Sacramento's destination indoor plant store hosts Saturday party, workshops
For half a century, Kifumi Keppler has shared her passion about indoor gardening at Exotic Plants. Courtesy Exotic Plants
Sacramento’s Kifumi Keppler is a force for nature. For half a century, Keppler has shared her passion about indoor gardening at Exotic Plants, a destination plant store like no other.
Saturday, Oct. 22, Exotic Plants will celebrate its 50th anniversary in business. From 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., the public is invited to drop by and join the party. Tickets are free and may be obtained on eventbrite here.
“We are so excited to celebrate 50 years with our community!” the store posted online. “This will be a free event; we will have live entertainment, costumer appreciation sales, workshops and more! Thank you to every one of you who have supported our local business the past 50 years – we wouldn't be here without you!”
After stints in four different locations (including 10 years on Howe Avenue), Exotic Plants moved in 2019 into its much larger home at 1525 Fulton Ave., Sacramento, near Arden Way. With a 4,000-square-foot-building and 3,000-square-foot patio, this location has room for outdoor events (as well as outdoor tropical plants and succulents) as well as space for indoor workshops.
Known for its vast selection of indoor tropicals and orchids, Exotic Plants has built a loyal following, not only for sales but rentals. Need an instant jungle? This is the place.
Its clientele extend throughout California and Nevada. Besides live plants, the store also features a wide selection of plant-centric décor, terrariums and one-of-a-kind “moss art,” collages made of mosses, barks and other plant material.
From Boston ferns to moth orchids to rare anthuriums, the family-owned and operated store has seen plants come in and out of fashion. Keppler and her team continue to keep up with indoor plant trends while offering a wide range of species and varieties. From beginner to collector, there’s something in her jungle for every indoor gardener.
A native of Kyoto, Japan, Keppler arrived in Sacramento as a Fulbright scholar at Sacramento State. KCRA hired her as a film editor and producer. But, as Keppler recalls, she found her true calling in plants.
“I went through a lot of changes in the plant industry,” she said in an interview last year. “(When she started), it used to be wandering Jew, piggyback plant and Swedish ivy, lots of Boston ferns. I did a lot of designer homes with three to five plants in each room. Designers used houseplants in model homes because they helped sell the property faster.”
Designers switched to fake foliage, but many homeowners want the real thing. Plants naturally clean indoor air as well as lift people’s spirits.
Keppler made adjustments to her business, and kept Exotic Plants growing, too.
“A lot of people started after me in the plant business; it’s become more and more competitive,” she added. “But we were strong, and still are.”
Details: www.exoticplantsltd.com or 916-922-4769.
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Garden Checklist for week of April 20
Before possible showers at the end of the week, take advantage of all this nice sunshine – and get to work!
* Set out tomato, pepper and eggplant transplants.
* From seed, plant beans, beets, cantaloupes, carrots, corn, cucumbers, melons, pumpkins, radishes and squash.
* Plant onion sets.
* In the flower garden, plant seeds for asters, cosmos, celosia, marigolds, salvia, sunflowers and zinnias.
* Transplant petunias, zinnias, geraniums and other summer bloomers.
* Plant perennials and dahlia tubers for summer bloom.
* Plant summer bulbs, such as gladiolus and tuberous begonias.
* Transplant lettuce and cabbage seedlings.
* Smell orange blossoms? Feed citrus trees with a low dose of balanced fertilizer (such as 10-10-10) during bloom to help set fruit. Keep an eye out for ants.
* Apply slow-release fertilizer to the lawn.
* Thoroughly clean debris from the bottom of outdoor ponds or fountains.
* Trim dead flowers but not leaves from spring-flowering bulbs such as daffodils and tulips. Those leaves gather energy to create next year's flowers. Also, give the bulbs a fertilizer boost after bloom.
* Spring brings a flush of rapid growth, and that means your garden is really hungry. Give shrubs and trees a dose of a slow-release fertilizer. Or mulch with a 1-inch layer of compost.
* Start thinning fruit that's formed on apple and stone fruit trees -- you'll get larger fruit at harvest (and avoid limb breakage) if some is thinned now. The UC recommendation is to thin fruit when it is about 3/4 of an inch in diameter. Peaches and nectarines should be thinned to about 6 inches apart; smaller fruit such as plums and pluots can be about 4 inches apart. Apricots can be left at 3 inches apart. Apples and pears should be thinned to one fruit per cluster of flowers, 6 to 8 inches apart.
* Azaleas and camellias looking a little yellow? If leaves are turning yellow between the veins, give them a boost with chelated iron.
* Pinch chrysanthemums back to 12 inches for fall flowers. Cut old stems to the ground.
* Weed, weed, weed! Don’t let unwanted plants go to seed.
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