I have been growing tropicals and tender perennials for years and shipng them all over the USA.
This year the heat in NJ , and I mean 90 deg. heat began in June and I have suspended shipments thinking it will get cool again. This is most unusual and I am reluctant to ship starter plants, especially those that must go bare root in this heat. Two days in a box in this heat makes it impossible to guarantee they will stay alive for the trip, then I have to replace them, etc.
Does anyone have any suggestions of what I can add to my packaging to insulate it from the heat?
Your suggestions will be appreciated. I heard someplace there was an ice pack for sale, but I can not seem to find a name. I would think an ice pack if not specifically for plants could do as much damage as the heat. I don't know and will be happy to listen to other suggestions. Thanks in advance.
Question regarding shipping plants during heat of summer.
i don't think they are "ice" packs as much as "cold" packs for shipping heat sensitive goods....you should be able to google "cold" packaging products etc and find something. and they do have ice packs but that could damage the plants the same as heat!
we just moved here from nj....and, of course it's hotter here.
i rec'd even an order from hawaii in excellent condition.
the one order i rec'd from ohio this week was just packed in 2 inch pots with peat dirt and shredded paper soaked with water then taped tightly with clear packing tape to hold the moist dirt and paper in place. it must have been over 99 when i came home and found them in a box on the doorstep...opened them and they were perfect.
actually here's a site....looks costly!
http://www.ipcpack.com/products.htm
This message was edited Jul 18, 2010 12:41 PM
JB, Dave packs his hostas so good that they always come thru good. I am sure they even would in hot weather. He wraps them in wet newspaper. Damp, wet? Ask him. Then he wraps that in plastic wrap, can't remember if it was bubble or saran. Ask him.
I don't remember if I have gotten them in the hot weather or not, but they always look so nice and fresh, just like a nice bouquet with sprinkles of rainwater on them. LOL, can you envision that?
Tell you what!! I am about as far away from you as anyone can get other than Hawaii or foreign. Send me a plant, packed however you normally do, (sorry, I can't remember how you wrapped Aimee), and at the same time, wrap one the way Dave does. Send them out in the same mail and I will tell you how they were when I got them.
Hey, I will even pay you for the plants. Your choice. Oh, and postage.
edited to add: Bet you will be surprised!
Let me know.
This message was edited Jul 18, 2010 9:52 AM
Tobee and Jen, thanks for the help. The link is great and I appreciate that. I have just decided to suspend shipping. Top Tropicals will not ship if temp is over 90 deg. either, so I guess I am in good company. I will look into the cold packing supplies because this is not our last of the heat. I am not really concerned since all of the people who ordered agree it is best to wait since these are starters, they will just get more of their monies worth when they do get them. Many of my plants in the greenhouse are not making it, but the real tropicals area thriving. Gardenias and Jasmine are having a ball. LOL
Thanks again. JB
JB, here are 2 pictures of my Aimee you sent to me I think around Feb. wasn't it?
One more, I thought the pointy things coming out on the new growth were going to be blossoms, but they were new leaves.
Do these want to be in the sun? Do they need a lot of fertilizer? If so, what kind and NPK?
She looks very happy and the pointy things should be buds. I am surprised they are leaves.
Wow, I learn something new everyday. The love full sun and lots and lots of water. You can fertilize when you fertilize your other houseplants and they will be happy with that. I am not a fertilizer so they are not used to too much. I use Miracle Grow when I think about it or they look like they need some help. She looks great. Was it just a starter plant when I sent it or was it bigger? I would love to send you one that I have started to make into a tree when the weather changes. They are so cool. They grow up and have all the blooms at the top.
I just came in from the deck. I had 20 christmas cactus cuttings in orange and fuchsia to put into the cocanut coir and I had to wait until the heat went away. Got them in, did a batch of my Grandmothers Pepper Pickles...nothing but vinegar, salt, mucho pepper and water....trick is to soak them in salt and alum for many hours. I hope they get as good as hers were. I get so hungry for a hot sour pickle since she is gone. We had a cook who could make them as good as Grandma but she is dead too. It just does not pay to live too long. LOL. Hugs and late. Going to eat a cheese steak stromboli. Burp!
OK JB, give me the recipe for the pickles. And what kind of peppers? And, where do you get alum? Come on, 'fess up. I want to know Grandma's Pepper Pickles recipe!!
Aimee was a starter. Doesn't she look happy? She is outside on my deck. I would love to have a standard. I will send you the money for one and the postage. Aimee would love to have a sister.
jb...no problem!! good luck with your shipping...it's a stuff year for many!
I think a great deal depends on if's it's "bareroot" vs. with soil, either in/out of the pot. I've had plants shipped in the heat and had no problems if they had soil/pots and were watered/misted before shipping. Bareroot seems to not do so well tho.
I received a bareroot Clivia the other day, but those things are crazy shippers, it did well, the same day I received "Congo Cockatoo" Impatiens and it looked as if it had come straight from hell! I watered it well and kept it inside for a few days while it perked up and it's good as new but I didn't think it would make it! It was a good 90 plus degree day!
How do you ship when its really cold?
Many mail order places don't ship in the winter. For the ones that do, I've seen them use little heat packs in the boxes to keep the plants from freezing
The same. You don't. I have lost 2 brugs shipped in winter from Florida.
edited: We crossposted
This message was edited Jul 19, 2010 8:52 AM
Thats the problem that I have experienced when it too hot or too cold. Even if the temps are OK here and at the final destination there can still be a problem somewhere in between.
That's right.
That's right. You don't know what is happening with that plant at all times.
Just heard from Onalee in FLorida and she agrees shipping "starters" in this heat would not be a good idea. She ships tropicals all year round except during some cold weather, but seldom does she stop shipping but her plants are well developed tropicals, not starters.
Why are several of these posts edited???????Did you do that yourself or are my posts all being censored? If that is the case, I am out of here. I do not use profanity in any posts on DG anymore. I do not need to be told twice.
LOL, JB, you have to see the reason for the edit.
If you are talking about the last one up there, that is my post and I edited it to add that we had crossposted.
But, I did it myself. I have not seen any edits on your posts, but if they were edited and it was not noted as that, just parts left out, we would have no way of knowing that.
Now, I just send some starters to Las Vegas where their lows are 91 degrees. It only took 2 days to get there, but it depends on how your post office handles them too. That lady is practically standing at the door waiting and her delivery lady knows that she gets a lot of plants so they are careful with them. Also, everything is air conditioned down there too. Anyway, they got there in good condition.
As long as you did it I am o.k, with that, I was about the blow a gasket. LOL...A bit testy today I am. JB
LOL, I edit my stuff a lot JB. "cause I always think of something else I want to say after I have hit the send button.
Guess I can add another post, but hate to take up that much space on some miner thing.
Jnette-at the top your post was edited before it was posted. How is that possible?
I'm really enjoying this thread I'm new to shipping plants and have posted many questions on the market growers forum, but have got more info here. You all can keep the advice coming I need every bit of it. I have an order going out tomorrow and I have the newspaper soaking : ). Since its almost 100* here the plants are use to the heat, but I'm not.
The time stamps on the posts themselves always are converted to your time zone so if someone posts something at 6 AM their time but you're an hour ahead of them, it'll show you that it was posted at 7 AM. But the edit times don't get converted, so if the person who posted at 6 AM their time (7 AM yours) edits their post at 6:05 their time, the edit time will show up as 6:05. So to you it'll look like they edited before they wrote it.
LOL, thanks ecrane3. I just thought I was quicker than the computer!! IS THAT POSSIBLE???? LOL, I don't think so. Darn!
Ilsac Don't get that newspaper too wet. You will have it running all over the post office. Sorry, but I am serious. Between damp and wet. Not runny.
1lisac, the edit message will not come up until AFTER you click on the send button. Just won't. It will NOT let me edit before the send function went into effect.
Don't know which it did, Ecrane's or mine. Either way, I am not going to lose any sleep over it.
Jnette-I understand after, just not before. I ve noticed the time thing on many posts not just yours
I don't want make anything run all over the post office.
1lisac, I am trying to get one of the DGers to give us some lessons, pointers, on how to package plants to mail because his always arrive so nice and fresh.
Would you be interested in joining in? No cost. I am finding more and more newbies, and actually some "oldies", lol, that are just starting out shipping plants. So, I think it would be a good idea for some of us to learn how it is done right.
Would you be interested? It would just be on another thread. If so, I will let you know when and where.
I'm interested! :)
Under guides and information on DG there is a very good article on "How to Pack plants for shipping by mail by Jill Nidolaus aka critter on DG.
There are so many things to consider when shipping that a forum on that subject may be a good idea. Tropicals are very different from regular annuals or shrubs, etc. Yet, they basically are shipped in similiar ways. I think the polymer moisture crystals are a great idea and I want to try and get some. That will help a lot I am sure .
I will share the pickle recipe privately. Do not want to clutter the forum with cooking. LOL
Have a good day. JB
You are so right JB. I will take a look at Jill's post. Maybe it is enough. Altho, as long as I have been on here I did not know about it so apparently not everyone has seen it. So I think your idea of a forum would reach more people.
Ok, now send me your pickle recipe. And I don't want any of this stuff like I do, a handful of this and a pinch of that. You hear????? You hear????
LOL
Jen, the forum was your idea, not mine. There is alot of good information on DG already and it just may be a repeat of it all. Pictures, etc. Jill's articles are really helpful. I love the way she explains things.
As for the recipe. That is the problem, I have only one amount on the recipe and that is that you use the same amount of vinegar as you do water. LOL.
I will see if I can at least give you a better idea than that. Sorry about that but that is the way they did it years ago. JB
jnette-I'm very interested thank you for asking and please count me in. as I said I have posted this question many times and never got a real answer. I've even looked on the plant trading forum, but since people pay for my plants I don't want a cheap way to ship but a cost effective way to ship and package. I do mostly veggie starts but I would do others if I felt comfortable with the method.
Even if some of the info is already on DG it would be helpful to have it all in one place.
Thanks,
Lisa
Do any of you use tracking #s?
This message was edited Jul 20, 2010 2:03 PM
JB, first of all, 5 posts up you said a forum on it would be a good idea. Maybe the forum wasn't your idea, but you sanctioned it. LOL
Second, I still cannot find Jill's post. I looked thru all of the headers up above, and nothing.
I have belonged to DG for 6 years and have never seen it. Maybe because of us newbies (whoops, just looked and didn't realize you would be a newbie too) they need to rerun it now and then and somewhere we can find it. Also, I think there is always room for new ideas. Like the polymer crystals (my idea). Maybe Jill has that in there.
For instance, if people like yourself, were to root cuttings for sale in water, (this doesn't mean you do) if they had those polymers in the water, the roots would grow around, and thru, them and when planted they could be planted as they were and the crystals would be good mailed, and planted right there in the roots.
I personally have had these crystals, 5#, for several years 'cause I bought them on a coop. This is the best use I have found for them.
Jnette- click on guides and information, then click on articles, enter How to Pack plants for shipping by mail. The article should come up. I don't ship bareroot so it wasn't what I need.
Lisa
I just read it Lisa, thanks. She does use the polymer crystals like I do. Funny, I have received a lot of plants but none have ever had them included. Guess that is why I didn't think she did if everyone on here uses her directions.
The only other way we differed was that I dampen the newspaper for the tops. I think the dry newspaper sucks the moisture out of the leaves. That is the way I have gotten them from Dave and they were just as fresh as if they had come out of a florists' keeper.
Sharon, how were the plants I just sent you? 'course they didn't take long, but they did go thru pretty hot weather.
I don't know, maybe a lot of it is luck. Just like I am beginning to think growing tomatoes is. My plants are gorgeous this year, but no fruit. 'course it has been so cold all year until this last week. Nights in the 40s. No bugs, no diseases, no fruit. Lots of blossoms. So, I am hoping that now that it is finally getting warm the fruit will come. Very disgusted. I guess the most obvious sign of the warmer weather is the lone cucumber plant has tripled in size this last week.
My main hope is that we will have a longer, later summer to make up for it.
Jnette-feel free to visit the tomato forum. Yes, your night time temps are too cold for most tomatoes to set.
Do any of you include tracking #s with your shipments? I hate to say this but the PO can be brutal to packages and sometimes the customer isn't very helpful either. I've had them blame me when the plants died 1 month later even though they arrived OK.
Sorry Lisa, I think you asked that before about the tracking numbers and I forgot. I have in the past used them, but the don't always work, because a lot of time they just say they are on time.
Yes, I have had plants sent from Florida go thru Anchorage and then were all crumpled up when they got here. However, the seller did not bother to wrap the roots at all. They were just plugs and she just threw them into a box and sent them. So, between her and the post office, they didn't have a chance. However, I don't think anything the post office could have done to them would have gotten them here alive. Not without something around the roots.
If a plant lasts a month, I would think it was probably pretty healthy upon arrival.
Guess we are all human and certainly not infallible. But, I think if someone is going to bother sending a plant that they should take the most care to do a good job. And, if a buyer is going to pay the postaqe etc. then they should be taking care of the plant.
Sorry Lisa, I think you asked that before about the tracking numbers and I forgot. I have in the past used them, but the don't always work, because a lot of time they just say they are on time.
Yes, I have had plants sent from Florida go thru Anchorage and then were all crumpled up when they got here. However, the seller did not bother to wrap the roots at all. They were just plugs and she just threw them into a box and sent them. So, between her and the post office, they didn't have a chance. However, I don't think anything the post office could have done to them would have gotten them here alive. Not without something around the roots.
If a plant lasts a month, I would think it was probably pretty healthy upon arrival.
Guess we are all human and certainly not infallible. But, I think if someone is going to bother sending a plant that they should take the most care to do a good job. And, if a buyer is going to pay the postaqe etc. then they should be taking care of the plant.
I have looked at the tomato forum Lisa thanks, but you know, there is only so much time a person can spend on the computer. LOL, I can't read them all.
I ship USPS priority mail for everything and find it very "plant friendly" but my boxes have stickers on them saying plants, etc. and my nursery certificate on them. They go all over the USA . 99% of the time they arrive in 2 days and no more than 3 days no matter where they go. If there is damage it usually is from waiting to be picked up after delivery. A few hours on a hot porch or step can really take its toll on the plants inside. All my plants have tracking numbers too but I have never had to use them. I request all my customers to reply upon delivery because I want to know how the trip was and was delivery o.k. If not I will change to UPS but until them I am happy with the USPS.
I have had good luck with the PO priority mail, when there is a screw up though I want to know if there is something I could have done different.
JB, there is a difference between you sending plants, as a grower, and someone else out here sending it like it is a book or a anything else. People don't always use a lot of sense. For instance, the one that orders a plant and then leaves it sitting on the porch in the sun for a couple of hours.
If I am expecting a plant, I want to know when it is sent so I know when to expect it, and I will see that I am waiting for it. All people do not do that, just like the people that just send plants once in a while, don't mark them as plants, don't let the people know when they are sent etc.
That is why I said that people are not infallible. We are not all robots. Where you are Top Gun in sending plants, you might not be in some other area of life. That's just the way the world turns.