Are there ever any begonia co-ops?
Lana
Begonia Co-ops?
I haven't seen one, but it would be super.
Sharon
I vote YES......As I just ordered 150.00 worth of cane begonias from Glasshouse Works....There seemed to be nothing else to do and I WANT BEGONIAS. Hope you all can get something going.....we will all be excited...someone told me they were in a tropicals co-op, but I didn't know what that was all about.....newbie to DG
Welcome to DG, Betty! It's a wonderful home for gardeners.
I wouldn't mind hosting a small(15 or 20 people) co op but I don't have the contacts with begonia growers to get a good price or even know where to start. I've participated in many co ops but never hosted one. If anyone has the contacts and would like to co-host a co op let me know. I'm mainly interested in foliage begonia's for myself.
Lana
I'd say the two biggest suppliers would be PHOE and Kartuz. Watch out for GHW (even though they show a large selection list) - it took them nearly 3 months to fill an order last year - they really have slipped out of favor due to this plus their mistakes in shipping the wrong thing. Other good places are Logee's, Rob's Violets, and Lauray. Logee's and Rob's have limited options but both are speedy and usually well grown (Rob's ships smaller plants but at much cheaper prices). Lauray has a large selection but ships small plants and a little on the slow side. Kartuz has had some delay in the past but this past year the delivery was very speedy and everything was filled to order (very good). PHOE has had problems with being a little slow and getting things wrong in the past but they have a very large selection and is a great place to visit (better deals if you buy in person but that's probably true for all these places). Hopefully their mail order has improved.
NC farms and Booman looks like they are set up for wholesale but the selection is limited. Terra Nova is very limited (3 varieties that I could see).
Who is PHOE? Is GHW Glass House?
Thanks,
Lana
I don't know what is going to happen, but Glasshouse Works told me that since I was willing to substitute some of the cultivars of begonias and coleus that they would throw in lots of extras....since I am a beginner (or new to them again after 10 years) I am thrilled. To get a lot of extra plants I don't care if it takes 3 months.....
PHOE is Palm Hammock Orchid Estates (it is probably in the sticky link and a lot of other threads). GHW is Glasshouse Works.
Yes, GHW usually throws in an extra plant or two which I always enjoyed even if they did get some items wrong. Three months is a long time to wait but it's your money. I'm just glad they don't do anything medical (you might be dead by the time they ship it). Hope they get their act straight this year. Their excuse last year was weather but other mail order places in the same latitudes had no problems (Logee and Lauray are in CT and Rob's is in NY and they usually shipped in one week, Lauray was a bit slower) - go figure.
Wvdaisy: Any thought on moving forward with a co-op? I'd be interested. Do any of the places that were named as suppliers offer quanitiy discounts?
I, too, would be interested in seeing what would be offered in a begonia coop. I recently rec'd my order from Glasshouse Works too, and it did take along time to rec'v my order. I just assumed they were doing like everybody else and waiting for the better weather to ship, so I had just accepted that. Now I wonder.
I ordered from Accents for Home and Garden (9 begonias) last week (3/29) and received them yesterday.
I ordered from GHW 3/15 and the stock answer is late April. Last year it was over 3 months.
I also ordered from Antonelli's 2/14 and am still waiting.
In January I ordered from Plants for Kids, Rob's Violets, and Kartuz within a day or so of each other. I received all the plants the next week.
I ordered from Logees the week after on a Wednesday (the second week in Jan) and got the reply back that it will be 7 to 10 business days. The very next day I got an email saying it had been shipped. I got that order on Saturday - that's right - four days from order date until it was sitting at the front door. That is the kind of service I like to see.
Butch, I bought a baker's dozen rhizo and canes from Antonelli's at the Garden Show a few weeks ago. All were on the small side and in 2" pots (but what's an addict to do? walk away? naw! I just figured they'd size up with some repotting and MG). The rhizo's had good size rhizomes (as if they were rhizome cuttings and not leaf starts) and the canes weren't too bad. Many had blooms but maybe they are waiting until they size up a bit?
Have you called Michael? he's the one growing them now.
Laurie,
For $5 a pop, I thought they may be on the small side. I sent an email to Antonelli's this past week about the status and then Michael called and left a message on our phone Saturday saying that 4 out of the 24 weren't available now and did I want to substitute. I called him Monday and left a voice mail and said I would leave it up to his better judgement on what to use for subs but that I was looking for hairy leaf shrubs (or canes?). Then I get an email from Linda two days ago that they are waiting for the plants to get a little larger. I will wait two more weeks and then start the process over again.
Accents for Home had plants in 4 inch pots, look pretty good, and are $4.95 a pop. Then they delivered in a week. Now if they just had a much larger selection, life would be so much sweeter.
I think I'm missing my calling. Note to self; Start a Begonias only Nursery!!
Go for it. If there was any money in it, I would try it but then I think about the tens of thousands of plants I'd have to start each year (and hope there are lots of buyers) just to make ends meet. I think I'll just be a hobbyist for now.
I haven't looked into it much. Have been busy with dog rescue, plant trades, etc. Does anyone know of anyplace that does wholesale begonias? Lali, I think you had a great idea!!!
Lana
gessiegail, did you get your order from glassworks. How did it turn out. tell us? I've been fascinated with that web site, but the watchdog and other reports scares me a little of them. Were they nice sized? healthy?
please let me know.
kathy_ann
Hmmmm, I see that bettygail has changed her ID to gessiegail.
I have ordered from GHW for a few years and they usually get things wrong and are a little on the slow side but they usually send freebies/bonuses (what is the difference between these two terms but that is the way they label them) and their mistakes are usually pretty nice unless you really wanted plant X. That is one of the reasons that has kept me coming back as a repeat customer.
Last year was another story - it took around 3 months to receive my order and their excuse was a little on the lame side (weather related - dark days, etc.) yet I got orders from CT and NY in a matter of a 2 to 6 weeks.
I did place another order with them a couple of weeks ago just to see how well they do this year.
WEll, let me know how the order turns out will you? I've never placed a plant order andhad it arrive in 6 weeks. usually 2 weeks is the max unless it's winter time, waiting for spring time.
kathy
I've left a phone message at Rob's Violets regarding a co-op/very large order. So just waiting to hear what he has to say. May contact a few others just for comparison.
Lana
I've sent emails to PHOE, Lyndon Lyon, and Logee's to see if they had any interest in doing a co op.
Lana
I started ordering from GHW back in '88 and I just like them....I don't care when I get something as long as I get a good healthy plant....they are in Ohio and not set up like a Logee's and they don't charge Logee's prices either.....I knew my order would be held up until April because of their weather in Ohio.....I don't want to rush anyway...we had almost freezing temps this past Easter weekend.
If I actually NEED something, I call Logee's...otherwise i am waiting happily
My order came in today from Antonelli's. The packing was a little loose but almost all the plants look pretty good (a few small ones were in the order). They actually added an extra 'Sylvan's Triumph' because they were so small (I guess that is why they did two). Check them out for a large selection and very low prices.
GHW has some rather pricey begonias, too. Logees has them beat on some selections so buyer beware.
couldn't find the web site for Antonelli's
Here you go:
http://www.antonellibegonias.com/catalog/
Go to Live Plants and select a category. No pictures but they should be correct.
thanks
I spoke to Rob at Rob's Violets today and while he was very nice I don't think he'll work with us on a co op. He does sell wholesale but we can't pick varieties ahead of time so don't think it would work :~( I really like his begonias and AV's too. Haven't heard back from any of the others I emailed so may call them soon.
Lana
Hi Lana and All,
Just throwing in my interest for a co-op. I'm just a beginner but would love to participate if it comes together and you'll have me. :)
La