What's the best way to package plants to mail?

Please give me some advice on the best way to package and mail plants.
Thanks!

I've been trading plants through the mail with my sister for quite a while now. I tend to wrap the roots or stems in paper toweling, wet it down, then place in a ziplock bag with some air in it.I pack all the baggies up in a cardboard box. The baggy keeps the moisture in so the plants don't dry out, and the air in the baggy pads the plants and protects them. So far it seems to work pretty well!
Kathy

It's maybe not a good idea to include the green bits of plant (leaves/new growth) in a plastic bag. If they're in the mail for too long, you end up with greeny-brown slime. Leaving earth on the roots makes it costly to post, so it's better to clean the soil off the roots gently first. Some states/countries won't allow any soil in anyway.

And if you're sending cuttings, I prefer them to be just twigs straight off the plant, with the bottom wrapped in damp paper towel and plastic, rather than ready trimmed. That way, the recipient can prepare them in the way they prefer, and the cut ends won't be dried out and the cutting maybe too small to use by the time they're trimmed again.

You can use a padded envelope, but I prefer a box for plants. Just think what the Post Office can do to an envelope.

Oh, and make sure the plants can't move about in the box. If you can wobble them, you can be pretty sure the post office will. I once received some small plants that had been packed in an empty plastic Coke bottle but not wedged, so they spent their journey being turned into compost. There was absolutely nothing recognisable by the time I got them.


This message was edited Saturday, Apr 21st 4:40 PM

This message was edited Saturday, Apr 21st 5:19 PM

I let the plants soak in water, clean off the roots and wrap in wet newspaper - it seems to hold the moisture better than paper towels - wrap just the newspaper and roots in plastic taped tight, wrap whole plant in DRY newspaper and box. This has worked really well with everything except the rose that I sent to Texas last summer. It took 15 days by Priority Mail - I think the pony must have died on the way!

I tried different things for potted plants, but the best for me is to cover the surface of the soil with styrofoam peanuts(or sphagnum, up to the rim, and then tape over them, to hold them in place. It takes about three pcs. of clear packing tape to bind it all down around the stem. Then, I take expanding foam, and put a dab on the bottom of the pot and stick it to the bottom of the box. I have a commercial foam can, that does not dry up if you don't use the whole thing at once. Then, I dump in more styrofoam till the box is full, seal and ship. I never have to buy the peanuts, I just save and reuse ones that I get.