Pacific Bonsai Museum

Name: Pacific Bonsai Museum
Address: 2515 S 336th Street, Federal Way, Auburn, WA, 98001, US
Telephone: +12533537345
Rating: 5

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Auburn, WA
Pacific Bonsai Museum

Inspiring a closer look at nature through the living art of bonsai. Open year-round, in Federal Way, WA.
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Pacific Bonsai Museum connects people to nature through the living art of bonsai.

08/27/2026

When you hear the word “tree,” what image comes to mind? Our ideas of trees are shaped by the places we come from and the cultural meanings we attach to the natural world.

Our current exhibition, Bonsai United, explores bonsai as a reflection of the relationship between people, culture, and environment.

Plan your visit in person (pacificbonsaimuseum.org) or visit virtually (https://guides.bloombergconnects.org/en-US/guide/pacificBonsaiMuseum) �Enhance your visit with the Bonsai United audio tour (https://guides.bloombergconnects.org/en-US/guide/pacificBonsaiMuseum/tour/9f4e7699-81da-4cd6-90fc-28da992bf091)

Featured here:
Audio: Ryan Neil
Bonsai: Root over rock Coast Douglas Fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii var. Menziesii); In training since 2020; Bonsai by Ryan Neil ; Ceramic Container by Ron Lang; Etched copper stand by Austin Heitzman.
Netting to protect our moss from birds who want to forage for goodies!

08/24/2026

Summer isn't over yet! Visit Pacific Bonsai Museum to meet a tree that breathes through its knees, discover seeds that spin like helicopter blades, and so much more when you tune in to our 'I Spy Bonsai Audio Tour for Kids'—now with 11 stops full of secrets, surprises, and tree adventures—free on our Bloomberg Connects digital guide. Free admission, fresh air, a perfect last hurrah.

Follow the QR code (on the last photo) or use this link: https://guides.bloombergconnects.org/en-US/guide/pacificBonsaiMuseum/tour/919c91fe-c79b-49a2-ab5d-f2871c209122

08/22/2026

🍂 Early signs of fall are here.

Our trees are shifting gears — vegetative growth is transitioning to vascular growth. Here's what that means for care right now:

💧 Watering — Our routine is changing, since the trees are taking up less water.
🌱 Buds — Swelling and forming as the tree expands its vascular tissues.
🌿 Fertilizing — We're upping it, to give the trees extra nutrition to get through the cold months and set up a stronger flush of growth next spring.
🪢 Wire checks — We're watching for wire biting in and removing it as needed.
🧹 Cleanup — Clearing older needles as the trees shed them.

Coming up next:

Wiring starts again soon, with pruning a little after that.
→ Conifers: this opens a styling window.
→ Deciduous: we'll wait for about a week after ~80% leaf-drop.

In bonsai, we're always thinking ahead. 🌳

08/20/2026

Take a closer look at nature. Slow down. Experience living art, in a peaceful setting. This is what Pacific Bonsai Museum offers to everyone, six days a week, year-round, with free admission.

And one afternoon with us at Branch Out helps keep it that way!

Branch Out is our biggest event of the year, featuring:
🏢 Iconic Pacific Northwest architecture inside the former Weyerhaeuser Corporate HQ
🌿 Beautiful bonsai displays
🥂 Cocktails, bites, dessert & live entertainment
🎉 Live and silent auctions
✨ One exclusive afternoon only
🎶 Susie Philipsen will be performing at Branch Out (sound up! for her dreamy vocals)
🎟️ Tickets start at $175
all in support of Pacific Bonsai Museum!

Reserve your spot to join us today! Tickets on sale now at the link in our Profile ( https://pacificbonsaimuseum.ejoinme.org/branchout2026 )

Music: “It Takes Two,” written and performed by Susie Philipsen. Used with permission from the artist.

08/19/2026

It is with heavy hearts that we share that Joel Schwarz, our long-time volunteer, passed away peacefully on June 22. Joel practiced bonsai for more than half a century.

A lifelong journalist, Joel worked at the Los Angeles Times, the Los Angeles YMCA, and the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California. After moving to Seattle, he worked in the News and Information Office at the University of Washington, where he promoted research in the behavioral sciences to newspapers including the New York Times and the Seattle Times. While living on Vashon Island, he continued to write freelance articles for publications including American Airlines and Science magazine.

In addition to serving as a volunteer at Pacific Bonsai Museum for 15 years (from 2008 through 2023), Joel was an active leader of the Puget Sound Bonsai Association and was a founding member of the Northwest Viewing Stone Group. He organized countless stone-collecting trips and shared his finds in the “Stone Images” exhibitions at Pacific Bonsai Museum, from the first show in 2010 through 2024.

His dedication to bonsai, viewing stones, and the broader community touched countless people, and he will be dearly missed by all who were fortunate enough to know him.

Donations in Joel's honor can be made to the Lewy Body Dementia Association. You are also encouraged to plant a tree in Joel's memory.

At the upcoming Stone Images XVI exhibition, Edd Kuehn will feature a special display of some of Joel's finest stones in his honor. The exhibition will run from November 2026 through early January 2027 at Pacific Bonsai Museum.

/Adapted from a post in the Puget Sound Bonsai Association's recent Sound Bonsai newsletter./

08/15/2026

Are you ready for fall? Our maples seem to be! Our Japanese maples are starting to show a bit of red on their leaves.
Photo 1 & 2: Japanese Maple (Acer palmatum), in training as a bonsai since 1956; original artist: Kai Kawahara.
Photo 3: Japanese maple ( ) in training as a bonsai since 2000; original artist: Peter Adams.

08/13/2026

Ever wondered what’s inside that building you see from I-5 in Federal Way, WA? 👀
This is the former Weyerhaeuser Company’s HQ, next door to Pacific Bonsai Museum. It’s an architectural icon that’s rarely open to the public.

But on Sunday, September 27, you can step inside for our fundraiser, Branch Out!
🏢 Iconic Pacific Northwest architecture
🌿 Beautiful bonsai displays
🥂 Cocktails, bites, dessert & live entertainment
🎉 Live and silent auctions
✨ One exclusive afternoon only
🎶 Sound up! Susie Philipsen will be singing at Branch Out. Here’s a sample of her dreamy, timeless vibe (and a sneak peek of a future release from her!)
🌲 All in support of Pacific Bonsai Museum!

This may be our last year holding this event inside this building, so don’t miss your chance to be a part of it. Tickets are going fast.

Tickets for our fundraiser start at $175, with proceeds directly funding free-admission, year-round museum experiences for all.
🎟️ Get Branch Out tickets now - link in bio ( https://pacificbonsaimuseum.ejoinme.org/branchout2026 )

Photos of past Branch Out events by Winifred Westergard.

08/11/2026

We are proud to be supporting a new public bonsai collection!

Last week, we entrusted six tropical bonsai to Waterfront Botanical Gardens in Louisville, Kentucky, where they join a growing public collection led by its first-ever Bonsai Curator, Angelica Ramirez.

Angelica spent time with us recently, working side-by-side with Aarin and helping prep and load the trees to be driven to their new home. Driving the van: Angelica’s own mentor, David Cutchin.

Thanks to all who helped facilitate the transfer between two public institutions, helping the art of bonsai grow and keeping these living artworks in the public realm, where everyone can enjoy them.

Read the full story: https://pacificbonsaimuseum.org/press/

08/08/2026

Engelmann Spruce (Picea engelmannii); date of Origin: ca. 1890; In training since: 1978; original artist: Ron Yasenchek.

Studio shot and currently on view in our Bonsai United exhibition. Come visit and take a closer look!

Address

2515 S 336th Street, Federal Way
Auburn, WA
98001

Telephone

+12533537345

Website

http://www.pacificbonsaimuseum.org/

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