Marylou Nagel | Writer
Joshua Cooper has never met a plant he didn’t connect with. “I firmly believe that if people don’t feel joy from a plant, they just haven’t found the right plant yet,” he explained.
Cooper opened his nursery, The Deku Tree, last winter in Humboldt. He has made it his mission to help others connect with plants and to help them flourish.
The route Cooper took to Humboldt has brought him full circle. “The Humboldt area is my original home,” he explained. “I went from South Dakota to Utah to Los Angeles and back to Humboldt.” In his move back to South Dakota five years ago, Cooper brought with him rare species of bonsais, cacti, and succulents, all of which required heat. He had started work climbing telecom towers and kept a heater in his small cabin. One frigid day, the heater failed. Cooper took that disheartening experience as a stepping stone to opening his own special greenhouse.
“I grew up helping my grandma grow tomatoes in her garden,” he explained. “I realized how much joy that and plants have brought into my life.” Cooper was fortunate enough to purchase a foreclosed home in Humboldt, which also gave him the opportunity to create a greenhouse in which his plants can thrive. “I wanted to open this place where everyone could have this joy,” he added.
For Cooper and his customers, The Deku Tree is a destination plant shop. “I like to think that customers like coming to Humboldt to get away from the hubbub and to get some peaceful clarity on their drive here,” he said. Once here, customers may spend hours looking over the unique selection of over 300 unique species of succulents, tropicals, cacti and bonsais.
The Deku Tree, located at 112 S. Washington, is open on Saturdays and Sundays from 10 am to 4 pm and by appointment. Connect with Cooper on The Deku Tree’s Facebook page, or call (801) 623-7430.