Are you a plant parent, or proud owner of plant pets in Austin? If so, you probably already know about Succulent Native, an adorable succulent and houseplant boutique that also sells cacti-themed housewares and hosts potting parties. Originally peddling plants from a mobile cart downtown and then out of a brick-and-mortar shop on E. 5th Street, the owner has just opened a second store on North Lamar Boulevard.

Until the new shop opened (much closer to my part of town), I’d never heard of Succulent Native. Quelle horreur! So over spring break my college-age daughter and I stopped by to check it out. Cue oohing and aahing from both of us, but especially my Gen Z’er, who tends her own windowsill collection of “succy babies” in her dorm.

The airy, sunny shop is set up with tables and shelves displaying an appealing assortment of succulents potted up in cute little containers. Saguaro tags advertise what I found to be fairly reasonable prices.

Most are simple one-plant pots, but some are more elaborate, like this birch-bark canoe planter.

You can also plant your own. My daughter selected one of these pots and a tiny echeveria from a shelf of plants, and we potted it up at home, using gray aquarium gravel around the base of the plant for a finishing touch. (I didn’t see that Succulent Native sold bags of fine gravel, but they should.)

Perfect for a windowsill or bathroom vanity. Or hostess gift. Or bedside table. Or, or, or…

A handful of non-succulent houseplants are displayed in larger pots and baskets.

Wall-hung planters are trendy, and Succulent Native carries those too, including this rusty version of what I call a pie-pan planter. I have silver ones from Target.

This is different: weathered wood boards adorned with chunks of amethyst geode, with glass vases for cuttings and copper rings for tillandsias.

Cacti motifs continue their trendy reign. One shelf offers cacti jewelry holders, vases, trivets, candles, and more.

At the sales counter, tiny potted cacti, cacti candles, and Texas and succulent pins tempt shoppers for an impulse buy. Yes, I succumbed, choosing a colorful Texas pin for myself and a succulent pin for my daughter.

Austin loves plants, and we love our plant shops. It’s fun to discover one more, especially on the north side of town for a change! So many of my favorite nurseries and plant shops are in south or east Austin. As our city’s traffic continues to worsen, making cross-town shopping trips an hour-long ordeal, let’s see more plant places pop up in north Austin, how about?

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Digging Deeper

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