Reimagined for 2020, visitors will have the opportunity to take in the festival and experience the wonder of the winter season in a magical outdoor garden setting with themed areas, unique light features, and holiday music. VBGA Member discount available with valid current membership.
Tickets will not be sold onsite to limit contact between visitors and staff.
Presented by: John Clague
About 11,500 years ago, at the end of the last Ice Age, floodwaters up to 100 m deep raced down the Fraser Canyon from south of Williams Lake to present-day Hope. Upon reaching Hope, the flood entered and spread westward across the Fraser Lowland before entering the sea south of Vancouver. In this presentation, SFU geologist and professor, and Order of Canada recipient John Clague describes the flood and its effects on the landscape, and explains its cause.
Learn MorePurchase the Official Bloedel Conservatory 50th Anniversary Commemorative Booklet online!
Autumn colours are absolutely stunning at the Garden, and there are plenty of blooms still showing.
Learn MoreThe winter Garden features muted colour palettes, stunning silhouettes and a scattering of colour with winter berries and blooms.
Learn MoreIn spring the Garden is bursting with cheerful rhododendrons, stunning magnolias, delicate cherry blossoms and bloom-full camellias – to mention a few…
Learn MoreSummer in the Garden features vibrant colours and fragrant smells for our visitors to enjoy.
Learn MoreGet your greens this winter! Microgreens and sprouts can be grown at home all year round. Learn the difference between these types of plants, and the required growing conditions for each. In this online class, you will gain an understanding of the systems and products that you need to grow greens at home. Dr. Yael Stav will demonstrate the steps to prepare your own microgreens tray or sprouting jar, and will provide you with the knowledge and resources to start your own. Buy your own sprouting kit from VanDusen and complement this class with hands-on learning.
Don’t let the winter stop you from growing a beautiful outdoor succulent garden. With VanDusen’s classes offered online, this is your chance to see an outdoor backyard succulent oasis, located on Bowen Island, BC! Get an in-depth look at the growing design and techniques of a succulent savvy gardener in Zone 8. Learn about appropriate plants for a Canadian winter succulent garden, as well as indoor tips on grow lights, set-up, and propagation. Whether you’re growing in a low water or rocky context, Melinda can help you get great-looking succulents all year round.
Join Susan Pearson for this beginner’s class in watercolour painting. Whether you’re painting a still life, botanical subject, landscape, or abstract expression Susan will guide you through colour mixing, and the techniques of applying paint to paper. Experiment with wet into wet, wet on dry, and bringing colours to clear in this fun and foundational workshop.
Whether you’re designing a small green entrance to your home or an expansive backyard oasis, this online class will equip you with the essential principles of landscape design. Join Janis Matson, horticulturist and owner of Shoreline Landscape Design, for this 3-part workshop series. Learn foundational concepts of design, such as soil, slope, sun exposure, and irrigation. Expand your learning with the principles and elements of design like focal points, scale, colour, balance, and more. Bring photos or drawings of your garden and work on your own property’s design with feedback and insight from the instructor. Leave inspired and ready to design your garden.
Join the VBGA and the Vancouver Avian Research Centre (VARC) to explore how birds benefit our ecosystems. Take a closer look at species that stay year-round, and how to help them survive through the colder months. This talk will delve into the challenges birds face and the science helping to protect them. Learn what you can do to create bird-friendly spaces helping our feathered friends thrive.
Transform your home or small garden into an urban micro-farm in this online lecture presented by sustainable design professional Dr. Yael Stav. In this holistic class, explore living walls, vermi-compost, window farms, and other indoor planting systems to add edible greenery to your home without taking up much space. Learn principles of planning your garden, managing water and light requirements, and which plants are most suitable.
Learn how to draw plants from an aesthetic and botanical perspective while improving your observation and artistic skills. This 3-session course is ideal for anyone wishing to approach a beginner level of botanical drawing. Instructor Katharine Dickinson will guide students through contour and gesture drawing exercises, followed by longer studies using line and tonal drawing techniques.
