Louisville, KY – August 11, 2026 —Waterfront Botanical Gardens is the proud recipient of six tropical bonsai trees, courtesy of the Pacific Bonsai Museum near Tacoma, WA. The transfer marks a collaboration between two institutions devoted to sharing the art of bonsai with the public, and helps solidify the Gardens as a regional destination for the celebration and cultivation of the ancient Japanese art.
Among the trees in the new collection are a Chinese Banyan that has been in training as a bonsai since 1960, after it was gifted to its recipient as a houseplant in Hawai’i, and a Green Island Fig that has been trained in a distinctive “root-over-rock” style around a piece of limestone coral. Photographs and a detailed description of each tree can be found here.
“The Pacific Bonsai Museum is one of the leading institutions in the country devoted to the art of bonsai. The trust they have placed in Waterfront Botanical Gardens to care for these remarkable specimens speaks volumes about the strength of the program we are cultivating here in Louisville,” said Angelica Ramirez, Bonsai Curator at Waterfront Botanical Gardens. “I endeavor to cultivate a diverse collection of bonsai, and the addition of these tropical bonsai is a significant step toward achieving this goal.”
Ramirez traveled to Washington this month to work alongside Pacific Bonsai’s curator, Aarin Packard, to prepare the trees for their journey back to Louisville, which was facilitated by David Cutchin, a respected bonsai teacher and one of Ramirez’s mentors. The new trees will be safely housed and cared for until next spring, when the Graeser Family Bonsai Garden opens to the public.
“Curator Ramirez is among the small handful of people who reach the very highest level in bonsai, and we are delighted these six trees will be in her care,” said Pat Bako, Executive Director of Pacific Bonsai Museum. “Bonsai teaches us that we are never the final caretaker of a tree; we’re simply one chapter in its life. We’re excited to see their stories continue with Angelica and the team at Waterfront Botanical Gardens.”
###
About Waterfront Botanical Gardens
Waterfront Botanical Gardens is an urban botanical garden just east of Downtown Louisville, built on the site of a former landfill that was closed in the 1970s. The unique and innovative project opened to the public in December 2019, and is a place where nature prospers and people thrive through education, entertainment, community, and tourism. Following a comprehensive four-phase masterplan, the Gardens will eventually encompass 23-acres of remediated land. Phase 2, which will include the addition of the Graeser Family Bonsai Garden and Joe and Debbie Graviss Bonsai House is currently underway. Waterfront Botanical Gardens is free and open to the public, with a suggested admission of $10. For hours of operation, events and programs, and parking/accessibility information, visit waterfrontgardens.org.
About Pacific Bonsai Museum
Pacific Bonsai Museum is an outdoor museum set in a forest in Federal Way, Washington, and one of only a few public collections in the world devoted solely to bonsai. The museum opened in 1989 as the Pacific Rim Bonsai Collection during Washington State’s centennial and became an independent nonprofit in 2013. Its collection of 150 bonsai is among the most geographically and botanically diverse in the world, and a living repository of cultural heritage. Guided by its mission to inspire a closer look at nature, the museum welcomes more than 60,000 visitors each year to view contemporary exhibitions, take part in docent-led tours, educational programs, workshops, and much more. Admission is free thanks to support from 4Culture. Open Tuesday through Sunday, 10am to 4pm. Learn more about the museum’s history at pacificbonsaimuseum.org/about.
