Brookside Orchids

The hunt for a replacement for my mom’s lady slipper orchid is over! Thank goodness after driving and calling places all over the Bay.
Brookside is right off the 280 North, Alpine Rd exit. Very easy to get to and there is a large sign off the main road so you can’t miss it. Once you turn in you must drive up a small hill and there are maybe 10 parking spots total. This is where there sales shop is.
The selection they have here at Brookside is amazing I am sure that my mom will be back several times. Not only do they have several different common and rare orchids, they have air plants and other amazing greenery!
Lady Slipper Orchid: $ 18
Air Plant in seashell: $ 13 (Comes with drainage holes in shell already & wiring to hang somewhere.)
Service: Helpful and very knowledgeable but not over bearing. Definitely a good experience overall.

I like the plants. I even liked the out of the way location behind Webb Ranch. However, I do not like that they are overpriced. I am not comparing them to the stuff from the orient sold in the farmers market for a song. I mean for the higher end nurseries, this one is overpriced in my opinion. I find that true when they are at orchid shows too. The women working there extremely helpful. I will bite my lip about the rest.

Yes, the phal orchids were mostly generic ones but I did manage to find two unique ones and they had nice Sharry Babies. I bought one of those too.
The prices were very reasonable and the staff very friendly. For those of you who have never seen a greenhouse before, this place is really eye-​opening. Most of the area is not open to non-​employees but I was able to get into one of the growing ones to pick out a Sharry Baby and it was pretty cool inside. Then entire property is covered in stones so wear comfortable shoes.

Nice generic plants if that’s what you are looking for; sadly a waste of time if you’re looking for anything other than common phals, mass produced oncidium intergenerics or any of the budded plants that are available up and down the west coast shipped in from Carmela’s or Kalapana. The facility is nice and there seemed to be a great selection of other plants; apparently since few were in bloom, nobody would be interested in buying them; I got the feeling that they weren’t interested in a person browsing anything other than the benches and racks of the same 15 hybrids. Moral: if you are looking for a plant for the reception area in your office, you will find something; if you are looking to add to your greenhouse benches, save yourself the trip.

If you buy orchids at Trader Joe’s or at the grocery store, stop and go to Brookside instead!
Great selection of beautiful plants, with tons more blooms than you get just picking one up somewhere. And they are super-​nice and knowledgeable. I commented that I love the ladies’ slipper orchids, but am scared of them since they’re fussy. He gave me a mini-​lesson in which are hardest/​easiest to grow and the foliage difference between tropical and cooler-​weather orchids, and showed me a bunch of different orchids, including one that smelled exactly like coconut! See if you can get a peek in the other greenhouses in addition to the retail one, since there’s a lot to see.
If you are a true devotee, you can also bring your orchids here for boarding if you want to rotate through a selection and have some always blooming. I’m nowhere near that level yet, but with their help, maybe someday.

Great place! Recommended as the best place for orchids in the area by an expert.
It is hard to find, and the Google map was a little off, as it is a little bit north of 280, right before the on ramp, above the Webb Ranch. Go up the hill, and turn in front of the greenhouses.
They mostly seem to grow and sell wholesale, but they have EXTREMELY helpful and greenhouse knowledgeable staff who will help you find things and give recommendations. Many collectors come here for special plants, and they have a great range, as well as information about when they will obtain other plants not currently on display.
Their prices were amazingly low. Highly recommended.