Courses
The Home Gardening Series (Online)
Learn from Southern BC’s top horticulture professionals from the comfort of your home.
The Home Gardening Series, a collaboration between the Vancouver Botanical Gardens Association and the Vancouver Chapter of the B.C. Master Gardeners Association, offers a curated selection of gardening topics from the Master Gardener Basic Training curriculum. Designed for both beginners and experienced gardeners, this series provides current gardening knowledge without the commitment of the broader Master Gardener program.
Catching Stories Behind the Lens
From remote South Pacific atolls to the Arctic and Pacific Northwest, Isabelle Groc has spent her career documenting science and conservation in the field. In this presentation, she shares how she selects stories, collaborates with scientists, and works in challenging environments, revealing how visual storytelling deepens public understanding of nature. She will also highlight recent projects on urban hummingbirds and migrating shorebirds. At the in-person session, she will offer several of her books for sale, including her hummingbird book which features some photographs taken at VanDusen Gardens.
Watercolour: Mastering the Art of Whites SOLD OUT
Join Instructor Susan Pearson for a creative journey into making your watercolour paintings shine. While colour plays a vital role, the thoughtful use of white spaces and watercolour techniques can bring your artwork to life. In this 5-session series, you’ll learn how to plan ahead and use well-placed whites to improve your creations.
Participants are required to bring their own supplies.
January Ivy Basket Weaving SOLD OUT
Discover the art of crafting baskets and trivets from invasive English ivy!
In this hands-on experience led by Grace Nombrado, with support from Adrian Avendano, you will learn to prepare and weave ivy into your own basket or trivet to take home.
Please note that the outdoor portion runs rain or shine. Only extreme weather will move the class fully indoors.
Getting A Headstart on Veggie Garden Planning
Get a head start on the 2025 growing season with Tomas Burns, of Victory Gardens. Participants will learn how to plan their gardens, including what crops to grow, when to plant by seed or starter, and how to maximize their space. We will also discuss crop rotation and garden mapping to enhance crop yields and growing success next season. Bring your questions; there may be time for a Q&A session at the end!
Colour, Scent & Form in the Winter Garden
The winter garden is surprisingly alive with early flowering bulbs and inconspicuous flowers with the most beautiful aromas, including the winter-flowering witch hazels in the Sino-Himalayan Garden. Join Allison Luke for a guided walk through the Garden dedicated to showcasing herbaceous perennials, outstanding groundcovers, and stand-out shrubs that can bring colour, structural form, and scent to your garden the whole winter long.
Drawing Tree Shapes & Structures (ONLINE)
Join local artist Katharine Dickinson for an immersive online series on capturing the beauty of trees through drawing. Over four engaging sessions, you’ll refine your observational skills, explore colour matching, and uncover the unique features that define different tree species.
Learn essential drawing techniques inspired by botanical art and tree photography, simplifying concepts like foreshortening and perspective. Practical exercises will focus on textures and details, including bark, twigs, leaves, and cones, using live tree examples.
Essentials of Garden Design (ONLINE)
Whether you are designing a small patio space or an expansive backyard oasis, this online series will equip you with the essential basics of landscape design. Join Janis Matson, horticulturalist and owner of Shoreline Landscape design Ltd., for this 4-part workshop series.
Learn foundational design concepts such as landscape assessment (soil, slope, exposure, climate, drainage), and irrigation planning. Expand your learning with the elements and principles of design which explain scale, proportion, focal points, colour, texture, line and more.
Participants are encouraged to bring photos or sketches of your own garden or property design to share for feedback and insights from the instructor throughput the sessions. Leave inspired and ready to create and enhance your garden space!
Winter Plant ID: Native & Ornamental Shrubs & Trees
When seasons change and plants lose their leaves, it may seem like a dull and sleepy time of year—but there’s so much to observe and enjoy outdoors! Join Julia Alards-Tomalin to learn why the winter season is an excellent opportunity to build your plant identification skills and sharpen your observational abilities.
We’ll begin the class with a lecture and some interactive activities covering the basics of winter plant identification, including key traits and terminology. The second part of the workshop will be an outdoor walk, where we will explore VanDusen Garden and practice observing winter traits of trees and shrubs.
Green Roofs 101
This introductory course presented by Green Roof Infrastructure Network of BC (GRIN), provides homeowners and gardeners with basic technical know-how and practical skills to design, install and maintain green roofs. It will focus on lightweight, low maintenance systems that are best suited for small DIY projects. We will explore local case studies and share top tips in selecting plants, soils and accessories to create a successful green roof.
