a color story: the nursery at port perry

I entered the local nursery. I saw the space from the roads for 6 plus years. But, never decided to enter the facility until now. Cars parked in the front. Bags of soil stacked on top at the edges of the parking lot. The majority of the nursery consisted of tall long glass greenhouses. I stepped inside. It was magical. 

The nursery took advantage of the space. Layers of plant hangars floated in the ceilings. Long tables displayed flowers, succulents, perennials, annuals, everything you could imagine plus more. Only the shrubs, boxwoods, and evergreens were on the floor and they were located outside. 

Most of the nursery stock were at eye-level or above. It was a surreal experiencing a room filled with green plus the greenhouse's white backdrop.

The long and wide space felt awkwardly suspicious. 

Then, the plants felt familiar but I was unsure. 

I observed my surroundings. It was slightly humid. The air filled with the natural aromatics. But, once you got out of the aromatic section (of course they would put those in the front), there was a void. A purified void. Was this "clean" air? Was this naturally-filtered air? Or was this a placebo effect? Regardless, I took deeper breathes and enjoyed the complimentary air like a kid staying a little too long at the Costco sampling tables. 

Breathe in. Breathe out. Breathe in. Breathe out. I looked up at the hanging plant baskets. The one in front had playful green beads hanging out of its basket. I saw healthy green foliage springing out of the planting pots. For every step I took, I was in a vicinity of 100 plants at least. It was not an aesthetic overload, it was an artificial garden. Seeing so many healthy plants in high density was the illusion. 

I figured it out. I barely saw any soil. The space consisted of green, white, and color accents from flowers. The nursery created a world with their showroom; it was like Willy's Wonka Factory but with plants. 

I felt like I should have bought something for even entering that space. There should have been an admission just to enter. 

Breathe in. Breathe out. Breathe in. Breathe out. I left the green nursery world. 

Mother's day was approaching. I couldn't wait to come back.