Arizona Living

The Verdict

Libby Mclean started selling plants out of her front garden back in 2015. And slowly, like a green shoot pushing through the earth, her business started to grow.

Now she’s launched Arizona Living in the sleepy surf coast town of Jan Juc, and hot damn if this isn’t the cutest little nursery we’ve ever seen.

The plant ethos here is all about picking the right plants and helping people get some confidence back. Even Libby started as a serial plant killer. It takes time and patience to understand why we keep making the same plant mistakes, which is why Libby’s happy to chat to customers and help them pick the right plant for their space.

The crown jewel of the nursery is—of course—the geometric greenhouse tent, erected in the pastel pink laneway space, just off the Stuart Avenue carpark. The whole place feels like you’ve teleported to Joshua Tree or something (‘California Living’ might also have worked).

In term of species, take your pick. Succulents, spikey desert cacti, indoor plants, fiddle leaf figs, hanging baskets and even airplants (they get all their nutrients and water from the air and are very very hard to kill...although not impossible).

Libby also stocks a beautiful range of boutique pots, planters and plant-care paraphernalia. We’re crushing pretty hard on the colourful self-watering pots from Mr Kitly, not to mention the funky living wall eco-planters. If you can’t make it down to Jan Juc (but really, who needs an excuse for a surf coast road trip?) Libby has an online store where you can pick up some of the Arizona goodness.

Do we even need to say this? Pencil in Jan Juc for your next weekend getaway. You need to check out this place, pronto. 

Image credit: Matt Dunne