Exploring a Culture’s Heart and Soul
For many visitors, Portland Japanese Garden is the closest they might ever come to experiencing Japanese culture. The Garden is a living “classroom” and its lessons are many and varied. To explore the Japanese garden is to dive headlong into the deep waters of a culture’s heart and soul. It’s an endless learning experience of spirituality, poetry, aesthetics, architecture, and applied arts.
What is the International Japanese Garden Training Center?
Portland Japanese Garden’s International Japanese Garden Training Center (The Training Center) teaches the traditional skills and techniques for creating and fostering Japanese gardens, while acquainting learners with the garden’s cultural heart.
The Training Center offers learners of all levels – from elementary school students to horticulture enthusiasts to seasoned professionals – the opportunity to gain a deeper understanding of the Japanese garden and its philosophies. We offer workshops, themed tours, school programs, lectures, professional seminars, and design intensives.
The Training Center, the only such program in the world outside of Japan, is a recipient of the 2020 Garden Excellence Award from the American Public Gardens Association and the 2020 Award of Excellence from the American Society of Landscape Architects. See the full list of professional awards and achievements here.
For more information on the Training Center and programming, watch this short video and subscribe to our newsletter!
The Training Center is certified by the American Society of Landscape Architects as an approved LA CES (Landscape Architecture Continuing Education System) provider. Our courses are also eligible for continuing education credit by the Association of Professional Landscape Designers and the Oregon Landscape Contractors Association. Please contact trainingcenter@japanesegarden.org for credit hours for specific events.
“We are the landscape of all we know.”
– Isamu Noguchi
