A green thumb can transform desolate lots into verdant urban sanctuaries and, when outfitted with googly eyes and pipe cleaner antennae, make a convincing caterpillar decoy. Develop the perfect appendage for beguiling birds with today's Groupon: for $25, you get $50 worth of plants and pottery at Village Green Perennial Nursery.

The family-owned-and-operated Village Green Perennial Nursery helps customers nurture home gardens with earth-friendly practices. The formidable plant emporium boasts Seattle's largest selection of daylilies, hardy geraniums, hostas, and native Northwest plants, all reared on organic worm tea fertilizer. A dilution of liquid waste from the subterranean snake, worm tea safely promotes plant growth and can also be used in beating annelid drug tests. Many plants are cultivated on-site, including limelight hydrangeas ($32 for a two-gallon pot), sedums and other succulents ($2.95–$7.95 for 4-inch plants), and red dragon persicaria and maidenhair ferns (both $12.95 for a one-gallon pot). To help support the local economy, Village Green orders externally sourced plants from local independent growers. Wander the idyllic two-acre wooded lot, which also hosts honeybees, chickens, and classes such as "Making Your Own Medicine: Oils and Salves." Peruse accessories such as Vietnamese pots and vibrant sculptural items ($14–$350).

While parents shop, kids cans play in the bucolic setting replete with trees, wildlife, and a sandbox, but lacking a mystical fountain bubbling with the elixir of eternal youth.