing Museum, Washington, D.C.
The museum’s collection began in 1976 with a gift of 53 bonsai trees from Japan to commemorate the United States Bicentennial. The collection has grown steadily with the addition of pieces from North American bonsai masters and a penjing collection from China. Now, more than 300 specimens rotate through the display tables and pedestals of three pavilions and a special exhibits gallery.
The North Carolina Arboretum, Asheville, NC
Established in October 2005, The North Carolina Arboretum’s Bonsai Exhibition Garden is a world renowned garden that displays up to 50 bonsai specimens at a time. Represented are traditional Asian bonsai subjects such as Japanese maple and Chinese elm, tropical plants such as willow-leaf fig and bougainvillea, and American species such as bald cypress and limber pine. Of particular importance are the plants native to the Blue Ridge region, such as American hornbeam and eastern white pine, which enable the Arboretum to bring the thousand-year tradition of bonsai home to the mountains of Western North Carolina. Interpretive signage throughout the garden conveys information about the art and history of bonsai, and the Arboretum’s own creative approach to it.