Japanese Friendship Garden of Phoenix — Bonsai for Beginners

Category: Learning Also called: JFG Phoenix Bonsai for Beginners; Rohoen bonsai lecture; Japanese Friendship Garden of Phoenix (Rohoen); japanesefriendshipgarden.org Last checked: 2026-10-09

What it is

Bonsai for Beginners is a dated, ticketed beginner bonsai lecture run by the Japanese Friendship Garden of Phoenix (Rohoen) at 1125 N. 3rd Avenue, Phoenix, Arizona 85003. The event page says: “In this lecture for beginners, you will learn all aspects of the art of bonsai including its history, techniques, how to choose a plant and pot, as well as all the keys to basic maintenance for a desert climate.” It ends with “a lively Q&A session,” and no experience is required. The next session is Saturday, November 7, 2026, 9:30–11:00 AM, and the ticket ($20.00 plus a $0.70 service fee) includes general admission to the garden. Two more sessions are posted for Saturday, January 9, 2027 and Saturday, April 10, 2027. This listing is Learning. It is not a nursery shop and not a membership club.

Who it’s for

Phoenix-area beginners who want a short, low-cost introduction to bonsai with care advice written for the Sonoran Desert climate, and visitors who would like to pair a class with a walk through the garden. It is a lecture with Q&A; the page does not say that a tree, pot or tools are included. People who want a hands-on workshop that ends with a tree should look at other Learning listings, and people who want ongoing monthly meetings should look at Clubs listings.

Why it’s listed

This is a first-party event page from a non-profit public garden. It prints the course title, a description of what is taught, the date, start and end time, the venue address, a dollar ticket price with fee, what the ticket includes, a check-in rule and the next two dated sessions. The garden publishes its own hours, admission, parking and refund rules. It is curriculum and schedule first, not a shop and not a scraped event-aggregator card.

Fall 2026 session (event page, checked 2026-10-09):
- Saturday, November 7, 2026, 9:30–11:00 AM, Japanese Friendship Garden of Phoenix, 1125 N 3rd Ave, Phoenix, AZ 85003.
- Ticket: “Ticketed Workshop 11/7/26,” $20.00 + $0.70 service fee. The page says the ticket “includes admission to the Bonsai for Beginners workshop as well as general admission to the garden.” Ticket sales end Nov 7 at 9:40 AM. A Checkout button was shown at check.
- Check-in at the gate 15 minutes before the event.
- Content: bonsai history, techniques, choosing a plant and pot, basic maintenance for a desert climate, then Q&A. “No experience is required! Everyone is welcome.”
2027 sessions (event pages): Saturday, January 9, 2027 and Saturday, April 10, 2027, both 9:30–11:00 AM at the garden. Both pages say “Tickets to this workshop will open 3 Months prior to the event date.” A past September 26, 2026 session page also exists.
The garden (About page): Rohoen is an authentic 3.5-acre Japanese stroll garden with a tea garden and teahouse, a joint project of the City of Phoenix and sister city Himeji, Japan, proposed in 1987; the teahouse and tea garden were completed in November 1996. The Japanese Friendship Garden of Phoenix, Inc. is a non-profit 501(c)(3) governed by a board of directors.
Visiting (Hours & Admission and FAQ pages): fall hours (September–January) Tuesday–Sunday, 9 AM–6 PM, last admission 30 minutes before closing. General admission is $14 for adults ($11–$12 for seniors, students, military and youth 7–17; children 6 and under free). All ticket sales are final. Free parking lot on the west side of the garden; the Central and Roosevelt light rail stop is 0.3 miles away.

Session dates, prices and fees above are what the official pages showed on the check date. Seats and prices change. Check the live event page before treating any figure as fixed.

Official URL

Primary page (Nov 7, 2026 session): https://www.japanesefriendshipgarden.org/event-details/bonsai-for-beginners-2026-11-07-09-30

Jan 9, 2027 session: https://www.japanesefriendshipgarden.org/event-details/bonsai-for-beginners-2027-01-09-09-30
Apr 10, 2027 session: https://www.japanesefriendshipgarden.org/event-details/bonsai-for-beginners-2027-04-10-09-30
Hours, admission, parking and refund policy: https://www.japanesefriendshipgarden.org/visit
About the garden (Rohoen, Himeji, 501(c)(3)): https://www.japanesefriendshipgarden.org/about
Frequently asked questions: https://www.japanesefriendshipgarden.org/questions
Japanese Friendship Garden of Phoenix home: https://www.japanesefriendshipgarden.org/

Location

Japanese Friendship Garden of Phoenix (Rohoen), 1125 N. 3rd Avenue, Phoenix, Arizona 85003, on 3rd Avenue two blocks north of Roosevelt Street, near downtown Phoenix. Phone (602) 274-8700; email [email protected]; mailing address 216 W Portland St., Phoenix, AZ 85003. Free parking in the garden’s own lot on the west side; free street parking on adjacent streets.

This is a public-garden class identity. Do not treat this Learning card as a retail bonsai nursery or as a membership club meeting hall.

Notes

Category is Learning. The garden sells a dated class ticket, not trees, and it is not a club.
Lecture format: the page calls the session a “lecture for beginners” with a Q&A, while the ticket is named “Ticketed Workshop.” It does not say that a tree, pot, soil or tools are included, so this card does not claim a take-home tree.
Instructor not named: the event pages do not name a presenter or a partner club.
Time discrepancy: an earlier event listing (Sep 26, 2026) and the garden’s structured data both show 9:30–11:00 AM, which this card follows. A third-party aggregator listed 9:30–11:30 AM; it is not used.
2027 tickets not yet on sale: the Jan 9 and Apr 10, 2027 pages say tickets open three months before each date. Prices for those sessions are not posted yet.
Refunds: the event page prints no refund rule. The Hours & Admission page says “All ticket sales are final” for garden tickets, and the FAQ repeats that all ticket sales are final. Treat the class ticket as non-refundable unless the garden says otherwise.
Year check: Nov 7, 2026, Jan 9, 2027 and Apr 10, 2027 all fall on Saturdays, matching the pages.
Geographic spread: Phoenix AZ is the plaza’s first Arizona Learning card. Phoenix already has the Clubs listing phoenix-bonsai-society (a different brand, domain and category). It is away from Thu Salt Lake City UT, Wed Bristol RI, Tue Denver CO, Mon Orlando FL, Fri Carrboro NC, Thu Vienna VA, Wed Sep 30 Columbus OH, Tue Sep 29 Toronto ON and Mon Sep 28 Fort Pierce FL Learning geos.
Listing image: first-party Japanese Friendship Garden of Phoenix / Rohoen header wordmark saved beside this file as japanese-friendship-garden-phoenix-bonsai-for-beginners-logo.png (from static.wixstatic.com/media/ce3ab7_5b320ddd7ac24e4782d4ba6a0a5ddf14~mv2.png, 3840×960, resized to 1200×300).
Not affiliated with Bonsai Plaza.
No Bonsai Plaza contact, purchase, booking, or publication action was taken.

FAQ

Q: When is the next Bonsai for Beginners class at the Japanese Friendship Garden of Phoenix, and what does it cost?
A: The official event page (checked 2026-10-09) lists Saturday, November 7, 2026, 9:30–11:00 AM, at 1125 N. 3rd Avenue, Phoenix. The ticket is $20.00 plus a $0.70 service fee and includes general admission to the garden.

Q: Are there later dates?
A: Yes. The garden has posted sessions on Saturday, January 9, 2027 and Saturday, April 10, 2027, both 9:30–11:00 AM. Tickets for each open three months before the date.

Q: What will I learn, and do I need experience?
A: The page says the lecture covers bonsai history, techniques, how to choose a plant and pot, and basic maintenance for a desert climate, followed by a Q&A. No experience is required.

Q: Do I take home a tree?
A: The page does not say so. It describes a lecture with Q&A and lists no materials, so plan on learning rather than potting a tree.

Q: Where do I park, and when should I arrive?
A: The garden has a free parking lot on its west side, plus free street parking nearby; the Central and Roosevelt light rail stop is 0.3 miles away. The event page asks you to check in at the gate 15 minutes before the start.