Bonsai Plaza nurseries · clubs · learning

Bonsai Empire — Online Bonsai Courses

Learning Online

Also called: Bonsai Empire courses; Bonsai Empire Beginners / Intermediate / Advanced Course; Kimura Masterclass (Bonsai Empire)

Website
https://www.bonsaiempire.com/courses/
Location
Online
Last checked
2026-09-25
explore
https://www.bonsaiempire.com/courses/explore
beginners
https://www.bonsaiempire.com/courses/beginners-course
advanced
https://www.bonsaiempire.com/courses/advanced-course
about
https://www.bonsaiempire.com/about-us
contact
https://www.bonsaiempire.com/about-us/contact

What it is

Bonsai Empire Online Bonsai Courses is a curriculum-first, self-paced online course catalog. Each course is a set of video lectures with a published curriculum, a level (beginner, intermediate, or advanced), a total runtime, a named instructor, and a printed US-dollar price with lifetime access. The official About page says Bonsai Empire started in December 2000, when founder Oscar Jonker, then fifteen, built a website about his hobby. It has since grown into a multilingual bonsai platform and community. This card covers the courses program only. The wider site also has free care guides, a forum, and an online store for tools and books, and those are not what this card lists. It is Learning, not a retail nursery shop and not a membership club.

Who it’s for

This suits people anywhere in the world who want to learn bonsai at their own pace, with no local class calendar or travel. The Beginners Course requires “no green thumbs or any prior knowledge”. Hobbyists at the intermediate level can take the species- and technique-specific tracks, which cover wiring mechanics, pruning, repotting, and deciduous or coniferous development. Experienced practitioners can take the advanced and masterclass tracks (Bjorn Bjorholm; Masahiko Kimura; Shinji Suzuki with Luis Vallejo). The Beginners Course FAQ says lectures have English, Spanish, German, Italian, French, and Dutch subtitles.

Why it’s listed

This is a first-party course catalog. It prints per-course prices, lecture counts, runtimes, levels, lifetime-access terms, instructor credits, and full lecture-by-lecture curricula. It is curriculum-first and not a shop blur. (Candidate notes this ship: the in-person botanic-garden class series we would normally pick are already listed: Brooklyn, Chicago, Denver, Descanso, Gresham, Longwood, Morikami, and Pacific Bonsai Museum. From earlier ships, NC Arboretum still prints no public tuition, and Des Moines was full or past. Frederik Meijer Gardens returned a 202 bot-check and U.S. National Arboretum gave no response on this fetch path.)

  • Course catalog and prices (Explore the courses, checked 2026-09-25):
    • Beginner: Bonsai Beginners Course, 17 lectures, 2.5 hours, $49.99. Developing Bonsai Course, 23 lectures, 5.5 hours, $79.99.
    • Intermediate: Bonsai Intermediate Course, 24 lectures, 3.5 hours, $69.99. Intermediate Course 2 (pruning, flowering bonsai, bunjin, winter care), 21 lectures, 6 hours, $79.99. Intermediate Course 3 (repotting by species, root grafting, accent plants, moss, pests), 16 lectures, 4.5 hours, $79.99. Developing Deciduous Bonsai, 26 lectures, 10 hours, $79.99. Developing Coniferous Bonsai, 23 lectures, 10 hours, $79.99. Bonsai Fundamentals Course, 22 lectures, 2 hours, $64.99. Shohin Bonsai Course, 16 lectures, 5 hours, $54.99.
    • Advanced: Advanced Bonsai Course 1, 26 lectures, 6 hours, $84.99. Advanced Bonsai Course 2, 16 lectures, 6 hours, $84.99. Kimura Aesthetics Masterclass, 14 lectures, 4 hours, $89.99. Kimura Techniques Masterclass, 15 lectures, 4 hours, $99.99. Kimura Techniques Masterclass 2, 18 lectures, 4.5 hours, $99.99. Suzuki Masterclass (Shinji Suzuki and Luis Vallejo), 16 lectures, 4 hours, $79.99.
  • Sample course detail: Beginners (Beginners Course page, checked today): $49.99, level Beginner, total time 2.5 hours, Lifetime access. Instructor Oscar Jonker, founder of Bonsai Empire. The curriculum covers indoor and outdoor keeping, fertilizing, repotting, a care exam, tools, pruning, wiring, a styling exam, and “Make a Bonsai” lessons (Juniper, Maple, Pine), and ends with a certificate. The page says the course is “Recommended by the American Bonsai Society, and BCI”. Credit cards and PayPal are accepted, and gift vouchers are available.
  • Sample course detail: Advanced 1 (Advanced Course page, checked today): $84.99, level Advanced, 6 hours, Lifetime access. Instructor Bjorn Bjorholm, described on the page as a bonsai professional who studied in Japan for over six years. Topics include heavy bending, grafting, deadwood, advanced design principles, and bonsai philosophy and history.
  • Instructor roster (courses landing page, checked today): Masahiko Kimura (38 lectures), Michael Hagedorn (42), Bjorn Bjorholm (87), Mauro Stemberger (16), Walter Pall (12), Harry Harrington (11), Morten Albek (14), Jan Culek (4), Oscar Jonker (38), Shinji Suzuki (7).

Prices, lecture counts, and instructor credits above are what the official course pages showed on the check date. They can change. Check the live course page before treating any figure as fixed.

Official URL

Primary course catalog: https://www.bonsaiempire.com/courses/

Location

Online, self-paced. There is no physical classroom. After enrolling, learners get unlimited online access to the lectures and materials on any computer, tablet, or mobile device (Beginners FAQ). The course pages print no street address, so none is listed here. Use the official Contact page for course purchase or login questions.

This is an online course / curriculum listing. Do not treat it as a retail bonsai nursery shop or as a membership club. Bonsai Empire’s separate online store and its “Shops & Clubs” directory are not part of this card.

Notes

  • Category is Learning. This is a first-party, curriculum-first online course program with printed per-course prices, levels, runtimes, and instructors. It is not a nursery and not a club, and it is distinct from Meehan’s Miniatures (Nurseries) and San Diego Bonsai Club (Clubs).
  • This is the first online Learning card in the directory. Earlier Learning cards are in-person garden class series. The category rule still holds: the listing is curriculum and schedule first.
  • Course prices ($49.99–$99.99), lecture counts, runtimes, and instructor credits come from official Bonsai Empire pages checked on 2026-09-25 and may change. Prices are shown in US dollars on the pages we fetched. Currency display may vary by region or login state.
  • Pics optional for this Friday card; no listing image saved beside this file. Default learning card art is used.
  • Not affiliated with Bonsai Plaza.
  • No Bonsai Plaza contact, purchase, enrollment, or publication action was taken.

FAQ

Q: What do Bonsai Empire’s online courses cost?
A: Explore the courses (checked 2026-09-25) lists the Beginners Course at $49.99, intermediate courses at $54.99–$79.99, Advanced Courses 1 and 2 at $84.99 each, and the Kimura masterclasses at $89.99–$99.99. Each course is a one-time purchase with lifetime access. Confirm on the live course page.

Q: Where should a beginner start, and who teaches?
A: Start with the Bonsai Beginners Course: 17 lectures, about 2.5 hours, taught by founder Oscar Jonker. It needs no prior knowledge and ends with a certificate. The Beginners FAQ suggests getting a starter kit or young plant so you can follow the “Make a Bonsai” chapter.

Q: Is this a nursery or a club?
A: Neither, for Bonsai Plaza category purposes. The courses pages are curriculum-first, so the card is Learning. Tree and pot retail with shop prices belongs under Nurseries (e.g. Meehan’s Miniatures), and first-party club meeting schedules belong under Clubs (e.g. San Diego Bonsai Club). Bonsai Empire’s separate online store does not reclassify this courses card.