Vine Plants + Design opened last August on Higgins, and for months, every time I drive by I want to go there. Finally, after a critical mass of houseplants die off over the course of winter, I tally up the free space we have in our various containers and set out to run the errand.
Except, “errand” isn’t exactly the right word, because, walking into Vine, the vibe is less store and more spa or luxury hotel. There are luscious green plants everywhere, naturally, including on the walls. The airy lighting shows pots and accessories to great advantage. I feel myself breathing more deeply as soon as I step inside.
Ryan Tripepi founded Vine in part to serve just that function.
“I want it to be a green, verdant space, creating a tropical environment you wouldn’t expect to find in Missoula, Montana,” he said. “One of my favorite things, I can usually tell when a customer walks in for the first time—they look somewhat in awe of the living walls.”
In addition to looking great in the store, living walls are another component of Ryan’s business.
“I saw a need for more plants in this town, and the ability to do more with plants,” he said. “Missoula is a city that is very connected to nature, so it makes sense to start making that connection in our indoor spaces as well. We know having access to greenery into our indoor spaces improves mental and physical health.”
In keeping with that vision, the store provides a supply of plants—mostly tropicals, but really all indoor plants—that Ryan not only sells to retail customers but also uses for living walls and other architectural plantings for local businesses. His services include designing, installing, and maintaining interior landscaping.
Ryan recently installed—and will maintain—a living wall for Julie Lapham, branch manager at Churchill Mortgage, whose new office space is in the same complex as Vine.
“When I walked in I was like, oh, I have to have this,” Julie said of her first serendipitous visit to Vine. “To be surrounded by something so alive and green puts me in a great headspace. I wanted it because I really truly feel it’s art. It’s a beautiful color, it’s green, it’s lush, it’s alive, and that’s what I love.”
Ryan is full of advice for beginning plant parents.
“Start small—there are lots of easy plants out there that can help you build the confidence you need to take the next step,” he said. “Starting with something simple and proving to yourself you can do it is a good way to take that first step.”
All plants at the store can thrive in Missoula’s climate, but Ryan acknowledges some are easier than others, and that he’s discontinued some varieties based on losing too many.
“For example, bringing in a plant variety and realizing that may not be the best selection for our particular environment, and not buying that plant again,” he said. “Like certain types of calathea…I don’t like setting people up for failure so I try to make sure they’re at least maintainable.”
Ryan can be a bit more adventurous in his personal plant menagerie.
“I'm always on the lookout for the oddballs of the plant world,” he said, noting his admiration of the architectural form cacti and succulents can take.
I venture over to the “succulent bar” area of the store—anchored by a large table and a wall of succulents in tiny pots—to select a few to fill vacancies in various terraria. The table is a mainstay in Vine’s community events like holiday parties and pilates classes. The store also hosts workshops such as mounting staghorn ferns on wood plaques and paint-and-sip nights.
By this point I’ve collected around 10 mostly small plants in plastic pots. I check with Ryan and am happy to hear he does take back the empty pots and is often able to reuse them.
Overall Ryan is happy with the way business is going.
“One customer asked if they could bring in a sketchbook, another asked if they could come in and study,” he said. “It feels good people seem to enjoy just being in this space.”
“Missoula is a city that is very connected to nature, so it makes sense to start making that connection in our indoor spaces as well."