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Re:Best way package plants for shipping?



>>Through trades, I have found plants fare best (and this agrees with his
post) when placed in a zip lock or bag of this type with some moisture, _no_
packing material around the plant (newspaper or paper towels), flat (don't
fill with air) and mailed as is. I always wrap packing stuff around the bags
and then place them in a priority mail box and send via priority mail--I
always envision them being crushed through handling, but I've gotten plants
placed only in bags, within the box, and they come through great. Far better
than when wrapped with paper towels or newspaper. The box is a necessity and
priority mail is probably best.<<

I have found it somewhat amusing in converstions like these that people seem
much more willing to cut corners in how they send plants by mail when doing
it themselves, than when buying it from a mail order business. If I sent
plants to my customers like what has been described, they would demand their
money back! Truth is that the plants just need to be kept from drying out.
Wet newspaper is the easiest way and the most common way to do this. Packing
material is more important to keep the plants from moving around in the box
while the USPS worker is throwing it around, causing breakage of leaves and
stems, than it is as insulation. Water in a plastic bag is useless because
most likely it will leak during transit.  Most plants can live for over a
week if kept wet and in the dark. Wrapping plants individually as opposed to
one pile in a plastic bag doesnt really make any difference one way or the
other. Either way, plants can suffer heat damage, and some delicate plants
may dry out while others do not. Plants actually fair much better in cold
weather than they do heat.

Robert Paul H
http://www.aquabotanic.com