upwegrow

The upwegrow site is live again.

I'm not going to pretend this is a simple "we're back" post.
Yesterday I published the full story of why the Southgate store closed — the real numbers, what I got wrong, what it's cost me, and what comes next.

It's not a highlight reel.

If you walked through our door, came to an After Dark event, ordered a plant, or told a friend about us — I wrote it for you.
Link to read:
https://upwegrowtropicals.com/blogs/the-obsession-files/why-upwegrows-retail-store-closed-the-full-story

upwegrow isn't gone.
The store is.
The brand and the community aren't.

Online-first now, and the promise still stands: obsessed so you don't have to be.

We have something to share with our Edmonton community.

After three and a half incredible years, upwegrow will be closing its doors.
It has been the most rewarding, wild, plant-filled adventure — and every single one of you who walked through our doors, bought a weird frog, asked us to ID a mystery cutting, or just came in to enjoy the space made it worth every moment.

We want to go out the way we came in: with something worth getting excited about.

Introducing: The Final Unfurling.

Our last-ever plant order arrives Thursday and hits the floor Friday morning.
For three final days — May 28, 29, and 30 — everything in the shop is 50% off.
Rare aroids. Tropicals. Vivarium supplies. Apparel. All of it. The only exception is "As Is" items.

📅 Thursday May 28 | 11am – 5pm
📅 Friday May 29 | 11am – 5pm
📅 Saturday May 30 | 11am – 5pm
📍 #701 5015 111 St NW, Southgate Centre

Come say goodbye. Come find something beautiful. Come introduce yourself if you've been meaning to stop in and never did — there's still time.
We'll see you there. 🌿

Something we've been sitting with, and wanted to share with you directly.

Our retail location at Southgate Centre is closing its doors — and this weekend, we're holding The Letting Go Sale to send things off properly.

40% off all remaining inventory. Everything.
(Excluding "As Is" items)

Rare aroids, tropicals, vivarium and bioactive supplies, apparel.

Opening a shop was one of the most terrifying and rewarding things we've ever done. We got to talk plants with hundreds of people who actually get it. We watched total strangers become part of a community we're genuinely proud of.
That part? We're keeping that part.

upwegrow isn't going away — this is just a new chapter.
We'll share more on what that looks like soon.

But first — come say hi this weekend. Grab something you've been eyeing. And know that every single one of you who walked through that door (or ordered online, or sent a DM, or just cheered us on) made this whole thing worth it.

The Letting Go Sale
🗓 Saturday, May 23 | 11am – 5pm
🗓 Sunday, May 24 | 12pm – 4pm
📍 #701 5015 111 St NW, Southgate Centre
🔖 40% off everything in store (Excluding "As Is" items)

See you soon. 🌿

Held over until Monday!
Open 11-4.

It's official. The Frond Farewell starts TODAY. 🌿

For the next four days, 40% off everything except "As Is" items at upwegrow . This includes the plants we've cared for, talked to (yes, talked to), and genuinely loved — and now it's time to find them and everything else in the shop new forever homes.

It's not goodbye. It's see you on someone else's shelf.

📅 Thursday May 14 – Sunday May 17
📍 #701 5015 111 St NW, Southgate Centre

Come say hello — and take someone home at 40% off. 🌱

It's official. The Frond Farewell starts TODAY. 🌿

For the next four days, 40% off everything except "As Is" items at upwegrow . This includes the plants we've cared for, talked to (yes, talked to), and genuinely loved — and now it's time to find them and everything else in the shop new forever homes.

It's not goodbye. It's see you on someone else's shelf.

📅 Thursday May 14 – Sunday May 17
📍 #701 5015 111 St NW, Southgate Centre

Come say hello — and take someone home at 40% off. 🌱

Flowers are dead by Tuesday. Plants are forever. 🌿

This Mother's Day weekend, give her something that actually grows — just like she grew you.

30% OFF everything in store. Two days only. May 9th & 10th.

Whether your mom has 47 plants and counting, has been quietly eyeing something rare, or is the kind of person who just deserves something extraordinary — we've got her gift. And at 30% off everything in store, you've officially run out of excuses.

This isn't a big box store. We're Edmonton's specialty plant shop — the place collectors come when they actually want something special. Rare aroids, stunning tropicals, vivarium supplies, and more. All of it 30% off this weekend.

Two days. One sale. No wilted bouquets. 🌱

📍 Southgate Centre — right next to Safeway
🕐 Saturday May 9: 10–5 | Sunday May 10: 12–5

Ready, Set, CLEAN. 🌿🧹

Our Spring Cleaning Sale kicks off THIS FRIDAY — and yes, we mean the good kind of cleaning. The kind where you make room for us to order more plants.

20% off everything in store, May 1st through 4th. Rare and common plants, vivarium supplies, bioactive goodies, apparel, and more — all on sale for four days only.

📍 Find us at #701, Southgate Centre - Right next to Safeway
🛒 Or shop online at upwegrowtropicals.com (link in bio)

***Prints by Laurel and crochet items by Street Cat Crafts are excluded — these makers set their own pricing and we love them for it. 💛

Two more sleeps. The windowsill won't fill itself. 🌱

Your gecko's enclosure shouldn't just be a tank — it should be a world. 🌿

We broke down 6 plants that actually belong in a bioactive tropical vivarium. Not just "they'll survive" plants. Plants that thrive in the same humid, warm conditions your gecko evolved in — some literally from the same island. 🏝️

False Aralia. Bird's Nest Fern. Ficus Elastica. Pilea Sao Paulo. Pothos & Scindapsus. And one more you might not expect.

Each one earns its spot for a reason — and we explain exactly why in the latest Obsession Files post.

https://upwegrowtropicals.com/blogs/the-obsession-files/6-plants-that-will-transform-your-bioactive-gecko-vivarium

Or

Link in bio 🔗

The shirt says it all. 🤘

"FANTASTICUS. OBVIOUSLY." — because if you know Uroplatus phantasticus, you already get it. And if you don't… stick around, we'll convert you.

Here's the thing though — this isn't just a gecko on a tee. That graphic is based on an actual hatchling I produced years ago when I was breeding rare gecko species. Uroplatus phantasticus is one of the most amazing animals on the planet, and getting to work with them at that level is something else entirely.

That little beauty in hand is a variegated Ficus benjamina — and yes, we carry them for a reason. Those delicate, wavy leaves mimic the leaf-tailed shape of a phantasticus tail almost perfectly, making it one of the most naturalistic vivarium plants you can add to a U. phantasticus build.

Form AND function. 🌿🦎

Grab the tee online — www.upwegrowtropicals.com or at the link in bio.