Best plant nurseries
Need some more green in your life? Take your pick of plants at these nurseries. By Delima Shanti
THINKING OF STARTING or adding to your collection of house plants? These plant shops and nurseries have everything you need. If you’ve got a case of the black thumb, the knowledgeable staff at these nurseries are your best resource for plant care know-how.
1 CERES Permaculture and Bushfood Nursery
You’re probably familiar with CERES’S community farm, but pay the CERES Permaculture and Bushfood Nursery a visit and you won’t regret it. This nursery has everything a good nursery should have, but we’re most excited about the vast range of potted fruit trees and bushfoods seedlings. Add some lemon myrtle or Warrigal greens to your veggie patch – just ask the staff to choose the best bushfoods for your garden. à Cnr Roberts & Stewart Sts, Brunswick East 3057. 03 9389 0111. www.ceres.org.au/ social-enterprises/nursery. Daily 9am-5pm.
2 Lygon Street Nursery
You wouldn’t think that the small shopfront of this Lygon Street nursery leads into an outdoor oasis, home to impressivelooking shrubs, seedlings and edible plants. Lygon Street Nursery’s stock of indoor plants is gorgeous: get your hands on hanging plants like devil’s ivy or Boston ferns. Owner Michael Khalil is a professional landscaper who will happily arm you with info on how to care for your indoor and outdoor plants. à 135 Lygon St, Brunswick East 3057. 03 8388 7245. www. lygonstnursery.com. Wed, Thu 10am-5pm; Fri, Sat 10am-6pm; Sun 10am-4pm.
3Loose Leaf
Wona Bae and Charlie Lawler’s green haven in Collingwood is nothing like your run-of-the-mill flower shop. Part florist and part nursery, Loose Leaf has a tropical jungle’s bounty of indoor plants, succulents and air plants hung artfully around an otherwise all white warehouse space. Trained in both the Korean and Japanese arts of floristry, Bae also runs flower arranging classes. à 31 Sackville St, Collingwood 3066. 03 9994 6865. www.looseleafstore.com.au. Thu-sat 10am-5pm.
4 The Little Veggie Patch Co Nursery
If you live in an apartment or a squashy sharehouse, you can still grow your own food. The Little Veggie Patch Co is all about spreading knowledge of all things planting, composting and pest control. à 2A Brighton Rd, St Kilda East 3183. 03 9531 5594. www. littleveggiepatchco.com.au. Mon-fri 10am-5pm; Sat, Sun 9am-5pm.
5Mr Kitly
Mr Kitly is the creation of Bree Claffey, author of Indoor Green: Living
with Plants. You can find fully grown plants here as well as steel plant stands that hoist your plants off the ground, and colourful self-watering pots that are a saviour for the black-thumbed plant keeper.
à Upstairs, 381 Sydney Rd, Brunswick 3056. 03 9078 7357. www.mrkitly.com.au. Mon, Wed-fri 11am-6pm; Sat 10am-5pm; Sun 11am-4pm.
6Bunnings Warehouse
Bunnings isn’t just for tradies and home DIY fans. The bigger stores often have really good nurseries that sell vegetable seedlings, fruit trees, outdoor foliage and indoor plants. They’ll also have all the hardware you need (think pots and shovels) to plant your new green friends so you can be ready for that springtime bloom. In inner-city Melbourne, your best Bunnings branches for plant shopping include Collingwood, Hawthorn and West Footscray. à Various locations. www.bunnings.com.au.
7Fitzroy Nursery
Fitzroy Nursery on Brunswick Street is a haven for plant lovers, stocking everything from terrariums to mature trees that are ready to plant in the ground or in pots. Check out the cacti and succulent section and the indoor plant section which has a large number of air-purifying plants (yes, it’s a thing) like ferns, devil’s ivy and peace lilies. The outdoor nursery, laid out like a garden, is a great spot to browse for your next plant project, whether you’re after vegetable seedlings or blooms for the balcony. ■ à 390 Brunswick St, Fitzroy 3065. 03 9417 3272. www.fitzroynursery.com.au. Mon-fri 9am-5pm; Sat, Sun 10am-5.30pm.