Join Steve Schneider, the Director of Operations and Public Programs at the Arnold Arboretum and curator of the Bonsai & Penjing Collection, for the first installment in a series of behind-the-scenes videos focused on the Arnold Arboretum’s Bonsai & Penjing Collection. In this video, learn about the cold storage facilities, where the dwarfed plants spend their quiet winter months. Then watch as one of the largest specimens, a compact hinoki cypress, Chamaecyparis obtusa ‘Chabo-hiba’ is welcomed into the pavilion for the growing season.
Check back for additional videos focusing on repotting and highlights of our beautiful accessions.
Among the oldest surviving bonsai in America, the Bonsai & Penjing Collection is a beloved treasure of the Arnold Arboretum and Boston. While the plants that currently make up the collection are not the oldest dwarfed plants in the United States, they have been under cultivation longer than any other examples currently growing in North America—with the exception of three plants at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden that were imported in 1911. Learn more about the Arnold Arboretum’s Bonsai & Penjing Collection from your home.
In order to follow COVID-19 safety guidelines the Bonsai & Penjing Pavilion is closed to the public. Check back for updates on the reopening of the pavilion. If you would like to visit other parts of the Arboretum, please review our guidelines for safe visitation, including social distancing, wearing a facial covering, and avoiding crowded areas or peak visiting times.
Video and narration: Steve Schneider
Post production: Adi Shafir
From “free” to “friend”…
Established in 1911 as the Bulletin of Popular Information, Arnoldia has long been a definitive forum for conversations about temperate woody plants and their landscapes. In 2022, we rolled out a new vision for the magazine as a vigorous forum for tales of plant exploration, behind-the-scenes glimpses of botanical research, and deep dives into the history of gardens, landscapes, and science. The new Arnoldia includes poetry, visual art, and literary essays, following the human imagination wherever it entangles with trees.
It takes resources to gather and nurture these new voices, and we depend on the support of our member-subscribers to make it possible. But membership means more: by becoming a member of the Arnold Arboretum, you help to keep our collection vibrant and our research and educational mission active. Through the pages of Arnoldia, you can take part in the life of this free-to-all landscape whether you live next door or an ocean away.