GREENS AND SCENES

Rusel Ventura and Domingo Ramirez

By Tara Ryazansky

Photos by Erin Lewis

“This is my oldest,” says Domingo Ramirez proudly. “Her name is Julietta.”

“She’s beautiful,” says Rusel Ventura, his close friend of 10 years.

Ramirez isn’t introducing his child. The pair are talking about one of his many plants.

“Yes, we gender them,” Ventura says.

“They have a gender and a name,” Ramirez says. “And yes, I talk to them.”

Ramirez and Ventura are founders of Rudo Plants & Home, a potted plant and home décor business based in Bayonne.

“We both love plants and home décor,” Ventura says. “One day we were sitting on my couch. We just came from this store in Jersey City were we used to buy plants, and we were like, ‘How can we share our love of plants and home decoration with others? I think we can have a little small business doing this.’ That’s how the idea came up.”

“Both of us were furloughed from work at that time,” Ramirez says. “The name became RU for Rusel and DO for me. A customer told us that our name means love in an African language.”

Ramirez and Ventura were born in the United States but grew up in the Dominican Republic where they met at dental school.

They were trained in the Dominican Republic and are working on boards to practice dentistry in the United States.

“We share two passions,” Ramirez says. “Dentistry and plants.”

Rudo Plants & Home began on Instagram, where customers can purchase items with free delivery in Bayonne and Jersey City. Each week the pair drops an inventory list at @rudoplants.home.

Their items include dramatically draping plants in hanging containers like String of Fishhooks and String of Pearl and low maintenance options like Snake Plants and cactuses. Each plant comes with detailed instructions, and Ramirez and Ventura are just a DM away. They’re always available to help their customers keep their plants happy. “We don’t just sell you a plant and say byebye,” Ventura says.

The partners have teamed up with local businesses that host popup events. They’ve sold their wares outside The Little Boho Bookshop, Clutch Moto, and at other sites.

“People in the Bayonne community have given us a lot of support,” Ramirez says. “We have had a warm welcome in Bayonne.”

They hope to eventually open a store in Bayonne.

“I think it’s needed in Bayonne,” Ventura says. “We don’t want to just open a plant shop. We want to open a place where people can hang out with their friends.” Ventura has lived in town for almost fi ve years. “Bayonne is growing. I see a lot of businesses coming into Bayonne. The cafes, the bookshop, we didn’t have

those before. It’s important for the community to grow and expand, especially because we are getting a new population coming over; younger people.”

Rudo Plants & Home partnered with some of Bayonne’s newest buildings that are gearing up for that influx of residents. They have worked as plant stylists for the lobbies and model units of B22 and Bay One Luxury Rentals. They add greenery in a way that reflects their Rudo Plants & Home aesthetic, which they describe as minimalist boho chic.

Ventura and Ramirez add to the natural beauty of their plants by potting them in

cool concrete planters or boho baskets. They’re great gifts because of the attention to detail when it comes to presentation and packaging. They have added fresh and preserved bouquets that have the same high-end look, and have expanded to include outdoor plants as the weather has warmed up, and it’s gardening season.

“Taking care of plants became really popular during the pandemic because a lot of people were stuck at home,” Ramirez says.

“I think plants are therapeutic, especially now with the pandemic,” Ventura agrees. “You need to create a space that you feel comfortable in. You don’t only come home to sleep. You have to take a deep breath and relax around your plants.”

I can only assume that Julietta agrees.—BLP