Review by Hannah Rennie
Over the past few years I’ve developed a love for houseplants, as well as a collection that has slowly taken over my little studio apartment, which now resembles a small jungle. Throughout my plant journey I have visited almost every plant shop and greenhouse in Edmonton—here are some of my favourites.
Botaniful
13851 127 St NW
website
Open daily 11am – 7pm
Statutory holidays 11am – 6pm
Botaniful is one of the more curious plant stores I’ve visited: it is nestled away on the second floor of a Lucky Supermarket, and at first I wondered if I was even in the right place.
To find it you have to wind your way through the busy Asian market, until you come to a staircase that leads to the second floor. Up the stairs is another world: you are no longer in the hectic, loud market but a modern, whitewashed loft. The smell of meat and seafood disappears, and is replaced by that unmistakably fresh smell of soil and greenery; the noise dies down and is replaced by the quiet lull of music. The store is bright and cheerful with floor-to-ceiling windows, twinkle lights, and plants everywhere: on the floor, on tables, climbing the walls, and hanging from the ceiling. You’re in a sea of greenery with the occasional pop of colour: the rich purple of an African violet, the delicate pink of an orchid, the vibrant red of an anthurium.
This store is great for plant enthusiasts of all experience levels: they have easy-to-care-for beginner plants like pothos, hoyas, and snake plants, as well as more rare and specialised plants for the avid collectors, like the coveted Thai constellation monstera. In addition to their wide range of plants, they also carry soil, pots, and all the plant paraphernalia you can dream of!
This store is on the more expensive side, with small, common plants starting at around $15, and the larger and more exotic plants going for upwards of $1000. My favourite part about this store, though, is the adoption shelf, where you can buy a plant that needs a little extra love for just a few dollars. Being a university student on a budget, I ended up “adopting” a little alocasia with wilting leaves for $4, which I have since nurtured back to life.
Botaniful also offers consultations for new plant parents, and you can order straight from their website and have your new plants delivered right to your door. However, I highly recommend checking out the shop in person, as it is nothing short of a divine experience for plant lovers old and new alike.
Zocalo
10826 95 St NW
780-428-0754
info@zocalo.ca
website
Tuesday – Sunday: 10 am – 5 pm
Right in the heart of Edmonton’s Little Italy, Zocalo is the perfectly eclectic combination of a plant store, gift shop, and café.
On the one side is the shop, full of fun and colourful wares, as well as the café. This half of Zocalo offers everything from botanical posters to candlestick holders to vintage puzzles and cocktail books; it truly has something for everyone. The café also has a decent selection of sweet treats, and I picked up a scone as well as a cup of mint tea to warm my hands while I browsed the rest of the store.
On the other side of the shop is what drew me to Zocalo in the first place: the plants. This part of the store is in a small greenhouse, and the natural light filtering through the glass panels brightens up the space. Plants line both walls, and there are tables in the centre of the room, creating the perfect place for a conversation with a friend.
Zocalo had a wide assortment of tropical houseplants and succulents, as well as some perennials left over from the summer season. As I wandered about, I found everything from fiddle leaf figs to ZZ plants to olive trees and birds of paradise—while I didn’t see anything particularly rare, they had an excellent selection of common houseplants. There were also some potted flowers, as well, including gerberas, lilies, orchids, and azaleas.
Last but certainly not least, I discovered a side room filled with all sorts of pots in every imaginable shape and size. My favourite was a sculpted pot in the shape of a female bust, with room for a plant to grow out of its head like wild, untamable hair. I ended up purchasing the pot, and it currently resides on my kitchen counter with a pothos happily growing from it!
While some of the artisan products in the gift shop can be quite expensive (there is an octopus-shaped candlestick holder priced at $675), the plants themselves are very affordable. I left with a $6 alocasia silver dragon, which I had been searching for for months, as well as an $8 spider plant. Overall, Zocalo is a fun and lively plant shop that is an experience in and of itself: you can come and get a hot drink, sit and chat with friends, go shopping, and peruse the greenhouse all in one place! For those who want to explore Zocalo’s selection but can’t make the trip out to Little Italy, Zocalo also offers local delivery through its website.
Glass Earth Inc.
1 Kingsway NW
website
780-298-1489
glassearth@outlook.com
Monday to Saturday 11:00 am – 7:00 pm
Sunday 12:00 pm – 5:00 pm
Located in Kingsway Mall, Glass Earth is a gorgeous little plant store that is the perfect escape from everyday life. The moment I stepped inside the music and noise of the mall faded away, and I found myself surrounded by plants of every size and variety. The entrance is framed with tall tropical trees and the mist of humidifiers, and it felt like I was walking into a jungle.
On one side of the store are a variety of tropical plants; on the other, a selection of temperate and arid plants. I was immediately drawn to the albo monstera I spotted near the front of the store; unfortunately, it was priced at over $1000, which is far out of my student budget. Instead I wandered through the sea of plants, eying up the trailing plants hanging overhead, and wishing I had the space to hang an English ivy plant, or perhaps a string of turtles.
Instead, I settled on a small tropical plant; when I went to pay, though, the employee informed me that it was better suited to humid climates and was highly toxic to pets. With her help, I ended up picking out a gorgeous tradescantia nanouk instead, which has muted green leaves streaked with lavender, and is much safer for my cat.
Beyond their enviable collection of plants, Glass Earth also offers terrarium-building workshops—you can come in and assemble your terrarium during store hours, or book the space after-hours and enjoy a guided class with a glass of wine.
While this store is a bit more expensive—my tradescantia cost about $30, and some of the most expensive tropical trees can go up to around $2000— the quality and selection of the plants makes it worth it. Additionally, the help and expertise of the staff truly set this store apart from the rest.
Of all the plant shops I’ve visited in Edmonton, these three have become favourites that I return to time and time again. So whether you are testing out your green thumb for the first time or are an experienced plant parent, I highly recommend exploring these gems for yourself!
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