Best Plant Nursery (2008)
Sloat Garden Center
2700 Sloat (at 46th Ave.), 566-4615
http://www.sloatgardens.com
Global warming ensures that it is not quite so unbearably foggy, cold, and desolate out by Sloat Garden Center’s original location as it was nearly a half-century ago at its inception. But it’s still just plain good sense to wear a layer or three out to this nursery, located near the Pacific Ocean and just across from the San Francisco Zoo, because its true highlight is the outdoor area of plants that are hearty enough to withstand our microclimate craziness, alongside garden embellishments that are way more sophisticated than gnomes. Indoor plants get their due glory here, too, with a selection so gorgeous that impulse buying is a real and present danger. Amazingly, the center is closed just three days a year (Thanksgiving, Christmas Day, and New Year’s Day), so avid gardeners are rarely without this source of green-thumbed joy.
