Buffalo Gardens

This is one of Woodlawn’s little treasures. You might miss it from Dekum– the entrance is actually a couple paces down 8^th Ave, opposite from Good Neighbor. Look for the blue VW bus often out front.
Go through the iron gate, step over the darling sleepy dog, and behold! Everything you ever wanted growing in your yard ever. I would say without much hesitation that this place has a hand in nearly any beautiful garden in NoPo.
I love this place because it’s a 5 minute walk from my house. If I’m gardening and need something I can just stop what I’m doing and head down there on foot.
The woman that runs this place is super knowledgeable and really easy to talk to. I wish she was hiring! Ha. (Sandra let me work for you!)
Great selections on annuals, perennials, trees and shrubs (keeping in mind this isn’t that big of a place), seeds, amendments, and weird stuff I didn’t think would be right down the street from me. I once asked her, flustered, where I could get Passionflowers anywhere in Portland, and she just whisked me into one of the small greenhouses where she had four different species in 4−6″ pots. And they were all fairly priced!
Also, chickens. Chickens enhance nearly any situation.

This is my go to plant nursery in #NoPo!
Sandra, You are Absolutely, The Best! Very knowledgeable and if something is not in bloom as yet, she pulls out the book and shows you what the flower will look like. She has a big dog but it sweet and loving; the chickens running around are a hoot too.
Can safely say 95% of the plants I’ve purchased was from here! Never had a plant die from her shop, well, except for one sunflower plant, but that was due to a squirrel doing unspeakable things to it :|
Its a Really cool shop, lots of local plants too.

Come on by Buffalo Gardens! After winter break, Sandy is open for business and is settled in as one of the cornerstones of the Woodlawn Triangle. Always a great selection of local herbs, veggies, plants, tools (get a hori hori knife if you don’t already have one), and a wonderful energy about the place including big love from Farley the dog!

Update! They moved out, possibly to where the buffalo roam, so scratch this reveiw!
Buffalo Gardens used to be way up Alberta by Vita Café, but now has moved to within my «1 mile» walking sphere, which is great! It’ right on Alberta at 21^st, right in the heart of the action and complements the other useful businesses along that section of Alberta. It moved onto a vacant lot which previously was full of the owner’s junk, including a shipping container!
The business itself is a classic example of the kind of place real people need in real neighborhoods, in this case it’s seeds, starts and garden supplies. It’s mostly open air with a little garden shed in the middle of the lot. Hey they’re garden plants, who needs a roof? The owner is very friendly, the exterior fence is artsy and they have a resident dog who only gets on his feet to laze over to a new resting spot, all signs of a great business in my book. Good-​bye mega-​store garden section, hello locally owned business!

I don’t go to this store as often as I do Pistils (because, well, Pistils has chicken feed), but it’s a good resource for vegetable seeds (can it possibly be that time of year already?), starter plants, and garden art.
Also worth noting is that this store employs a black lab as a greeter — and a very effective one. The first time I visited the store, I’d been at Vita and crossed the street to pet the puppy, who ended up persuading me to check out the plants available. Good dog!