Art Knapp nurseries are well known across British Columbia as the place to go for high quality plants, shrubs, soils and fertilizers, as well as expert advice for everything garden related. The Surrey marketplace, however, stands alone as a unique shopping mecca.

It’s an eclectic collection of departments: one of the largest selections of specialty hot sauces you’ll find anywhere at our “Wall of Flame,” Department 56 collectibles, delicate soaps sourced from Italy and France, one-of-a-kind designer furniture, and boutique fashions and jewellery. Many sections are stocked with high quality, one-of-a-kind items discovered through small niche suppliers across the globe, with new shipments arriving daily.

Many customers discover us through our massive Christmas display — a huge selection of pre-lit artificial trees, rare varieties of live trees, high-end snow-flocked trees, themed ornaments and designer decorations — then keep visiting all year round.

And yes, we still have the garden department: healthy plants and shrubs, bagged soils, fertilizers, bulk landscape products, tropical and flowering plants, seeds and bulbs, pots, hardware and tools, and a knowledgeable team ready to answer your questions.

If you’re searching for a specialized gift or food item, a unique fashion accessory, or a one-of-a-kind decorative touch for your home or garden, visit Art Knapp Surrey — where you’ll also find an extensive selection of plants, shrubs and fertilizers, with expert gardening advice to go with it.

The area surrounding the store was once Mud Bay Village — a working farm with barns and out-buildings, a small church, and a one-room school house (since restored, it sits in its original location directly across King George Blvd from the store). For 100 years, three families worked this land between 1885 and the mid-1980s, running dairy and beef cattle and cash crops including potatoes.

• McBride family (1885–1945) — worked the land for 60 years, erecting a school and church and building a profitable farm.
• Cosens family (1945–1958) — purchased the farm from Bert McBride and farmed until 1958.
• McDonald family (1959–1972) — kept dairy farming going and produced in excess of 400 tons of potatoes annually.

The farm was sold in 1972; the land was purchased by the Greenbelt Fund, becoming the beginning of the Serpentine Fen. The small area of private land is now occupied by Art Knapp and the Vander Zalm family business ventures, while the bulk of the land is protected conservation area — the Serpentine Wildlife Area, roughly 71 hectares (176 acres) and home to more than 130 species of local and migratory birds and waterfowl.