Plants and pets go together like cucumbers and cream cheese during High Tea. And where can you find these elements melding together in a dog-friendly garden centre experience? At the Watering Can Flower Market in Vineland, Ontario, Canada.

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Is the Watering Can Flower Market dog-friendly?

The Watering Can Flower Market is an attractive place for several reasons, but my favourite is the FIRST question on the website’s FAQ page asks, ‘Are you pet friendly?’ No searching or contacting is necessary. Even better, the answer is Yes! The Watering Can is pet-friendly … but not in the café.

Yes, pastries, scones, and baked goods are part of the Watering Can Pastry Market offerings. You can buy a selection at the walk-up counter. But the real magic is inside the sit-down restaurant designed as part carefully curated antique market and part boho coffee shop serving soup in a teacup, sandwiches, and high tea. But more about the café in a moment….

First, let’s talk plants.

European-style flower market

The Watering Can is a European-inspired flower shop specializing in flower arrangements, both potted and tied, for all of life’s celebrations and bereavements. The company boasts Niagara’s largest selection of plants and flowers – the houseplant options include potted arrangements such as the following:

• orchids,
• tropical plants,
• DIY kits,
• assorted plant accessories like moss,
• coloured sand
• and even special succulent soil.

Prices are surprisingly competitive compared to other garden centres.

While it’s difficult to quantify the ‘Niagara’s largest’ claim, this place sure is fun. An hour or more spent getting lost among the vignettes of foliage convinced me this is likely one of the largest and most interestingly merchandised retail outlets of its kind. Where else can you find VW vans covered in air plants, a claw-foot bathtub full of succulents, and a suitcase sprouting spiking tropicals? (However, you can get great lavender farm pics here).

If you love tropical plants, you’ll love it here. This list of unique varieties is almost endless, but here are some highlights:

• four or five varieties of ficus,
• bonsai juniper,
• money tree,
• cat palms,
• dieffenbachia,
• burros trail basket,
• and more succulents and cacti than you can imagine.

Does The Watering Can serve lunch?

Inside both locations (there’s a Watering Can in St. Catharines, Ontario too) is The Watering Can Pastry Market. Both Niagara locations offer pastries, cookies, cakes and breakfast scones and waffles, sandwiches such as sweet potato, smoked brisket, and chicken apple brie for lunch. However, only the Virgil location has High Tea – or Garden Tea, as it’s called here.

And I’m at The Watering Can for the Garden Tea. When you pre-book the Garden Tea, you choose your type of tea and then enjoy the three tiers of finger sandwiches, sweet and savory scones, assorted sweets, and fruit with butter, whipped cream, or jam. You’ll want to try the scones.

Note that dogs aren’t permitted in the café. My pup had to wait outside in the shade where I could check on her. However, other options include skipping the café menu and ordering from the counter. Some seating is available at the front door of the plant shop or outside picnic style on the lawn.

Here’s some practical advice: you’ll need a short leash because navigating around displays is tight. There’s one water bowl for dogs, but bringing your own water for the pup, such as The Springer (affiliate link), is a good idea.

Flowers, plants …. and photo opts!

The Watering Can specializes in flowers and house plants and, because both are so beautiful, there are plenty of lush colourful photo-worthy opportunities inside the main store – on the pink couch, in front of the waterfall, and beside the VW bus.

Outside is the garden centre area specializing in outdoor seasonal plants. While spring flowers make a particularly picture pretty, this garden centre adds an extra layer of photo opportunities:   the front of each workshop and special event space looks like theatre scenery – a candy shop, log cabin complete with canoe, and even a theatre front.

What did I go home with? Outdoor plants because spring is here, fragrant basil, and more succulents. But this time in ceramic dog and cat pots, because I’m a sucker for anything pet-themed. Also, bakery dog treats are prepared on-site from peanut butter and pumpkin. (Check out this recipe for similar dog treats).

Here’s hoping I’m successful at keeping these succulents alive – I haven’t had a lot of luck with cacti. If not, I’ll always have the cat and dog-shaped ceramic pots.

Writer bio: Sherri Telenko has been a professional writer for decades and a travel writer for the last two. She’s a member of TMAC (Travel Media Association of Canada) and Dog Writers Association of America and travels almost weekly with her canine companion, Victoria. Contact Sherri at dogtrotting.net here. All written content is original, written by a person, and based on experience and research. Please subscribe!

Check out The Springer, an easy way to carry water around for your pup when visiting a dog-friendly garden centre, or anywhere else for that matter (click the pic) ….