Exploring Roots With Planted LB; Long Beach's Newest Plant and Floral Shop
By John Grossi
Kate Hockett, owner of Long Beach’s newest plant shop on Temple and Broadway, turned 30 in 2021 and simultaneously began a new chapter in her life. Displayed boldly and proudly on the corner of Broadway and Temple in Bluff Heights, PLANTED Long Beach is not only the new chapter in Kate’s life book but the name of her blossoming new business. The Long Beach native has returned home and is planting roots.
Like engaging chapters in all can’t-put-it-down books, there is as much happening below the surface as on it.
On the surface, Planted LB sells indoor and outdoor plants of all types and at a range of prices. The shop also offers unique flower bouquets for $25 each Friday and Saturday and full floral services for weddings and events.
But the more you learn about previous chapters in Hockett’s life, the more deeply you begin to understand what this plant shop means to her and the community.
Kate’s love for plants started in childhood. Growing up in Long Beach, she recalls her mother always supplementing the family living room décor with natural beauty in the form of plants and flowers.
It wasn’t until Kate moved away to college and beyond in San Francisco that she began to realize that houseplants weren’t as commonplace as she thought they were growing up. She also began to understand deeply how much more houseplants offer than just décor.
“There was always a deeper level of connection for me. Caring for something else like a plant creates this deeper connection to the natural beautiful world. Plants give this amazing reciprocity where they teach us about ourselves and about the world as we care for them.”
Kate’s passion for plant care and beautiful florals had been just that - a passion and nothing more - until the pandemic of 2020. While ever beautifying and mystifying her own house, she had never quite considered selling plants for a living. She instead focused her energies on working via a non-profit platform to empower women all over the globe through emotional support and training, striving to help women who felt stranded believe in a larger force guiding them through their life’s journey.
Along that path, Kate is also a trained and professional astrologer who has helped clients with readings and understanding of the forces around them guiding them through earth’s orbit. When the pandemic hit, her astrological services were needed more than ever, resulting in a business boom.
However, the pandemic also forced Kate to evaluate the forces in her own life and what the world was telling her. It was time to move home. She kept feeling a call toward plants and floral: two constants that were always an aid and ally in her other endeavors. So much of the work she did through astrology and her non-profit always had a living plant aspect. Plants offered one of the most practical and simple ways to connect clients to the natural world.
As she evaluated her own life, Kate had a sort of pandemic-revelation. Everyone in the world had been forced to reevaluate their living situations. And many had found a lot of happiness and connectivity right at home in their own living rooms. Kate felt it was time to move back to her hometown, where she could truly plant roots and begin a mission to connect neighbors in Long Beach to the natural world.
Thus has the new chapter of Planted LB begun. Kate’s space on the corner of Temple and Broadway is just a block from her new apartment, a beautiful old retail space converted from an original Long Beach home.
“Anytime things fall into place so easily like this, it’s a really good sign,” says Kate, who still offers astrology services on Mondays and Tuesdays when the shop is closed.
Planted LB is open Wednesday-Sunday and has an ever-changing array of unique and classical indoor and outdoor plants. Kate also sells handcrafted, locally sourced flower bouquets every Friday and Saturday!
Floral is something she’s really passionate about. Planted LB offers full floral services for weddings and events; and Kate is quick to mention that she loves to source plants for customers who have a specific need. If you have an office or home in need of “life,” talk to Kate (at the shop every day) and have her design and source the perfect plant display!
Learn more about Planted LB at www.plantedlb.com! We’re excited to see this shop sink roots into Long Beach and teach our “growing” community more about the natural world, one plant at a time!
Planted LB is open Wednesday - Sunday from 11am - 6 pm.
