Rochester plant shop Stem relocated to a larger store

Rochester, New York – Rochester’s first and only plant shop of exotic and hard-to-find tropical houseplants has relocated to a larger store on Monroe Avenue.

Co-owner Samantha Mills is a horticulturalists who found her calling in uncommon and super hard-to-find houseplants.

“This is a philodendron serpent, so it has very fuzzy stem and these big they need leaves. I absolutely adore it. I have a thing for the creepy plants, I think — creepy and weird,” laughed Mills.

Samantha and her best friend, Kerynn Laraby first opened the shop in 2021 on Alexander Street. They turned their passion for exotic plants into a booming online plant sales business and now brick and mortar store where people can see and discover all kinds of exotics.

“There is a plant shop in Syracuse that has hard to find things and a plant shop in Buffalo that has hard to find stuff,” Mills said. “But there is nothing in Rochester so we figured let’s tap into an untapped market.”

Stem sells plants anywhere from $4 on up to $1,000. Indoor gardeners of all skill levels are welcome at Stem. “It is something that you get to nurture that rewards you,” Mills said. “For me, it’s like ‘hey I did that and it’s kind of thanking me with that new leaf and it’s appreciating my company.’ For people who struggle with social interactions plants can kind of them that feeling that they are lacking.”

The shop is open Wednesday to Sunday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at 149 Monroe Ave. in Rochester.