Chicago Botanic Garden Bonsai — Glencoe, IL learning

What it is

Chicago Botanic Garden bonsai adult classes are a curriculum/schedule-first series under the Regenstein School horticulture adult-education program in Glencoe, Illinois. The official Horticulture adult-classes hub lists daytime, evening, and weekend gardening courses for Chicago-area adults and explicitly includes bonsai among hands-on topics. On the check date the live bonsai lineup included Beginner Bonsai | Creating Juniper Bonsai (two-evening juniper starter with tree included), Bonsai | Bring Your Own Tree (studio consultation workshops), and Advanced Bonsai | Pine Bonsai Workshop (seasonal pine refinement). Classes meet with Garden bonsai staff at the Bonsai Studio, Grainger Center. This listing is Learning — not a retail nursery shop and not a membership club.

Who it’s for

Chicago-area adults who want structured, ticketed CBG adult-education bonsai sessions: beginners building a first juniper, owners bringing any species for staff consultation (BYOT), or intermediate/advanced growers refining pines (decandling, needle thinning, wiring, long-term development). Member and nonmember dollar rates are printed on each class page (member price listed first). Sold-out classes may use the Garden waitlist phone on the Horticulture hub. Garden visitors interested in the bonsai collection/studio context are welcome during published garden hours, but this card is for the adult class schedule, not for walk-up tree sales.

Why it’s listed

This is a first-party botanic-garden education catalog with printed 2026 evening session dates, member/nonmember tuition, materials notes, instructor credit, and Grainger Center / Lake Cook Road location — curriculum and schedule first, not a shop blur.

Class identity / instructor (individual class pages — checked 2026-09-16): Elle Nieto-Brodnick, bonsai assistant, Chicago Botanic Garden Bonsai Studio, Grainger Center. Horticulture hub: adult horticulture courses at the Regenstein School; waitlist contact (847) 835-6801 if a class is sold out.
Beginner Bonsai | Creating Juniper Bonsai (class page — checked today): 2 Wednesdays, September 16–23, 2026, 5:00–8:00 p.m.; $199 members / $249 nonmembers. Beginners learn juniper care and styling; demonstration then hands-on work; fee includes a juniper bonsai tree to work on and take home; bring pruning tools if you have them (extras available). Status at check: Sold Out.
Bonsai | Bring Your Own Tree (class pages — checked today): studio-style consultation — bring a tree of any species; shaping, styling, and design with Garden bonsai staff. Wednesday, October 14, 2026, 5:00–8:00 p.m., $59/$74; and Wednesday, December 9, 2026, 5:00–8:00 p.m., $59/$74.
Advanced Bonsai | Pine Bonsai Workshop (class page — checked today): Wednesday, November 4, 2026, 5:00–8:00 p.m.; $59/$74. New offering: decandling, needle thinning, energy balancing, advanced wiring/styling, silhouette and long-term pine development toward exhibition-quality specimens.
Garden context / address (class footers / Horticulture hub — checked today): 1000 Lake Cook Road, Glencoe, IL 60022; Customer Service (847) 835-6801; Membership (847) 835-8215. Garden hours printed on class pages at check varied by season block (examples: members only 8:00–10:00 a.m.; general public 10:00 a.m.–6:00 p.m. or 10:00 a.m.–8:00 p.m. on different page footers) — confirm live hours on the Garden site before visiting.

Tuition, session dates, materials inclusions, and hours above are what the official Chicago Botanic Garden pages showed on the check date. Catalog seats and prices change. Use the live Horticulture and individual class pages before treating any figure as fixed.

Official URL

Horticulture adult classes (hub): https://www.chicagobotanic.org/learning/adult-classes/horticulture

Beginner Bonsai | Creating Juniper Bonsai: https://www.chicagobotanic.org/learning/adult-classes/horticulture/beginner-bonsai-creating-juniper-bonsai
Bonsai | Bring Your Own Tree (Oct 14): https://www.chicagobotanic.org/learning/adult-classes/horticulture/bonsai-bring-your-own-tree
Bonsai | Bring Your Own Tree (Dec 9): https://www.chicagobotanic.org/learning/adult-classes/horticulture/bonsai-bring-your-own-tree-0
Advanced Bonsai | Pine Bonsai Workshop: https://www.chicagobotanic.org/learning/adult-classes/horticulture/advanced-bonsai-pine-bonsai-workshop
Chicago Botanic Garden home: https://www.chicagobotanic.org/

Location

Class meetings: Bonsai Studio, Grainger Center, Chicago Botanic Garden, 1000 Lake Cook Road, Glencoe, IL 60022. Customer Service (847) 835-6801. Confirm garden open hours on the live site (member early entry and public hours printed on class page footers as of 2026-09-16).

This is a botanic-garden education / class-series address. Do not treat it as a retail bonsai nursery shop or as a membership club meeting hall. Category remains Learning (curriculum/schedule-first), even though the Garden also maintains public gardens and a bonsai studio context.

Notes

Category is Learning. First-party adult class series with printed 2026 evening schedule, member/nonmember tuition, materials notes, and instructor — not a nursery and not a club. Distinct from Wigert’s Bonsai (Nurseries) and BSSF (Clubs).
Sep 16–23 Beginner Juniper $199/$249 (sold out at check), Oct 14 & Dec 9 BYOT $59/$74, Nov 4 Advanced Pine $59/$74, and Grainger Center location are transcribed from official CBG pages checked on 2026-09-16 and may change.
Pics optional for this Wave 2 card; no listing image saved beside this file. Default learning card art is used.
Not affiliated with Bonsai Plaza.
No Bonsai Plaza contact, purchase, booking, or publication action was taken.

FAQ

Q: What do the 2026 bonsai classes cost, and what is included? A: Official class pages (checked 2026-09-16): Beginner Bonsai | Creating Juniper Bonsai is $199 members / $249 nonmembers for two Wednesdays (Sep 16–23, 5–8 p.m.) and includes a juniper tree (sold out at check). BYOT workshops Oct 14 and Dec 9 are $59/$74 (bring your own tree). Advanced Pine workshop Nov 4 is $59/$74. Confirm live seats on the Horticulture hub and individual class URLs.

Q: When are the fall 2026 bonsai sessions? A: Evenings at the Bonsai Studio, Grainger Center. Beginner Juniper: Wednesdays Sep 16 & 23, 5–8 p.m. BYOT: Oct 14 and Dec 9, 5–8 p.m. Advanced Pine: Nov 4, 5–8 p.m. Exact listings: https://www.chicagobotanic.org/learning/adult-classes/horticulture

Q: Is this a nursery or a club? A: Neither for Bonsai Plaza category purposes. Chicago Botanic Garden publishes curriculum/schedule-first adult class pages, so the card is Learning. Tree/pot retail with shop prices belongs under Nurseries (e.g. Wigert’s Bonsai). First-party club meeting schedules belong under Clubs (e.g. BSSF). Garden membership discounts on class tickets are pricing context, not a reclassification into Clubs.