Craft your own little green haven

 In light of dwindling greenery of Kathmandu and virtually no open space for gardens and backyards in its houses, a special store spe­cializing in indoor plants has just opened. Located in Jhamsikhel, in front of Moksh Restaurant, Plant Shop Kathmandu sells a variety of indoor plants like Succulents, Palms, Crotons, Snake plants and Monstera. But selling plants is just one of its fortes. Along with a myriad of plants for sale, the shop offers services seldom provided by other nurseries in Kath­mandu. If the plants bought from the shop wither to an extent that there is an imminent chance of the plant dying, Plant Shop will try to revive those plants for you for free.

According to Maya Ghale, the owner of the shop, there should be a “reasonable chance” of the withering plants surviving in order to access such rehabilitative ser­vices. “For instance you cannot expect us to revive a Cacti with rot­ten roots,” says Ghale. She adds that if the shop personnel are free they are also willing to accept and revive plants that not bought from their shop.

Apart from free plant repairs, Plant Shop also offers consultation services to those looking to deco­rate their homes with indoor plants. “For first-timers, we recommend plants that require less care. But our suggestion also depends on the kind of decoration you want in your home,” she says. Moreover, Plant Shop warns visitors of hazards of keeping indoor plants—for example related to their toxicity and their potential to cause an allergic reac­tion—which can be major concerns if there are kids or pets in your house. Besides providing these services the shop also sells gardening accessories like flowerpots.

“Both my parents and grandpar­ents were enthusiastic about tending plants, and so I was constantly sur­rounded by greenery. Such greenery ensured that I too inherited the same enthusiasm to experiment with the plants in the garden, thus giving me the same set of skills that I would have otherwise acquired with formal education in tending plants,” she says. According to Ghale the same motivation inspired the Plant Shop. She specifically wanted to promote indoor plants that require less care and can be easily accommodated even in the crammed homes of Kath­mandu.

In two months of its existence the shop has already garnered a lot of attention. According to Ghale, the place is not only a site where plant-lovers can buy plants to adorn their homes but also a place where people can enjoy the balance between concrete and greenery. The next step for Ghale? To con­duct workshops to further promote indoor plants.

For customers who want to know more about the plants on sale at the Plant Shop, visit its Instagram page plantshopktm or contact theplant­[email protected]