If you want to build a day trip into a plant-shopping excursion, you can’t do better than heading 22 miles west of downtown to Kingston Springs. There sits a plot of land affectionately called “The Land,” which is the landlord to a quirky collection of businesses, including Joy Boven’s Wonder Gift & Garden. Boven and her partner, Kennedy Chambers, run a plant store/nursery/gift shop focused on native plant material that supports local ecosystems.
The gift shop is stocked with nature-themed gifts, herbal teas and tinctures, and a book section that leans into nature, children, and food. Each month, Boven and Chambers host Wonder Rendezvous, a themed event that allows plant enthusiasts to get to know one another. Non-plant people don’t want to hear about my ice storm plant loss anymore, so making some new plant friends would be wise. This month’s Wonder Rendezvous theme is “Feathered Friends,” so expect lots of info on birds.
They’ll be getting more plants in September and October, with a heavy focus on native trees, shrubs and hardy perennials, plus cool-season veggies, herbs and heirloom seeds.
Every Friday, Boven posts a three-minute (give or take) informational video on Wonder Gift & Garden’s Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube accounts, as well as on their website, featuring fun facts about what’s happening in gardening and nature. Sign up for their weekly newsletter to learn about monthly events, such as a wreath-decorating workshop planned for November.
Wonder Gift & Garden is one of the woman-owned businesses on The Land, which itself is woman-owned. If you head over on Fridays, Saturdays, or Sundays, you can also grab a snack at The Yorkshire Deli. It’s a Southern/British tea house/deli owned by Lesley Mortimer-Wallace and Genevieve Neace. Mortimer-Wallace is also the owner of The Land. I wrote this piece about The Yorkshire Deli earlier this year, and it has the backstory on how this British oasis ended up in rural Tennessee.
