.webp)
When the pandemic hit, lockdowns gave people the option to work at home or open up small businesses – especially those laid off. Plant shops, although physical ones are already prolific in Vienna, opened up virtually. They often offer free deliveries too.
Plants are, without a doubt, relaxing. Studies have shown that access to green spaces help better our mental health. If you are familiar with the Japanese practice of forest bathing (shinrin yoku), you would know the benefits of this physiological and psychological exercise. Simply put, “taking in the forest atmosphere” (the other meaning of the phrase), can be as simple as walking in an area surrounded by trees and greens, appreciating nature as it is.
As I grew up surrounded by plants, I’ve always been fond of them and took to taking notes of their names. This trend is something we’re happy to adapt to at home (those who do are often dubbed plantita, plantito, plantmom, plantdad).
Yes, we can go out and enjoy walks around nature, gardens, and parks but bringing home plants and caring for them is also relaxing. In German we use the term “kleine grüne Oase” which literally means little green oasis, which is how a home with plants would be like. We’ve had our fair share of plants, rare and not, and we do make sure we care for them well. We’ve gotten them from different places, and here are some in Vienna where you can fetch them.
Specialty Shops
As mentioned, there are already a lot of flower and plant shops in Vienna, but they mostly sell seasonal plants and are more catered to flowers and plant basket arrangements, they haven’t really tapped on the potential of the internet for sales as locals always go to them when there’s an occasion. You will still find particular plants, soil, pots, and other gardening essentials in these shops.
Stielreich
Stielreich is a mix store of home stuff, kitchenware, children toys, and other klumpert. They have an extensive listing of plants on their online store. It’s the only store where I found the whalefin snake plant (although this would be later on available at Obi Gartencenters).
I even found the Mimosa Pudica there, a tropical herbal plant that closes its leaves when touched (also called sensitive plant). They send you the plants but since they are open even on lockdowns, it’s easy to reserve the plants you like and pick them up later.
stielreich.at
Starkl
Starkl is a little far from us, so we only get to visit when we would also eat at the adjacent restaurant, Watertuin. Starkl has more flowering garden plants than indoor plants, but they still have a big selection. You can smell fresh lavenders once you enter their store.
You will also find luscious watermelon Peperomias on their shelves. And if you want to make terrariums, you’ll find all that you need at Starkl.
starkl.at
Dehner
Dehner is both a garden center and an essential store for animals. As such, they have a huge selection of plants (indoor and outdoor) and aquarium plants, garden technology and paraphernalia, zoological items – be it food, housing, you can even buy fish, birds, rabbits, and other pets.
dehner.at
Bellaflora
Bellaflora has a lot of stores in Austria, but the ones in Vienna are at the outskirts. That’s why their delivery services are convenient. They have a service to make your surroundings green, one of such service is the moss frames – which can be a bit expensive (starting from 50€).
They are quite a big shop too, along with outdoor and indoor plants, all sorts of gardening accessories, furnishings, and what have yous, they also have a small selection of food for cats, dogs, birds, even bees.
bellaflora.at
Online Plant Shops
MeinGartenShop
MeinGartenShop is the counterpart of UK’s Garden for You. Though they do not have a physical store, their website has the most detailed categories of plants on sale, complete with beautiful pictures. It’s a joy browsing through their online shop. I have bought different plants from them, mostly rubber plants and aloe vera varieties.
This season, I will try their flowering plants, as I wanted to beautify the balcony after so many years of being afraid that our downstair neighbors would complain.
meingartenshop.at
WearePlants
WearePlants only operate online and are geared to bringing their carbon footprint to zero, recycling materials, using less packaging and other initiatives. They do not have a lot of plants, but they do have pretty ones.
weareplants.at
Plantista
Another shop that’s online only is Plantista. I tried a Plantista baby plant box and got an orbifolia, monkey leaf, birkin and baby asparagus. They were packed neatly compared to the others I’ve received.
They offer plants in bundles, from starters to cat-safe plants, to easy-to-care-for to ones you will deeply love (although I think you will all love each plant).
plantista.at
Bakker
If you really want to turn your home into a green oasis, Bakker is the place to get your plants from. While the company is based in the Netherlands, and ships the plants from their physical store there. Their blog is a treasure trove of all things plants and gardening, you can surely learn a thing or two.
bakker.at
Plnts.com
Plnts.com was the very first online store I ordered from. I tried a lot of their baby plants, but most died because it was a little colder back when I got them. Good thing, they reimbursed what I had lost.
They have plants that are not easy to come by, like Philodendron Prince of Orange, Pink Princess, and MacDowell, they also have variegated Adansonii, Alocasia varieties, Jewel orchids, and variegated Monstera deliciosa. They pack their plants properly, they’d come to you in good condition.
plnts.com
*There are a number of online stores I bought plants from but they didn’t arrive so I choose not to include them here.
Hardware, Garden Centers and More
Even before the pandemic, I would buy a plant or two – I like plants with pretty leaves more than flowery ones.
Obi
Even before the pandemic, Obi is a place where I go to, to buy stuff for DIYs. I rarely go to the plant section though, since I wasn’t really keen on decorating the balcony. (read above why)
During lockdowns though, or when lockdowns get lifted, it was the first store I would visit. There’s an Obi near where we live, so I could just go walk, having some sort of exercise, it has become my favorite place to “gather” plants for home.
obi.at
Bauhaus
I’ve only been to a Bauhaus garden center once, I was looking for anti-mold paints when I saw their plants outside, mostly trees actually, they cater more to garden plants so you’ll see hortensias in all sizes and bloom colors.
bauhaus.at
Hornbach
There’s no Hornbach near our place but whenever I get the chance to visit one, I would look at their plant collection. Online, they have a lot of flowering plants, indoor potted plants, and of course garden trees, shrubs, and anything to beautify an area.
hornbach.at
IKEA
IKEA sells a lot of plants, though they had problems with thrips at some point. The bigger monsteras were especially plagued and a lot of plantmoms in an FB group posted their predicaments about this.
During the first time the lockdown was lifted, the kids and I got some autograph plants and a venus flytrap.
Everyday Grocery Stores
Grocery stores in Vienna also sells plant in batches, and they sometimes sell the not-so-easy to find ones.
Interspar, Spar
I got two bushy bougainvilleas from Spar, one with pink flowers, the other one in yellow. They were, however, already tall but they were twisted into a knot that I had to free them. I lost some leaves and today, they are not as bushy. While, plants should acclimate first at home before getting transferred to a bigger pot or so, I was impatient. Sorry… plants.
PennyMarkt, Lidl, Hofer
I love picking plants from PennyMarkt, usually ZZ plants, gerberas, and such. But they also would have rubber trees, fiddle leaf figs, and other taller plants you can just carry home as you would your groceries. They advertise the plants they would have on their shelves on their ad leaflets, so I would really watch out for them because they’re cheaper than from other stores.
Another unlikely platform where I can get plants from would be willhaben.at, a second hand online shop for virtually anything. At times, items are gifted too, so it’s worth checking out. I got a lot of cuttings of the rarer plants and they are now thriving. When your collection gets too much, you can sell them, I’ve also sold some of my plant cuttings on willhaben. ^_^
Which other Plant Delivery Services in Vienna have you tried? Please let us know in the comments.
