Growing houseplants was only a hobby until COVID-19 put Zoe Zhang out of a job last year. In August she turned an online venture into her dream business — a community garden cafe.
Zhang has transformed a second-story space overlooking Waialae Avenue, Kaimuki’s main street, into an urban oasis of greenery, where customers can relax with a cup of tea while enjoying music in the background and the work of local artists on the walls. She calls it Plantoem (plant-oh-em), a word she made up combining her two favorite things: plants and poems. Several poetry books are scattered around the space for perusal in keeping with the shop’s name.
Eye-catching plants hang from the ceiling against the backdrop of forest-green walls, displayed in vignettes of ceramic and rattan pots. Two chairs sit among the clusters of foliage, ideal for cozy Instagram pictures. The tropical ambience is enhanced by puffs of mist from humidifiers and fans, as air-conditioning is bad for plants, she said.
“Plants are the side products; I sell good vibes here,” said Zhang, who loves being at home in a jungle of plants. Those without green thumbs or who aren’t able to have plants where they live are welcome to revel in the foliage, she added.
Instead of lining up plants and containers in efficient rows like most nursery shops, Zhang has designed pleasing arrangements to inspire ideas about how the plants could look in homes or offices.
It may be costlier than going to a traditional garden store and picking out a plant and pot, she acknowledges, but customers know they can come back to her for advice. On Plantoem’s Instagram account, Zhang offers growing tips and links to other educational material. She spends hours each day texting customers about how to solve their plant problems.
“I feel like a connection to each plant. Each plant has its own personality; one monstera is different from another monstera. They tell me what they want, just by (my) looking at them,” she said, and it may mean giving one plant more light or water than another of the same kind.
“I love plants because they love you back when you love them right,” Zhang said. “As long as you pay attention to what they’re telling you, and do the right thing, they will thrive. Plants are very pure and direct.”
Learning what plants need took several years of trial and error and research. Zhang fell in love with them after she moved from Hong Kong to Hawaii in 2015.
“I have killed so many plants,” she said. “That’s why I wanted to have a shop. People ask so many questions online. I want to help people keep their plants alive.”
When customers are choosing a plant, Zhang asks them about the lighting, location and other environmental conditions in their home.
“I don’t want to sell a plant that will eventually die,” she said.
Zhang said one of the easiest plants to keep healthy under a variety of conditions is the pothos, a vine that can be solid or a variegation of white and green.
“Perlite is my favorite thing” to maintain a plant’s health, she said. Depending on the plant, Zhang sometimes uses as much as 40% to 50% perlite (bits of white foamlike rock), versus the usual 10%, in her potting soil to increase drainage. Even if perlite is included in the soil mix, she adds more to improve aeration, which reduces the chance of root rot.
If customers choose a ceramic pot larger than the plant they select, Zhang will re-pot it into an appropriately sized plastic nursery pot, with ample drainage holes, to fit inside. It’s easier to monitor when the plant needs watering just by lifting up the nursery pot and feeling its weight. She doesn’t recommend putting a plant directly into a ceramic pot because one drainage hole is insufficient, and the plant will slowly die.
Becoming an entrepreneur started just about eight months ago with a bit of poetic irony. Zhang was at home after losing her job with a tour company and thinking of ways to make some quick cash. Surrounded by plants at home, she thought of selling some of them online. But there were so many others doing the same, she knew she had to offer something different. When she paired a plant with a pretty pot to sell as a set, they sold quickly. That’s been her game plan since.
Besides offering growing tips and diagnosing plant problems, Zhang delivers plants all over Oahu for a fee, $5 to $25 depending on the distance.
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Plantoem
>> Where: Lafite Plaza, 3457 Waialae Ave. (above Champs Sports Bar & Grill)
>> Hours: 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Wednesdays through Sundays
>> Info: Instagram.com/plantoem
Is there a gardening topic you’d like to read about in the Garden Variety column? Email Pat Gee at pgee@staradvertiser.com with your request.
