Packing AVs for shipping

As Laurie was packing with me she said if Ebay seller would take this time and care to package .

I can attest to the care and detail that goes into Allison's boxes of AV's (not to mention the care and love in the growing). Now I have learned from the best! I have received lots from eBay sellers that were a mess. Others do good too but with a much different method. Cedar Creek is good and a few others too.

But when I got my 4 boxes which Ali and wrapped together during my visit, (two sets of two taped together) I was pretty worried about one. It looked like they post office gave it to the gorillas at the zoo to play football with. The sides were bonked and the corners all crushed. So I was cringing at the prospect of what happened to the AV's inside.

Believe it or not, not a bit of soil out of the pot, and the only broken leaf was one I broke as I was removing the plastic baggie. So there you have it folks. This method works even when the post office plays football with your box! =º)

When I wrap AV's next, I'll add some photos to the thread on how Ali does it.

Lots of great info here thanks for showing us the correct way of shipping...

Loretta..

It seems to me I've also seen some fluffy poly stuff (like the inexpensive fluff sold for stuffing pillows) used as a layer to keep soil in the pot as well as around a smaller plant placed into a cup... Does anyone see any problem with using that instead of or in addition to the paper towel that Allison uses to cushion the plant? I know you'd still need plastic around the pot to keep the rootball moist.

Jill I don't cushion the plant with paper towel . But Laurie and I was talking about that white stuff !
See I take a lunch baggie cut it open roll it into a strip and gently press it into the soil under the foliage to keep the soil in the pot and keep the foliage from rotting. Then I take another baggie and the pot goes into it and gently the bag is secured around the pots soil and taped. I use the paper twoel to hold the foliage in perfect order, so it won't rub agaisnt anything bruise or bend break. If the pot is 2 inch I use 3 paper towels 2.50 I use two paper towels. Now the foliage is standing up and protected. If the plant is small I slip it right into the cup pressing down inside with two fingers.( When the person gets their plant all they have to do is lift the paper towels out of the cup and the plant comes right along it's been secured in the cup but not tapbed into it . It's not going to move. I cover and tape another lunch baggie put some holes. When the box is package it is packed so nothing can move.
A larger plant the cup is cut opened and wrapped aroun the plant. Larger , large plants I use 2,3 or even 4 cups what ever needed to protect the plant. The Space babies I sent Deb grew so fast from the time I prmised her and it had been to cold to ship. The were large plant in 4 inch plants with those extra large wavy leaves not the easiest to pack. I think those three I put newpaper around to save room in the boxes but all got there safe she said I don't think a leaf broke. I saw her pictures looked like I handed them to her.
Each time I package I try to do it better.
Now that white stuff you mentioned I have got small plants with it. Like plants the size of a quarter very disapointing :( But any way I did not like the white stuff it got everywhere. It was funny Laurie mentioned this bfore I did . When we were packing. I agreed.
I have recieved too many yucky boxes, and took a long many months and care and hours of time and money to grow these many babies most pretty rare and hard to find not to try to ship them the very very best way I can :))

Yes Jill, I've received plants using this fluff or pillow stuffing type material. Seems cheap enough and yes it works. A bit hard to get all the stray fibers, but yes it works well to keep the soil in. I say use what ever you have that works for you!

Ali's system works great, and I think the baggies are quite a bit cheaper. But the fluff does a great job too.

Wish some ebay sellers knew better! I've received cooked plants, plants so small they had no chance at arriving in their pot (no roots! ) etc.

I have Robert pick up the large boxes of the cheapest lunch baggies :))
I have also recived way to many plants like you did say above Laurie. Even if they refund you your still out of the high shipping and no plant . And I had it happen twice , then I was out almost $20.00 in Shipping and no plants :((
Atleast with Vendors they will send new plants no extra shipping to me , or is they refund they refund the shipping also. It's not my fault if they ship plants soaked, cooked too close to heat pack, not packaged correctly to begin with . Why should I lose money on the deal ?
Jack now if you recieve plants from him in bad condtion he replaces them no questions asked, no pictures, no harrasment or nsty business , and he does not charge you extra shipping.
What is you get a bad box of plants and the seller says send them back they will refund then only cost of plants this is crazy ?
What if you get poorly packaged plants and in order to get new ones you pay the high cost of shipping again. Just say the second box is bad " Which I have had this happen to friends " Then your out two high shipping cost. When it all boils down you have nothing to show for your shipping money.
I say please package carefuly the way you would want to recieve your plants. :)) Please send clean leaves :)) Healthy ones too.

I did understand how you wrapped the plant in paper towel to protect the foliage... I do the same thing with all plants I ship (either paper towel or newsprint or even a coffee filter for little seedlings or cuttings), although I mostly ship bare root rather than in pots (will do pots for AVs from now on, though!). Sorry if my use of the term "cushioning" was misleading.

Well, some plantlets of the mini's that I'm propagating are more like the size of a nickle or a dime, but they have at least 8 leaves & a little tuft of roots... Are they too little to send in their 1 oz. cups? Should I grow them on and send them out in fall? Even some of my mini plantlets that are blooming are more like the size of a quarter (also in thumbprint pots)... maybe you were talking quarter sized standard plantlets that were disappointing....

I'm just trying to figure out how tiny is still OK to send.

Well for me it would be OK. I like growing them in the little Thumb Print pots. But for a Novice may not be good.
But Jill they fill those little cups super fast and it's only March 12th. :)) Arn't we shipping April 15th-the end of the month as some areas are still going to be very cold.
By then I bet your babies will double in size !

Trades are coming up ! Package with care please take time to look at this link and other packaging links in out sticky !

I think your babies grow faster for you! I've only had a few so far that needed to be up-potted from their 1 oz cups... most of the minis seem to take forever to fill even a little thumbprint pot with roots. The tops get bigger, but the roots seem to grow more slowly. I've started putting some three to a pot, even a thumbprint pot, when we're talking smaller plantlets (often there are a few tiny ones lurking in the pot when I pot up their larger sibs) & suckers, and even them it's another 6-8 weeks before they need separating.

On the other hand... some of my standards are growing very well already in 3 or 5 oz cups! I've got a dozen 'Appalachian Trail' plantlets on their own in larger cups, growing so well that they may need to have their crowns pinched soon (that should slow them down a little and make them start suckering/trailing also.. I'd rather not pack a huge plant). I've got another dozen pots with multiple 'AT' plantlets that need separating soon... I hope everyone will want one! LOL

Gosh I guess most of my babies do grow fast. I'm a lucky Duck !

I think you have some kind of green thumb (arm, elbow, shoulder etc)

The temp in your garden room is perfect too!

Yes but we worked hard all winter to keep it this as the room has no heat or a/c vents. We ran lights all night to help keep plants warm. And in the summer have to run the all night so the a/c does not have to work so hard . Laurie do you have a/c in your home ?

nope, this old house has no heat or a/c. We use a wood stove at one end of the house(liv. room) and only our living room has a window unit A/C for summer when the days get to 110º. Otherwise we bundle up in the winter and strip down in the summer.

Oh my goodness your plants will cook. If it goes over 80 I can't breath. Do you have ceiling fans? Out ome never had A/C and heat before. We had to get out electric up-dates and complete A/C heat punp system put in. There was wall unit here before also.

Yes I have a fan, but I'm thinking I'll invest in another A/C window unit. Actually, my bedroom stays the coolest of all the rooms because it's in the shade of a giant walnut tree. (the bane of my existance when it drops its walnuts and leaves, but I do appreciate the shade it provides)

does anyone like walnuts? we have 7 acres of them and I can't stand to eat them.

Oh my goodness Laurie you should sell them :))

No can do.

We did the math, by the time we hire the tree shaker, the workers to harvest, rent the huller to get the hulls off and then ship them to the packing house we were losing twice what the market value is/was. So we just let friends load up. Every once in a while a tourist will stop along the driveway and ask to pick.

My kids used to sell them for $5 for a grocery bag full but they don't do it anymore. There is a couple who own a school for mentally disabled kids and we let them pick all they can. They sell them at a fund raiser for thier school.

It's better if we just give them away and let anyone pick who wants to. (the hurt my mouth from the tannic acid, so I can't eat them)

I would die without AC - I'm not good with high humidity. I wish I had a wood stove. I love them, the sound, the smell and the warmth of a wood fire

Yes if I did not have A/C i'd not been able to breath. Even when I lived up North I had to have one. We grew up with it Dad liked the hime cold. lol

We don't even have humidity here. It's dry as a bone here! Like a hot oven in the summer!

I love the wood stove too, except during the summer when I have to split and stack the firewood. They say 'The woman who cuts and stacks her own wood warms herself twice!'

We keep the wood stove running all winter long since it's the only source of heat. I also keep a water kettle on top for humidity so my nose doen't dry up and crack off!

How cold does it get by you Laurie?

Our winters get to 26 at night. but average 36-38º

Laurie, how do you keep it humid enough in your house for your AVs? Our gas heat dries our house out, and I can tell that my AVs don't really like it when it's at its lowest.

A few ways, In my playhouse (detached building which houses my office, but quickly becoming a hot house!) I run a humidifyer when the level drops below 50%.

In my living room, I have a tea kettle (non whistling type) on the wood stove and in my bedroom which is the only other room with AV's I have a fish tank and the capilary matting when moist provides humidity. It stays around 60-65%

Does the fish tank really help with humidity? We have a 29 gallon that I have been threatening to get back up and running, but I just haven't done it yet. If that helps with the humidity level, that's a great motivator for me to put forth the effort.

Oh sure all those things help alot ! Even moist pebbles under your pots. And little cups of water.

I have most of mine on pebble trays, and others have small jars of water under and between them. I've got to buy more trays and pebbles so I can get the rest of them on pebble trays. I guess I'll start piddling with the aquarium, too. It is going right between the two windows that the AVs you sent me are sitting in, Allison. That should help them, I hope.
I dmailed you a few days ago, Allison. Did you get it? With all the computer problems I've been having, I wasn't sure that it actually was sent to you.

I think so I Dmailed you back a few times ?
I just love Kenton's aquarium with a grid and his wicked Av's on top and light on top of the Av'z. It's so cool. And he can sure grow those babies ! Fantastic blooms. I caught some in real beauties in the PF. I'll he;s doing it as soon as I can I'm going to put a bunch in the PF too !

I haven't gotten any dmails from you in the last several days - since March 13. I guess I'm still having computer problems. Makes me so mad. I'll dmail you again. I'll send myself a test dmail, too, if it will let me. LOL
I remember that thread with Kenton's aquarium, but I couldn't remember who had it til you said. I'll look it up and get some ideas from his. I could get my husband to put a shelf up just above the aquarium, too. Just what he needed - another project! LOL

Oh that's sound great and hang a light over the shelf ! Yippee ! Can't wait to see pictures.

Well, the water is going somewhere, into the air I suspect! because I have to add about 2 inches a week to the aquarium so I believe that's what is providing the bulk of my humidity. (plus the bathroom is very near and showers help too.)

Also, I've heard of people using blocks of Oasis soaked in water, and placed nearby to help with humidity. AND you can put your plants directly on top of the bricks so that should help (careful not to have them act as a wick)

All sounds like good hunidity ti me ! Sometimes I think we have more than we think !

Bumping up some shipping tips..though now I dont need insolation but with hot heat i use it too.

bumping up how i like to package plants for shipping
There was a link to this in sticky buts it's gone ??

Thanks for bumping this, Allison. This will be very helpful in the Spring when I have some plants to send to Joanne.

Don Ü